Station: Fordney, Saginaw, MI

Fordney was a location on the south side of the City of Saginaw. The PM Saginaw Belt Line (N-S) crossed the MC/PM (E-W) line which ran between Paines and the west side of Saginaw. An interlocking tower was located here at the crossing of the several railroad lines.

Image Info: Top, a map drawn from a blueprint at the Michigan State Archives, c. 1915. [Dale Berry]. 2nd image, an actual blueprint of the crossing in 1948,

Notes 

The MC line through here (originally the Jackson, Lansing & Saginaw) was built in 1867. The Belt Line was built by the Flint & Pere Marquette in 1888. the crossing was named after Joseph W. Fordney, U.S. Congressman and a lumberman who had mills near this location.

From the beginning, this crossing was protected by an interlocking tower. The interlocking machine was of US&S manufacturer, and used the "wheel" method to set switches, locks, derails and signals. (See MAL crossing in Jackson County for a description of this unique form of interlocking). Five wheels were used to control six derails, six locks, as well as four "signals and indicators". [SMA-IF]

According to blueprints in the State Archives, the tower here was removed about 1943 and replaced with a stand-alone ground machine worked by train crews wishing to cross the MC Jackson Branch.

The PM Belt Line was removed around 1960 and the tower discontinued by this time.

Location: 43^o24.470'N and 83^o58.815'W. Northwest of S. Michigan Avenue and Stewart Street, Saginaw.

Time Line