Photo by Paul Fafrak.
On September 29, 1903, Towers 25 and 26 began operation as adjacent manned interlocking towers located approximately 1300 ft. apart along an east/west segment of the Texas & New Orleans (T&NO) Railroad north of downtown Houston. Both had electrical interlockers built by the Taylor Signal Company. Tower 25 was east of Tower 26 and controlled a crossing of the T&NO and the International - Great Northern (I-GN) Railroad. Its location in the northwest quadrant of the diamond is confirmed by the 1907 Sanborn Fire Insurance map of Houston. Tower 26, to the west, controlled the T&NO crossing of the Houston East & West Texas (HE&WT) Railroad's main line to Shreveport. Midway between Towers 25 and 26, a north/south segment of the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe (GC&SF) Railway crossed the T&NO. This was a northerly extension of the Santa Fe tracks in downtown Houston that were transferred to the Houston Belt & Terminal (HB&T) Railroad when it was established by Santa Fe and three other railroads in 1905.
Tower 26 appears in the northeast quadrant of the T&NO/HE&WT crossing diamond on the 1907 Sanborn map, the first Sanborn map issued after the towers were constructed. Sometime later, probably in the late 1920s, Tower 25 was decommissioned and its functions were combined with those of Tower 26 in a new tower located halfway in between, adjacent to the HB&T crossing. It is not known whether this was a new tower building, or a physical relocation of one of the two towers, but it was called Tower 26 until it was demolished in 2001. The precise sequence and dates of these changes are unknown, but RCT records show that the "new" Tower 26 took over the functions of Tower 25 on June 21, 1927. Both towers appear in their original locations on the 1924 Sanborn map, but on the 1951 map, neither tower appears at its original location and the the new tower appears halfway in between.
Over the years, the new Tower 26 took on additional control
responsibilities as other Houston-area towers were closed, replaced by remote
controlled electrical interlockers. Tower 26 took over the functions of
Tower 71
in 1930, Tower 210 in 1961,
and Tower 13 in 1966. The controls of Tower 207
(which still stands roughly 100 yards west of the original location of Tower 26) were probably transferred
to Tower 26 sometime in the 1960's. Tower 26 was eventually replaced by automated equipment,
probably in the 1980s, and was finally demolished on November 10,
2001. Due to its longevity, numerous photos exist of Tower 26,
but as yet, no photo of Tower 25 has been located.
Please contact us if you have a
photo of Tower 25 or additional information about these towers.
Above: The 1907 Sanborn map shows Tower 26 (magnified at right) in the
northeast quadrant of the T&NO/HB&T crossing.
Below: The 1907 Sanborn map shows Tower 25 (magnified at right) in the northwest
quadrant of the T&NO/I-GN crossing.
Above: The 1951 Sanborn map shows the new Tower 26 (magnified at right) at the
intersection of Burnett Ave. and Mary St. in the northwest quadrant of the T&NO/HB&T
crossing. The 1951 map also shows the two original tower locations as vacant.
Tower 25/Tower 26 Location Map
Tower 25/26 Area Satellite Image
This satellite image of the Tower 25/26 area shows the extensive changes that
have occurred in the 100+ years since the towers were commissioned. All of the
north/south lines are abandoned, replaced by a double track that enters the area
on the original I-GN right-of-way from the south and then crosses over to the HB&T
right-of-way to the northwest. This created a new crossing of the ex-T&NO tracks
east of Tower 26.
