Photo by Myron Malone
Tower 29 was usually referred to as Saginaw Tower. It was located in Saginaw, Texas at the far north end of the ATSF Saginaw yard. Photo dated November 1978.
Tower 29 was a Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific tower. The sign on the South face of the tower has either faded or been touched up, but there was a Rock Island emblem there. Being a Rock Island tower, it was operated by RI personnel. I've been up in it many times when being held there for congestion. The Operator that worked the tower had phone access to all three Dispatchers ... RI, ATSF and FWD ... and he handled and delivered train orders to all three railroads. ATSF crossed the RI and FWD at this tower and continued on practically due North toward Gainesville. RI turned back toward the Northwest and paralleled the FWD for about 7 miles to just North of Hicks. Text by longtime Rock Island locomotive engineer Joe Rayburn.
Website reader Willie Kirby wrote:
"I had the job of removing the equipment in Tower 29.
The Order board on the Rock Island went to the Texas State Railroad
and I have the 2 order board levers with the "North"
& "South" marked on them. The TSRR got a lot of
the equipment. When I finished the removal part, the Burlington
Northern Railroad sent a person out to burn the tower down. Somebody
beat me to the "scissor phone". It was about 1985 or
1986 when I completed the job."
Tower 29 was closed and torn down in March 1985.
