The cover of the Southwest Railroad Historical Society's The Clearance Card was used with permission.
The historic location of Tower 57 was somewhat elusive to research. The Interlocking Table from the December 30, 1993 publication of The Clearance Card from the Southwest Railroad Historical Society (operators of the Age of Steam Museum in Dallas) has the following note about Tower 57: "Predated and located within the current Union Terminal Complex. Exact location unknown."
Then in Spring, 1997, The Clearance Card published the following photo on its cover with this caption: "The photo came from the Layland Museum in Cleburne. The photo caption (on the back of the original) read 'Santa Fe Interlocker, Water Street tower and Oak Cliff Viaduct, Dallas, March 1911.' " It noted that Water Street paralleled the Trinity River near Houston Street, and the viaduct that was under construction in the photo [behind the tower] is now called the Houston Street Viaduct.
This photo only helped to cloud the issue of Tower 57's exact location. It also raised the question as to why the is tower being raised in height. After this photo was published, long time Dallas resident Bill Bentsen provided the following photo and information:
Second, we know that Union Terminal Company was opened in October 1916 (Handbook of Texas), and we also know that North Tower (Tower 106) opened 4/26/1916 and South Tower (Tower 107) opened 10/??/1916 per the Interlocking Table from The Clearance Card. Logic would say that Tower 57 was no longer necessary after Union Terminal (UT) Company opened because the new North and South Towers would take its place. So, it should be visible in the photograph (displayed above) from Dallas Rediscovered.
I don't know where Water Street would have been. However, the text on your picture of Tower 57 does say that Water Street "was a street paralleling the Trinity River near Houston Street, and the viaduct that was under construction in the photo is now called the Houston Street." Therefore, Water Street should have been between Houston St. and the Trinity River, and it wasn't shown on a Dallas map c.1925 -- thus, it must have been where the Union Terminal Company trackage was built -- and Tower 57 must have been removed between the time it was photographed in 1911 and when UT Company was completed in Oct. 1916. So, the picture in Dallas Rediscovered from c. 1915 (which shows Union Terminal Company under construction but not yet completed) must have had a picture of Tower 57.
I took a closer look at this photograph from Dallas Rediscovered, and, guess what? Yes, there is a tower-like building right next to the Houston Street viaduct's west side, just south of the bend in the viaduct. The picture is "c. 1915," but it might actually be after 4/26/1916 -- when North Tower opened and before Oct. 1916 when UT Company opened; thus, North Tower might be handling the interlocking chores of Tower 57 by then (why else would there be such a time lapse from 4/26/1916 when North Tower opened and Oct. 1916 when UT Company opened? Perhaps that was the time frame when Tower 57 was dismantled and the completion of the UT Company tracks before opening of the terminal).
I'm enclosing a cut from the large photo. This cut shows what I'm talking about. You'll need to imagine standing on a higher floor on the south side of the old red courthouse at Main and Houston and looking southward along Houston street (the white street prominent in the photo). Look along the viaduct portion to where the street turns southward to Oak Cliff. Right in the middle of the tracks and right beside the viaduct is a tower-like structure -- dollars to doughnuts, it's Tower 57.
Picture
of Houston St. viaduct with probable Tower 57, c. 1915, enlarged
greatly to show detail of probable tower.
Enlarged photo taken from the book, Dallas Rediscovered, published
by the Dallas Historical
Society, 1978.
All the above caused Jim King to dig further in his collection of old issues of "Stack Talk" another publication of the Age of Steam. He found the following photo from the June 97 issue:
The caption in Stack Talk states that this is an undated post card showing the Dallas County Viaduct (now Houston Street), probably taken around 1912. This is the clearest indication of exactly where Tower 57 stood. During the construction of the Houston Street Viaduct, the tower elevation had to be increased for the tower operator to see over the new bridge. If this post card photo were taken today, Dallas Reunion Arena would appear at the right edge of the photo and the adjacent Reunion Arena parking garage would appear where there tower is located.
