FL9

While I was doing my four years at the O.U. campus in Norman (I’m sure our resident Texas Aggie can make something out of that), the Santa Fe depot was the social spot in town for me in the mid-1970’s.  Amtrak had to rename train #15 and #16 to the “Lone Star” after Santa Fe would not let them use the “Texas Chief” name.  While the times changed slightly over the years, invariably #15 would come south in the morning and #16 would run north in the evening.

Sometimes the monotony of SDP40F’s was broken by a welcome surprise, such as on 4/9/77 when ATSF SD45 #5504 did the honors on the point since the original Amtrak unit had been damaged in a colllision with a car up north.

A few weeks later on the morning of 4/27/77, things were back to normal as SDP40F #515 was on the point as the train pulled away southbound from the depot.  ATSF GP7 #2751 in the house track was the lead unit on the 1431 local from Arkansas City to Norman the evening before.  Now that #15 has passed, the 2751 and its two other units will put their train together and head back to Arkansas City as the 1432 local.

Now on the evening June 9th of 1977 the platform was a beehive of activity as #16 approaches for its station stop.  In those days many college students used the train to travel to and from Norman.  Notice how the original open-air north end of the depot has been bricked in to form a baggage room.

Two years later in 1979 I was loose out in the world, and the government had decided that Amtrak no longer needed the Lone Star.  October 1st marked the last regular runs, and I returned to the Norman depot to document the occassion.  My ATSF friends gladly opened the schedule board’s glass door so I could photograph it without a reflection.

No one minded when I got the box of stick-on letters and added my own personal note on the right side to honor the loss of an old friend.