| The fireman on Southern Railway train number 2, the northbound SOUTHERN CRESCENT, was leaning out of the cab of E8A 6910 to grab a set of train orders out of the train order stand at N.E. Tower in New Orleans. The stand also held orders for the train's brakeman and the conductor. Train No. 2 was nine miles and 25 minutes into its journey to New York and was powered by E8A's 6910, 6900, 6909 and 6903; a typical set of power at the time. N.E. Tower was built in 1953 as a part of the New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal project, but the first tower here was built in 1899 to protect the crossing of the Louisville & Nashville with the New Orleans & Northeastern. The tower was closed on 12 September 1990, when control of the crossing was transferred to the Norfolk Southern operator in Birmingham. |