Indiana Rail Road
Item: 4-i Price: $95.00
Remarks: ca. late 1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
History
The Indiana Rail Road is a United States Class II railroad, originally operating over former Illinois Central Railroad trackage from Newton, Illinois, to Indianapolis, Indiana, a distance of 155 miles (249 km). This line, now known as the Indiana Rail Road's Indianapolis Subdivision, comprises most of the former IC/ICG line from Indianapolis to Effingham, Illinois.
The company was formed in 1986 by entrepreneur Thomas Hoback, who retired as president and chief executive officer in 2015. CSX Transportation now owns a majority interest in the parent company. The company's executive and administrative offices are located in downtown Indianapolis.
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Illinois Northern Railroad
Item: 9-i Price: $100.00
Remarks: ca. mid-1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Superb stamp marks and gold patina.
History
The carrier was incorporated May 15, 1901, under the general laws of the State of Illinois for the purpose of operating a railroad to serve various industries located in Chicago, Illinois. The once short line carrier was a corporation of the State of Illinois, having its principal office at Chicago. It was controlled by the International Harvester Company, the capital stock being held by individuals for the benefit of that company. The property of the carrier was once operated by its own organization.
The 2.38 miles of Chicago area trackage was formerly trackage of the Illinois Northern Railway (INR), a switching carrier owned by International Harvester (IH). IH sold its capital stock in the INR to a group of railroads, one of which was the Atchison-Topeka & Santa Fe Railway Company (ATSF). Later, ATSF, now Burlington Northern Santa Fe acquired all of the former INR interests in the Chicago area.
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Iron Railroad
Item: 11-i Price: $145.00 $120.00
Remarks: ca. mid-1900s
Very nice stamp marks and
two-tone gold patina.
History
The Iron Railroad began operation in 1851 as part of the Detroit, Toledo and Ironton (DT&I). The Iron railroad was constructed along a 13-mile stretch from Ironton north to Center Iron Furnace. The railroad was built by the owners of the iron furnaces in northern Lawrence County to transport their pig iron to the Ohio River and bring supplies back to the furnaces.
By 1892, it was known as the Iron Railway and established a barge service to transport its cars across the Ohio River. In 1920 its stock was purchased by Henry Ford who, over the next 9 years, assured the financial future of the railroad. Nonetheless, in 1929, Ford sold his railroads, including the Iron Railroad, and though it changed hands a few times, it eventually declined and ceased operation in the 1970s.
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Illinois Central Railroad
Item: 16-i Price: $145.00
Remarks: ca. 1800s
Forged by the S. O'Neill Co.
One of the earliest IC keys to date.
Nice tapered barrel and superb gold patina.
Gotta love the serial #77 - 125 year+ centenarian!
Early i stamp on key mirrors the IC pictured logo.
History
Chartered in 1851, the Illinois Central Railroad, sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, was (now CN owned) a railroad in the central United States, with its primary routes connecting Chicago, Illinois, with New Orleans, Louisiana, and Mobile, Alabama. A line also connected Chicago with Sioux City, Iowa (1870). There was a significant branch to Omaha, Nebraska (1899), west of Fort Dodge, Iowa, and another branch reaching Sioux Falls, South Dakota (1877), starting from Cherokee, Iowa. The Sioux Falls branch has been abandoned in its entirety.
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Illinois Central Railroad
Item: 17-i New Listing Price: $85.00
Remarks: ca. post 1930
Forged by the Fraim Co.
Great stamp marks and gold patina.
80 year+ octogenarian Fraim novelty!
History - continued from above
The IC is one of the early Class I railroads in the US. Its roots go back to abortive attempts by the Illinois General Assembly to charter a railroad linking the northern and southern parts of the state of Illinois. In 1850 U.S. President Millard Fillmore signed a land grant for the construction of the railroad, making the Illinois Central the first land-grant railroad in the United States.
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Illinois Central Railroad
Item: 18-i Price: $95.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Superb stamp marks and gold patina.
History - continued from above
The Illinois Central was chartered by the Illinois General Assembly on February 10, 1851. Senator Stephen Douglas and later President Abraham Lincoln were both Illinois Central men who lobbied for it. Douglas owned land near the terminal in Chicago. Lincoln was a lawyer for the railroad. Upon its completion in 1856 the IC was the longest railroad in the world. Its main line went from Cairo, Illinois, at the southern tip of the state, to Galena, in the northwest corner. A branch line went from Centralia, (named for the railroad) to the rapidly growing city of Chicago. In Chicago its tracks were laid along the shore of Lake Michigan and on an offshore causeway downtown, but land-filling and natural deposition have moved the present-day shore to the east.
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Illinois Central Railroad
Item: 19-i Price: $150.00
Remarks: ca. 1800s
Forged by the Adams & Westlake Co.
Early A&W hex stamp = 1st series.
Superb stamp marks and gold patina.
125 year+ centenarian beauty!
History - continued from above
In 1867 the Illinois Central extended its track into Iowa, and during the 1870's and 1880's the IC acquired and expanded railroads in the southern United States. IC lines crisscrossed the state of Mississippi and went as far as New Orleans, Louisiana, to the south and Louisville, Kentucky, in the east. In the 1880s, northern lines were built to Dodgeville, Wisconsin, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and Omaha, Nebraska. Further expansion continued into the early twentieth century.
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Illinois Central Railroad
SOLD Price: $95.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Superb stamp marks and dark caramel patina.
History - continued from above
On August 10, 1972, the Illinois Central Railroad merged with the Gulf-Mobile & Ohio Railroad to form the llinois Central Gulf Railroad. On October 30 that year the Illinois Central Gulf commuter rail crash, the company's deadliest, occurred. On February 11, 1998 the IC was purchased by the Canadian National Railway (CN) with the integration of operations beginning on July 1, 1999.
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Illinois Central Railroad
Item: 21-i New Listing Price: $115.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s
Forged by the Adams & Westlake Co.
Superb stamp marks and gold patina.
100 year+ centenarian!
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Illinois Central Railroad
Item: 22-i Price: $120.00
Remarks: ca. post 1930
Forged by the Fraim Co.
Superb stamp marks and copper patina.
80 year+ octogenarian Fraim novelty!
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Illinois Central Railroad
Item: 23-i Price: $110.00
Remarks: ca. post 1930
Forged by the Fraim Co.
Nice stamp marks and superb gold patina.
80 year+ octogenarian Fraim novelty!
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Illinois Central Railroad
Item: 24-i Price: $150.00
Remarks: ca. 1800s
Forged by the Adams & Westlake Co.
Early A&W hex stamp = 1st series.
Superb stamp marks and caramel patina.
125 year+ centenarian beauty!
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Illinois Central Railroad
Item: 25-i Price: $55.00
Remarks: ca. pre-1972
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice stamp marks and gold patina.
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Illinois Central Railroad
Item: 26-i Price: $55.00
Remarks: ca. mid-1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice stamp marks and gold patina.
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Illinois Central Railroad
Item: 27-i Price: $75.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice stamp marks and gold patina.
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Illinois Central Railroad
Item: 31-i Price: $95.00
Remarks: ca. early/mid-1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Superb stamp marks and copper patina.
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Illinois Central Gulf Railroad
Item: 33-i Price: $65.00
Remarks: ca. post 1972
Keline forged.
Superb stamp marks and two-tone patina.
Nice looking key!
History
llinois Central and parallel Gulf, Mobile & Ohio merged on August 10, 1972, to create the Illinois Central Gulf Railroad, a wholly owned subsidiary of Illinois Central Industries. GM&O was a likely merger partner for Illinois Central, as it was a north-south railroad through much the same area as IC. As part of the merger, ICG took over three Mississippi lines: Bonhomie & Hattiesburg Southern; Columbus & Greenville; and Fernwood, Columbia & Gulf.
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Illinois Central Gulf Railroad
Item: 34-i Price: $65.00
Remarks: ca. post 1972
Keline forged.
Great stamp marks and patina.
History - continued from above
On Feb. 29, 1988, the railroad changed its name back to Illinois Central, having divested itself of nearly all the former GM&O routes it acquired in 1972, when it added “Gulf” to its name. IC managers eventually turned their eyes west, to the Chicago, Central & Pacific, which it had sold in 1985. It saw CC&P’s route as a source of grain traffic and perhaps a way to get some of the coal moving east from Wyoming. In June 1996 IC purchased the CC&P.
In February 1998 Canadian National Railway agreed to purchase the IC, creating a 19,000-mile railroad. CN absorbed IC in July 1999, and IC lost its own identity within the CN system.
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International & Great Northern Railroad
Item: 38-i Price: $125.00
Remarks: ca. late 1800s
Nnice serif stamp marks and
two-tone patina. Early MoPac style cut.
125 year+ centenarian!
History
The International Great Northern Railroad (I&GN) was a railroad that operated in the U.S. state of Texas. It was created on September 30, 1873, when International Railroad and the Houston & Great Northern Railroad merged. The railroad was officially incorporated as the International & Great Northern Railroad Company. Originally, the I&GN operated 177 miles of track from Hearne to Longview, but at its peak it owned 1,106 miles of track. As the railroad expanded, it reached Rockdale in 1874 and Austin on December 28, 1876. The line extended to San Antonio in 1880 and finally to the US-Mexican border town of Laredo on December 1, 1881.
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International & Great Northern Railroad
Item: 39-i Price: $85.00
Remarks: ca. early/mid-1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice stamp marks and gold patina.
MoPac style cut.
80 year+ octogenarian!
History - continued from above
In a bit of planned corporate maneuvering to keep the I-GN within the Mopac fold, the Gulf Coast Lines subsidiary, New Orleans, Texas and Mexico Railway, bought the I-GN on June 30, 1924; subsequently, the Gulf Coast Lines were bought by the Missouri Pacific on January 1, 1925. Finally, on March 1, 1956, all of the GCL subsidiaries were merged into the parent Missouri Pacific Railroad Company, and the I-GN ceased its corporate existence.
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International & Great Northern Railroad
Item: 42-i Price: $75.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s
Nice stamp marks and dark patina.
Original style cut. Great serial #1921
80 year+ octogenarian!
History - continued from above
The International and Great Northern Railroad was incorporated by the state of Texas on August 17, 1922, and fully took over operation of the International & Great Northern Railway on December 31, 1922. In a bit of planned corporate maneuvering to keep the I&GN within the Mopac fold, the Gulf Coast Lines subsidiary, New Orleans, Texas and Mexico Railway, bought the I&GN on June 30, 1924; subsequently, the Gulf Coast Lines were bought by the Missouri Pacific on January 1, 1925. Finally, on March 1, 1956, all of the GCL subsidiaries were merged into the parent Missouri Pacific Railroad Company, and the I&GN ceased its corporate existence.
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International & Great Northern Railroad
Item: 43-i Price: $85.00
Remarks: ca. early/mid-1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Original style cut.
Nice stamp marks and gold patina.
80 year+ octogenarian!
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International & Great Northern Railroad
Item: 44-i Price: $85.00
Remarks: ca. early/mid-1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Original style cut.
Nice stamp marks and dark patina.
80 year+ octogenarian!
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Ironton Railroad Co.
Item: 45-i Price: $115.00
Remarks: ca. 1904-21
Forged by the S.R. Slaymaker Co.
Nice serif stamp marks and patina.
100 year+ centenarian beauty!
History
The Ironton Railroad, originally incorporated on March 4, 1859 was built to haul iron ore from the mines at Ironton to iron furnaces along the Lehigh River. The rapid growth of the Lehigh Valley iron industry during the 1850s had resulted in a mining boom, but the heavy ore traffic was highly destructive to local roads.
In 1884, shortly after its purchase by Thomas Iron, the first shipment of Portland cement was made over the railroad. Extensive cement deposits lie in the vicinity of the line, and cement became an increasing part of the railroad's traffic. This proved to be its saving grace as the local iron mining industry began to decline. The Siegersville Branch was cut back from Orefield to Siegersville sometime between 1876 and 1900. However, passenger service began on the railroad on November 1, 1898.
The Ironton became the joint property of the Reading and Lehigh Valley Railroads in November 1923.
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Indiana Harbor Belt Railway
Item: 47-i reward key Price: $95.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Attractive stamp marks and superb patina.
80 year+ octogenarian!
History
The Indiana Harbor Belt as we know it today was formed in 1907. The Chicago Junction Railway, a New York Central affiliate, had leased the East Chicago Belt Railroad and the Terminal Railroad in 1898, and had bought the Chicago, Hammond & Western Railroad in 1896. In October of 1907, the ECB's lease was dissolved, and it then acquired the CJ's interest in CH&W and assumed control of the Terminal Railroad as well. The new company was named the Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad. Although not a signatory, the New York Central provided the financial backing and quietly orchestrated the entire transaction, reserving trackage rights over all routes of the new railroad.
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Indiana Harbor Belt Railway
Item: 48-i Price: $25.00
Remarks: ca. mid-1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Very nice stamp marks and copper patina.
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Indiana Harbor Belt Railway
Item: 49-i Price: $25.00
Remarks: ca. mid-1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice stamp marks and gold patina.
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Indiana Harbor Belt Railway
Item: 50-i Price: $25.00
Remarks: ca. mid-1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice stamp marks and gold patina.
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Indiana Harbor Belt Railway
Item: 51-i Price: $25.00
Remarks: ca. mid-1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice stamp marks and gold patina.
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Indiana Harbor Belt Railway
Item: 52-i Repair Track Price: $75.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice stamp marks and caramel patina.
Key has the same style bit as a Clinchfield key
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Illinois Terminal Railroad
Item: 55-i New Listing Price: $85.00
Remarks: ca. post 1937
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice stamp marks and gold patina.
History
The Illinois Terminal Railroad, known as the Illinois Traction System until 1937, was a heavy duty interurban electric railroad with extensive passenger and freight business in central and southern Illinois from 1896 to 1982. When Depression era Illinois Traction was in financial distress and had to reorganize, the Illinois Terminal name was adopted to reflect the line's primary money making role as a freight interchange link to major steam railroads at its terminal ends, Peoria, Danville, and St. Louis. Interurban passenger service slowly was reduced, and it ended in 1956. Freight operation continued but was hobbled by tight street running in some towns requiring very sharp radius turns. In 1986, ITR was absorbed by a consortium of connecting railroads.
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Illinois Terminal Railroad
Item: 56-i Price: $75.00
Remarks: ca. post 1937
Nice stamp marks and patina.
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Illinois Terminal Railroad
Item: 57-i New car key Listing Price: $165.00
Remarks: ca. post 1937
Forged by the Handlan Co.
Superb stamp marks and gold patina.
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Illinois Traction System
Item: 58-i New car key Listing Price: $145.00
Remarks: ca. pre-1937
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Pocket-worn stamp marks and gold patina.
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Indianapolis Union Railway
Item: 60-i Price: $120.00 $110.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s
Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice stamp marks and gold patina.
80 year+ octogenarian!
History
The Indianapolis Union Railway Company is a terminal railroad operating in Indianapolis, Indiana. It was organized on May 31, 1850, as the Union Track Railway Company by the presidents of the Madison and Indianapolis Railroad (M&I), the Terre Haute and Richmond Railroad (TH&R), and the Indianapolis and Bellefontaine Railroad (I&B) for the purposes of establishing and operating joint terminal facilities in Indiana's capital city. The name of the company was changed to its present one on August 12, 1853. The next month, on September 20, Indianapolis Union Station opened its doors, becoming the first union railroad station in the world. Since 1999, the company has been owned and operated by CSX.
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J
Jersey Central Lines (Central R.R. of NJ)
Item: 1-J Price: $50.00
Remarks: ca. mid-1900s
Nice stamp marks and caramel patina.
80 year+ octogenarian!
History
The Central Railroad of New Jersey, also known as the Jersey Central or Jersey Central Lines (CNJ), was a Class I railroad with origins in the 1830s. The line was absorbed into Conrail in April 1976 along with several other prominent bankrupt railroads of the northeastern United States.
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Jersey Central Lines (Central R.R. of NJ)
Item: 2-J Price: $75.00
Remarks: ca. mid-1900s
Very nice stamp marks and gold patina.
80 year+ octogenarian!!
History - continued from above
The earliest railroad ancestor of the CNJ was the Elizabethtown & Somerville Railroad, incorporated in 1831 and opened from Elizabethport to Elizabeth, New Jersey in 1836. Horses gave way to steam in 1839, and the railroad was extended west, reaching Somerville at the beginning of 1842. The Somerville & Easton Railroad was incorporated in 1847 and began building westward. In 1849 it purchased the Elizabethtown & Somerville and adopted a new name: Central Railroad Company of New Jersey.
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Switch Key Directory
American Railway's Switch Key Directory
Price: HC-$25.00 | CD-$35
Whether you're just starting out collecting switch key's or you have been a collector for many years, this 44-page switch key directory is a useful tool. Although, it does not list every railroad key there is, the directory has a 3-D diagram for the most common railroad keys in the collectors circle. With a CD, you can copy the directory to your hard drive and view and enlarge the pages on your computer screen. Price does not include shipping fees.
Upon request, I will "three ring" the pages for a book binder.
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Don Stewart's Railroad Switch Keys and Padlocks
Switch Keys and Locks Directory
Price: HC-$65.00 | CD-$55
One of the lesser known railroad directories is Don Stewart's Railroad Switch Keys and Padlocks Directory. The book includes 56 pages of switch key pictures, 12 pages of switch lock pictures, 12 supplemental pages including, 2 Canadian key picture pages and 32 pages of railroad names. It's another handy tool for beginners and even veteran collectors. The book contains 117 pages in all and is a ink jet printed copy of the original book. As noted, the CD copy is less expensive than a hard copy. The reason; printer ink and paper prices. With a CD, you can copy the directory to your hard drive and view and enlarge the pages on your computer screen. Price does not include shipping fees.
Upon request, I will "three ring" the pages for a book binder.
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Dates quoted for keys are approximate dates. Railroad switch keys initials (reporting mark) are assumed to be correct and accurate.
Comments on any railroad initials origin, including (typos), are welcome. Last update 07/31/2025
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