Interlocking: Tappan Tower, Port Huron, MI

Tappan interlocking tower was a very busy crossing and junction of five railroad lines radiating out in eight directions.

• GTW main line between Port Huron and Flint
• GTW main line between Fort Gratiot and West Detroit
• PM's Almont branch from Port Huron to Almont
• PM's branch to Saginaw via Marlette
• PM's Port Huron Yard

Photo Info: Top, a photo of Tappan taken in 1893 with Amtrak proceeding west towards Flint. [Charlie Whipp]. 2nd photo, a winter scene with the C&O crossing the Mt. Clemens main line. 1985. [Charlie Whipp]. 3rd photo,  A Chessie train powered by B&O 4337 and 4195 heads eastbound across the GTW at Tappan in the 1980's. [Charlie Whipp collection]; a westbound GTW freight leaves tunnel yard past Tappan. 4th photo, DT&I 6415 leads a GTW train on the Flint sub in 1984. [Charlie Whipp]. 5th photo, a DTSL (Detroit & Toledo Shore Line) locomotive powers a freight westbound on the GTW Flint sub, crossing the C&O Port Huron subdivision (which heads off towards Saginaw) at Tappan. 1970's. [Charlie Whipp]. 6th photo, the inside of Tappan interlocking about 1985.

Notes

Westbound C&O trains received their running orders at the C&O yard office along the riverfront in Port Huron. There was no C&O train order board at Tappan.

All westbound GTW trains received clearance and orders at Tappan so they also had no order board for the opposite reason. Tappan was one of the few train order stations that had no order boards. Both comments on [FB] by historian Charlie Whipp. [CW]

Time Line

1914. The GTW installed a new 44-lever interlocking plant (41 working levers) at Tappan which included power operated distant signals. [TSE-1/1915][RR-1915-0102-15]