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Galesburg Ghost Spooks Silver Splendor?

Is there a ghost haunting Tracking the Light?

Last week, reader Wayne Duffett asked about the ghost in my photograph of Budd Vista dome Silver Splendor that had appeared in my post titled Spring Classic Trains Silver Issue.

Ghost?

Indeed, a spectral face appeared in one of the windows of the car as it paused at Galesburg, Illinois at the headend of Amtrak No. 4.

Upon closer inspection, I recognized the ghost as poet and author Carl Sandburg.

The ghost of Carl Sandburg?

Not really, no.

I recalled that when Amtrak No. 4 paused for its extended station stop at Galesburg in November 2018, I briefly disembarked to make photos of Silver Splendor on which I was traveling. Across the tracks from the train was a huge mural that featured icons of Galesburg, including an image of Burlington’s Budd-built Zephyr, and a portrait of the famous writer.

Perhaps the ghost of the Zephyr reflected in the Silver Splendor would have been more appropriate? Boo!

This is the photo where Wayne noticed a ghostly visage in the window of Silver Splendor. (Look beneath the letter ‘N’ in Burlington.
A much enlarged version of the photo in question.
This is another image that I made in Galesburg during the No. 4’s station stop in November 2018.
Here is an enlarged version of the mural. Notice the portrait of Carl Sandburg at center left. This was the source of the visage reflected in the window.

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