Norris Steam Restoration Shop, Norris Yards, east of Ruffner Road, Irondale, Jefferson County, AL. Surveyed as HAER ALA,37-IRON,3-, with a 287-word written history.
“Norris Steam Restoration Shop, Norris Yards, east of Ruffner Road, Irondale, Jefferson County, AL”
Survey record header. Machine-read text.
Surveyed by the federal HAER program as HAER ALA,37-IRON,3- · the record runs 287 words · one of 208 surveyed structures published for this county.
The headings the report itself prints. Each one jumps to where it begins.
Source document Quoted word for word from HAER ALA,37-IRON,3-. Not written, edited or summarised by this site.
This report is based upon written documentation donated by the Birmingham Historical Society, reformatted to HABS/HAER guidelines.
Description
The site contains switching yards, towers and the steam restoration shop. Norfolk Southern owns a Norfolk & Western No. steam locomotive; a Chesapeake & Ohio No. locomotive and leases a Norfolk & Western No. 611 engine. These are maintained in the shop and leased for rides across the South.
Historical Overview
In Southern Railway (now Norfolk Southern) constructed one of the first automatic switching yards in the South, naming it for Ernest Norris, a former president of Southern Railway. The yard is still in active use and includes one of only two Class A Steam Engine Restoration Shops in the nation. Sources consulted White, Marjorie, The Birmingham District, p. 230 Site Visits, Summer & Winter Yuill, Bob, Interview with Marjorie White,
| Irondale, Alabama | The place record: every map, photograph and survey of this town. |
| Jefferson County, Alabama | 218 topographic sheets across the county. |
| Library of Congress record | The original filed report as the survey filed it. |
The federal surveyors worked through Irondale building by building. These are the other structures they measured and filed a report on, longest report first.
| Sheet | Structure | Survey | Report |
|---|---|---|---|
| Norfolk & Southern Steam Locomotive No. 1218 | HAER ALA,37-IRON,1- | 48 words | |
| Norfolk & Southern Steam Locomotive No. 611 | HAER ALA,37-IRON,2- | 46 words |
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