Completed in 1892, the yard in Elberta, MI. was a monumental completion for its time, as it marked an end to a 20 year struggle for the Ann Arbor RR to reach Lake Michigan. The main purpose of this yard was to allow for the transport of railcars to western ports on Lake Michigan by ferry. The Ann Arbor started with 2 ferries: Ann Arbor 1 and Ann Arbor 2, and they served 4 ports on the western shore. Over the course of the 87 years existence of activity in the yard, the Ann Arbor utilized 9 different ferries to cross the waters, and transported millions of carloads in that time. When the Ann Arbor declared bankruptcy in 1976, it was the beginning of the end for the Elberta Yard, and 6 years later, the last ferry docked and was emptied in the slip, and the ferry operations, and the Elberta Yard operation in essence, ended. About a decade later, the rails were all ripped up, the coaling tower demolished, the sand tower gone, and almost all trace of rail activity, with the exception of the turntable, which still exists on the site, the boat slips, which are also still intact, and the MV Viking, the pride of the Ann Arbor ferry fleet. A few years later, a park was built on the site and the MV Viking was towed away and cut up into a barge. Shown here in 1978, the yard was still busy under the guidance of the State of Michigan, but, a sad end was in store for one of the most beautiful spots on the former Ann Arbor RR. 35mm slide from my collection, photographer unknown.
