In reading a series of 1957 Railway Age magazines, I discovered the existence of an attempt to create a nuclear powered loco. There were great hopes that this would revolutionize rail transport. We also need to remember that this was an era when nuclear power promised power too cheap to meter and nuclear powered airplanes. Sadly the engineering of these devices never solved the problem of waste and crashes. The safest place for nuclear power is in the sun. The traditional fossil fuel, and current alternative energy sources, all are extensions of that sun power. I am also finding a tremendous resource for understanding the political and economic history of post WW2 railroading by reading these issues. In addition, my original intent of understanding early TOFC methods and details are being fulfilled. There are many references to the various threads of this emerging technology in stories, news items and ads. The Railway Age archives are extremely interesting. ( I am having trouble finding a link to the archives to post)
Neat stuff Tom! I find old rail magazines more interesting than new magazines. The college I attended had a trove of very old rail trade magazines in a library basement and I spent far too much time down there.
