| A CN local parallels E. Eagle Flats Pkwy. (originally Railroad Ave.) as it pulls 4 boxcars westward through 'The Flats' via former C&NW rails at Appleton, WI on 20 Oct. '18. Train was heading back to the yard at Appleton Junction after working Kimberly and Combined Locks. The local is passing what once was the C&NW yard in 'The Flats.' The last remnant of the yard, a passing siding, was pulled up in 2014. The long ties at left mark the spot of the west turnout. The MILW had a small yard, and depot, just out of frame to the right. Railroad Ave. was renamed E. Eagle Flats Pkwy. ca. 2012, when bland apartment buildings, Landing at Eagle Flats and Riverwalk Place, were erected on the site of the historic Riverside Paper mill (out-of-frame to the right). JWM Coenen Mechanical (current occupant of the old Allis-Chalmers, originally Valley Iron Works, facility), 401 E. South Island St., dominates the scene. The outline of the letters that once spelled Allis-Chalmers can still be seen at the upper left of this (west) facade. The nearest, and probably oldest, portion of the facility spanned the South Channel of the Fox River when it was built at some point between 1911 and 1955. South Island St. (just out-of-frame to the left) used to run parallel to the north bank of the South Channel. Old maps reveal that the west end of the South Channel (behind me to the left) was filled in at some point between 1916 and 1957. Most of the remainder of the South Channel was gradually filled in the following years. The only remaining portion forms the confluence with a mill race which connects West’s Power Canal (a.k.a. West’s Canal, a.k.a. Grand Chute Island Canal) to the Fox River at the east end of this substantial facility. Edward West bought Grand Chute Island and excavated the canal in 1870 to provide water power for the industries which he speculated would be built soon after. He was right. For much of its history, this facility fabricated paper machines. The current occupant supports the paper industry, and other customers. Over the past several years, I have noticed that some misinformed individuals erroneously refer to ‘The Flats’ as ‘Oneida Flats,’ or some variation of same. However, the historic, industrial heart of Appleton is simply ‘The Flats.’ |