Top: The Nickel Plate Road paint scheme of the late 1950s adorns ES44AC No. 8100 at Altoona on March 28, 2012.

Bottom: The Nickel Plate’s road-switcher scheme of black with three yellow stripes, plus yellow safety stripes on the ends, illustrated here on GP9’s 486 and 454 near Livingston, Ill., in 1958, was simple but eye-catching. A later version omitted the stripes along the side and had fewer, thicker end stripes. NKP’s only cab units, 11 Alco PA’s, wore blue and silver. N&W absorbed the Nickel Plate in 1964.