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Classic Railroad Quiz (at least 50 years old).

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Posted by rcdrye on Friday, January 23, 2015 8:31 AM

Continuing with passenger trains in the classic tradition...  The last runs of this railroad's passenger trains in the mid 1950s carried coaches borrowed from a railroad with its own passenger service between the trains' endpoints.  The borrowed coaches were air-conditioned, as a train-off request was turned into an evaluation period by regulators.  In the end, ridership numbers didn't change at all. 

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Posted by daveklepper on Saturday, January 24, 2015 1:13 PM

Possibilities include the Susquahana, the Chicago Great Western, and the Virginian

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Posted by rcdrye on Saturday, January 24, 2015 3:02 PM

Susquehanna and CGW passenger service lasted into the 1960s

Susquehanna had its own A/C cars (RDCs and ACF railcars).  CGW's own cars had ice A/C.  Eventually CGW got a couple of ex-Milwaukee coaches from the 1935 Hiawatha with electromechanical A/C, which were used until 1965.

This leaves the Virginian.  N&W PJ-class coaches were leased from mid-1955 until the end of service in response to an ICC order to upgrade the service to see if ridership would improve (it didn't).  The last-day trains on January 29, 1956 had PA 4-6-2s, a VGN Baggage-RPO and two N&W coaches each.  Virginian shared the endpoint cities of Roanoke and Norfolk with the N&W.

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Posted by daveklepper on Sunday, January 25, 2015 12:30 AM

I presume I get to ask the next question.  But I should point out that at times, SusiQ did rent Erie coaches.   Still, I may be wrong about end-points.  And maybe those particular coaches were not air-conditioned!

I wonder hoe much marketing about the improvement that the Virginian did.

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Posted by daveklepper on Sunday, January 25, 2015 10:02 AM

this common-carrier railroad connected with what is now the NEC for mostly across-the platform transfer at a station where many NE Regionals stop. In the late '40s and early '50s, until passenger service was discontinued, passenger service was provided by a blue-painted school bus on flanged wheels, running in reverse in one direction. When the bus was being overhauled a small diesel possibly a GE 44-ton, but am unsure, pulled and pushed an old wood combine. open platform if my memory is correct, probably ex-Class 1 connection.  The small diesel also did move freight.

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Posted by rfpjohn on Sunday, January 25, 2015 8:10 PM

Narragasset Pier comes to mind, interchanging with the New Haven at Kingston,RI. They had quite an interesting array of equipment.

 

 

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Posted by daveklepper on Monday, January 26, 2015 2:18 AM

100%  In adsdition to asking the next question, would you please refresh my memory on the rest of their equipment?

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Posted by rfpjohn on Monday, January 26, 2015 7:00 AM

Narragasset Pier had 4-4-0s  built by Mason, Rhode Island and Manchester, a couple of them used from the New Haven. There was also a modern Mogul built for export by Cooke which later went to the Bath & Hammondsport, then Rail City and I think may be in Cumberland, MD presently. There was a variety of small diesel and gas electric units, post steam. Some center cab, some end cab, all small. And, of course, you've already mentioned the Evans rail bus.

There is a beautiful website, constructed by a Mr. Edward J. Ozog which has a flock of NP photos.  https://sites.google.com/site/newenglandshortlines/

Open up the site map, go to page O and it will direct you to a more detailed page, which is the best way I can get you there!

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Posted by rfpjohn on Monday, January 26, 2015 7:14 AM

I guess it's time to post a question.

Named after a late 19th century adventurous woman's pen name (couldn't figure out how to shorten that), this train traveled between a major population center and a popular resort for more than half a century.

Name the train and it's end points. I doubt this takes long!

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Posted by rcdrye on Monday, January 26, 2015 8:52 AM

Nellie Bly.  CNJ(Reading) New York (Jersey City)-Atlantic City.

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Posted by daveklepper on Monday, January 26, 2015 10:49 AM

The Nellie Bly was a PRR train and ran from Penn Station.  The competing CofNJ train was the Blue Comet, for a shorter time span, ending before WWII.  The Nellie Bly did continiue into the post WWII period and was the last PRR NYC - Atlantic City train, possibly running into the 1960's.  I think it began before the opening of Penn Station and originally originated at Exchange Place, the PRR's Jersey City terminal.  When I knew it, it ran via the NEC to Trenton, then on the route of what is the River Line to a connection with PRSL's Franklin Bridge - ac line.

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Posted by rfpjohn on Monday, January 26, 2015 11:49 AM

Dave's got it. The Nellie Bly ran until 1961 via the nec to Trenton, Bordentown branch to Delair, using the connecting track between Minson and Divide, where it picked up the Deleware River Railroad and Bridge Co. line over to Vernon tower, just east of Haddonfield, picking up PRSL's Camden-Atlantic City main line. I'm pretty sure you're also right about it originally running out of Exchange Place.

After you, sir.

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Posted by daveklepper on Monday, January 26, 2015 2:01 PM

When I was five, in January 1937, I got an electric train set, Lionel's Flying Yankee.  Now don't go chasing me to Classic Toy Trains, just read on!  I became unhhappy with the lack of scale realism, especialy the center third rail, and so graduated at age nine to an HO American Flyer Hudson set, assembled from a kit.  The Hudson was a somewhat simplified scale model of J1 5326(?), and then came an arch-roof baggage mail and two identacle coaches, with decals for New Haven, all three somewhat shorter than prototype, and the coaches HO American Flyer, decals for both 8302.   A NYCentral Hudson halling New Haven coaches?

Where what and when would this be true to prototype, and what if any modificaitons to the engine would be necessary to make it an authentic model?   A complete answer, please, but an answer that is practical, considering the resources of a typical modeler.

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Posted by rcdrye on Monday, January 26, 2015 5:55 PM

Easy.  Just re-decal the Hudson for the Boston and Albany, renumber it in the 600 series, ignore the drivers that weren't quite right for either an NYC J1 or a B&A J2 (somewhere in between, I think) and pretend the train is operating on the inland route between New York and Boston via Springfield, and is east of Springfield. Oh - knock that oval "New York Central" logo off under the headlight. B&A units seem to be missing the shroud over the air pumps, too, but that might push you over the modelling edge.

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Posted by daveklepper on Tuesday, January 27, 2015 4:29 AM

You got enough correct to ask the next question.  But I should also cover the small sand dome with a large sqaure sand dome, make two cuts in the tender, one in the coal bunker and one in the water tank behind for a shorter tender, and replace the six-wheel trucks with four-wheel.

Better memory, correction, the J1 was 5318.

The consist would be correct betwen Springfield and Boston.   Springfield  and New Haven  would proabably draw an I-4  New Haven Pacific

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Posted by rcdrye on Tuesday, January 27, 2015 8:09 AM

I was considering the average modeler.  I found a number of photos of B&A 4-6-4's with very NYC-ish tenders with 6 wheel trucks, so I let that go.  I did miss the sandboxes. (J2s had the big tenders, J2C's (617 and up) had the smaller tenders.) B&A J2 classes were built by Lima, whereas nearly all NYC J Class engines were built by Alco Schenectady.

This midwestern carrier built 3 4-8-2's in its own shops in 1929 and 1930 (sublettered for a leased affiliate) to match 18 acquired from commercial builders.  These were the only steam locomotives the company built, and it only bought four more new ones after that.

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Posted by rcdrye on Thursday, January 29, 2015 8:27 AM

Let's revise it a bit...

This upper midwestern carrier built three 4-8-2's in its own shops in 1929 and 1930 (sublettered for a leased affiliate) to match 18 acquired from commercial builders, four belonging to the parent, fourteen to the subsidiary.  These were the only three steam locomotives the company built, and it only bought four more new ones after that. Tenders from more than one of the 4-8-2's were used on well-known excursion engines, and the frame of one may still be in use.

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Posted by daveklepper on Thursday, January 29, 2015 9:52 AM

The B&A was one of the first, probably the first, comoponant of the NY Central System to be completely dieselized, and its best the locomotives, the Berkshires and Hudsons, did migrate to the midwest and elsewhere for further service, replacing older power.  Did not the photos of J2's with six-wheel tenders say New York Central instead of Boston and Albany? I suspect that the tenders were substituted when they migrated, because just before diesilization, in 1949, they still had the four-wheel short tenders.  They probably got the long tenders from displaced Pacifics. By summer 1952, the B&A was 100% diesel, possibly earlier.

Turning to your upper-miewest lines 4-8-2s,I know the IC had quite a few, some homemade and some bought.   But this would fit the question only if they were relettered for the parent railroad by the time I saw them, summer 1952.  The IC did have several subsidiaries for whom they could have been lettered, inlcuding the Yazooo and Mississippi Valley.  But then the IC can be charactaerized as a midwest railroad but probably not upper-midwest, so the answer must lie elsewhere.  Piere Marquette?

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Posted by CSSHEGEWISCH on Thursday, January 29, 2015 10:10 AM

I'm going to say that the railroad in question is the Soo Line, with the 4-8-2's sublettered for Wisconsin Central.

The daily commute is part of everyday life but I get two rides a day out of it. Paul
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Posted by rcdrye on Thursday, January 29, 2015 12:35 PM

Soo's 21 N-20 4-8-2s were built in three batches between 1926 and 1930.  The first 10 were built by Alco-Brooks (Dunkirk NY), 4000-4003 to the MStPSSteM, 4004-4009 to WC.  The second batch of 8 were Alco Schenectady 1928, all WC 4010-4017.  The last three (4018-4020) were built at the MStPSSteM Shoreham Shops in Minneapolis for the WC from Alco parts and were the only ones with cast frames. Too big for many of Soo's and WC's lines, they operated on the main stems from Chicago to Portal ND, and Chicago to Duluth/Superior.  WC got 4 O-20s (5000-5003) from Lima in 1938 (same year EMC delivered NW1As 2100-2102).  After the O-20's, Soo got some used 2-8-2's from the Monon during WWII.

Shoreham-built tenders from 4012 and 4013 were used on ex-CB&Q engines 5632 and 4960 in the late 1960s and early 1970s.  4960's current tender on the Grand Canyon is believed to be built on the frame of one of those.

 

Back to you, Paul!

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Posted by CSSHEGEWISCH on Thursday, January 29, 2015 1:56 PM

rcrdye, I'll pass to somebody of your choice to give someone else a chance.

The daily commute is part of everyday life but I get two rides a day out of it. Paul
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Posted by rcdrye on Thursday, January 29, 2015 4:40 PM

I think I owed deggesty a turn...

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Posted by Deggesty on Thursday, January 29, 2015 5:01 PM

Well, if you insist...

In 1948, what train carried cars lettered for a train that did not exist yet, unlike the Golden Rocket, did later come into existence?

Johnny

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Posted by daveklepper on Friday, January 30, 2015 6:04 AM

Th Exposition Flyer carried cars lettered for the California Zephyr

Oakland - Chicago, WP-D&RGW-CB&Q both trains

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Posted by Deggesty on Friday, January 30, 2015 10:12 AM

Right on, Dave! A Rio Grande timetable in 1948 had pictures of the Vista Dome cars that were put into service over the same route before all of the cars ordered for the California Zephyr were delivered.

Johnny

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Posted by daveklepper on Sunday, February 1, 2015 7:57 AM

 

To continue in part with the CZ.  In 1959 and 1960, the D&RGW had four departures from Denver daily, adding a fifth for the Winter Park Ski Train when it ran.  One of course was the CZ, giving a daytime ride to Salt Lake City, and it was complemented by the Prospector on an overnight schedule, also a full-service train with an`excellent diner and a sleeper or two.  The third train could also take you to Salt Lake City, but with a much longer running time.   What was its route, why would one use it in preference to a quicker trip on the Prospector or CZ, what was its equipment, and what trains did it usually comjbine with on its run.  And describe the detination, equipment, and purpose of the forth train.  Train names, please.  The third train on a regular basis, but less than daily, had a piece of passenger rolling stock along for a part of its trip belonging to a railroad that did not serve Denver, and did not particate in the operation of third train nor the connecting train that brought it Denver.  What was it, name the owning railroad, and the reason and arrangement that made it part of the third train's consist for part of its trip.

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Posted by rcdrye on Sunday, February 1, 2015 1:36 PM

The "Third train" is the Royal Gorge, which ran via Pueblo and the canyon of its name to Grand Junction, where some of its cars were added to the Prospector, which had come via the Moffat Tunnel route.  The Royal Gorge gave views of Pikes Peak, along with a 10 minute stop at the Royal Gorge.  There was also a fifth departure from Denver to Craig, Colorado as the Yampa Valley Mail.

The January or August OGs show that the Royal Gorge carried a 5-6-5 sleeper, the ex-C&O dome-lounge observation, coaches and a diner-lounge.  It DID carry the Colorado Springs cars (Dome Coach, 10&6 sleeper and Slumbercoach) for the CB&Q's Denver Zephyr between Denver and Colorado Springs.  On certain days that would have included NP slumbercoaches used in a pool between the Denver Zephyr and the North Coast Limited.

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Posted by daveklepper on Sunday, February 1, 2015 2:24 PM

Correct and so please ask the next question.

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Posted by rcdrye on Monday, February 2, 2015 6:41 AM

This train that was a joint venture of two railroads is often seen in photos with a round end observation car with a drumhead sign.  In actual operation, the observation was there only two out of every three days.  Name the train and the railroads.

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Posted by KCSfan on Monday, February 2, 2015 8:31 AM

Golden State Limited - CRI&P and SP

Mark

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