PRR Locomotive deployment question in Northwestern PA

[RRCharlie]

When I lived in North Girard, PA,16 miles West of Erie, the Pennsylvania Railroad had trackage rights from Girard Junction East to Dock Junction in Erie. Most of the traffic was coal drags but there was some general freight as well. I remember seeing the Baldwin Sharks and seeing the distinctive Pennsy steam engines with keystones on the boiler front, the cylinders or air tanks above the front coupler and the dog houses on the backs of the tenders. My questions is what were the probable wheel arraingments of the steamers?

Thanks in advance.

[K4sPRR]

Do you recall how the cylinders were shaped?  If there were two side by side cylinders with the round ends pointing outward that was an I1s Decapod (2-10-0).  The I1 the only engine with them mounted in this way.  The M1 (4-8-2) and L1 (2-8-2) each had one horizontal cylinder mounted on the front, the M1 was slightly smaller but rounder than the one on the L1.  All of these locomotives were frieght engines, the likelyhood of a dog house on the tender of an L1 is rare.

The I1 and L1 did not have keystone number plates, they were round.  So if your certain of the keystone, the the M1 is your engine. 

What years were these seen?  Locomotive roster assignments for various years can be referenced.

[Utley26]

Funny the locomotive assignment rosters are mentioned, given what I posted in the T1 thread yesterday.  Below are some links to various assignment rosters (from the Keystone Crossings site).  The thing I'm not sure about is how Pennsy labeled that division you are referring to, maybe the "Lake Division"?  Someone here should know that.

1952:

http://kc.pennsyrr.com/motiveops/downloads/mp229_520301.pdf

1954:

http://kc.pennsyrr.com/motiveops/downloads/mp229_540301.pdf

Assignment rosters for several other years can be found here: http://kc.pennsyrr.com/motiveops/index.php

 

[K4sPRR]

You are correct.  In the 1955 reorganization that particular line was in the Lake Region, Erie was at the border seperating the Lake and Northern Regions.

[RRCharlie]

Thanks for the quick responses. I'm talking about 60 years ago!!! I can't say for sure that the numbers on the front were in keystones or not but I do remember seeing the doghouses on occasion. The Pennsy came off their line onto the NYC at Girard Junction and immediately had a hill with a curve in the middle that was probably about a mile in length so the trains really labored coming up the grade. I can still hear, in my mind, the times that they lost traction and the wheels would spin. Our house was about 40 feet from the tracks and it sure would shake as the Pennsy went by.

[selector]

Soon into this video is a Decapod clearly seen towing a tender with a doghouse.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNrPq0Li3P4

-Crandell

[daveklepper]

My best guess is that they were definitely the 2-10-0 Decopads.  The I-10.   The L's and and M's were seen more often in main line service, and 2-8-0's and 2-10-0's on the kind of branch-line service you describe.  On the main line, the 2-10-0's were mainly pushers, not road engines.

[alcosforever]

well i cant answer steam question but i lived in taylor,mich in 50,s and baldwin sharks ran down the line from melindale mich to carlton mich at the tower they moved onto c&o and ran on their line to toledo where they went onto prr line over olive st bridge to other side of river and onto to upper ohio.also saw lima passenger 6 axle units downgraded to freight service this line ran truck train at night and several freights at night and two during the day plus locals of course this doesnt help you because it was in mich and ran into ohio. the red arrow ran thru here too.