Philadelphia and Western freight operations

[rcdrye]

P&W was unusual among electric railways because it had two different types of overlapping fredight operations.  P&W served Lehigh Valley Transit as a gateway yo Philadelphia, with box motors and trailers similar to the types used in the midwestern states.  P&W also used one of its won box motors for a modest interchange freight business, interchanging with the neighboring PRR at several points over the years.  I'm opening this thread to cut it loose from the Quiz thread.

P&W's main interchange was with PRR's Cardington branch very near the 69th Street termial.  The branch was originally built by PRR with the idea of extending it south toward Baltimore, along the lines of the Trenton cutoff east of Paoli.  Despite minimal traffic, the branch and interchange survived until the Penn Central era, though P&W's interchange in later years was for company materials only.

In the early years before 1919, P&W generated its own electricity, and the majority of interchange was coal to P&W's power plant.  The thread is now open to anyone who knews about P&W customers or other freight operations, or the LVT freight operations.

[wanswheel]

Off-topic already.

Pages from The Interurban Era by William D. Middleton

https://archive.org/stream/interurbanera00midd#page/n5/mode/2up

Electric Railway Journal, December 1931

https://archive.org/stream/electricrailwayj751mcgrrich#page/676/mode/2up

[rfpjohn]

A very pleasant diversion, none the less! Thank you wanswheel.

[wanswheel]

You’re welcome, rfpjohn.  401 is at Electric City Trolley Museum, I think.

http://www.tmny.org/catl.php?n=7629&d=Oct+1952&c=Philadelphia+%26+Western+Ry+car+No.+401+at+elevated+terminal&a=MS200301&p=Cleaver%2C+Larry

[daveklepper]

The LVT had both purpose-built box-motors and converted wood passenger interurban cars rebuilt without side windows and with two (?) baggage-type side doors.   My memory says the latter were used more frequently.

[ndbprr]

I would join prrfax on yahoo. Tons of prr experts. Cardington branch questions may get you more info.

[rcdrye]

P&W also had a shared track with PRR - but not necessarily an interchange, at a quarry on the Norristown line.  The "retail" customers included a paper mill, a couple of coal and oil dealers, and a golf course.  Interchange rarely exceeded a few cars a week. 401 was P&W's main "locomotive".