Philadelphia photos. Red Arrow (Phil. Sub.), Phil. and Wes., PTC, SEPTA, Franklin Park, etc.

[daveklepper]

Start with 2939 Brill Red Arrow 10 at 69th St. Loop:

[daveklepper]

Some views of 42 on a 1947 fan-trip before this group of Jewett cars was replaced by the 1948 St. Louis cars.  Lanarch Junction, a rarely-used short-turn siding on the Westchester line, and (I think) downtown Westchester with a 1939 Brill car.

 

 

[daveklepper]

And here is 42 in Sharon Hill:

[daveklepper]

And on a bridge on the line to Media and in Media, I believe:

[daveklepper]

From Richard Allman:   Smedley  Park trestle on the Media line, State Street in Media and Woodlawn Avenue on the Sharon Hill line

[daveklepper]

Another at Smedley Park bridge:

The Cliff Creek bridge on the West Chester line, with a substation building:

A Philadelphia and Western Brill "Bullet" on the south pocket track east of 69th Street Stastion, with a PTC Market-Frankfort Subway-Elevated train westbound to 69th Street below:

A P&W Strafford car:

[daveklepper]

Another picture on the Cliff Creek Bridge.  Might magke a good photo for a book cover.:

[daveklepper]

1939 Brill 2 downtown Media:

2 and Center-Door 56 at the Junction of the Sharon Hill and Media lines:

CD 56 entering Ardmore Station:

 

[daveklepper]

Some interesting views, David.

Few corrections.

42 approaching Ardmore is at end of double track on Sharon Hill line at North Street Aldan. There is view of Center Door car 56 same location

42 Llanerch is actually at Drexel Hill Jct. enering line to Sharon Hill. Looks like your fan trip had a lengthy layover at Drexel Hill to enable photography of regular cars.   (dlk- earlier poating)

Cars 42 and 2 are at the end of the line on State Street in Media. There is another view of car 2 westbound on State Street approaching end of line at Media-presumably your charter would follow the eastbound car to enable photo stops-a challenge since the base Sunday service I think was every 15 minutes.

RICH ALLMAN

 

[Overmod]

Can you characters please spell 'Llanerch' correctly, even if it looks wrong? 

[daveklepper]

Will try to do better in the future.

[daveklepper]

Two-car train of "Strafford" cars . light movement from 69th Street Terminal to pocket tracks east of the station:

[daveklepper]

From Ridchard Allman: 

The “Temporary” P&W terminal (1907-1961)was just north of the Market-Frankfort Subway-Elevated station. The inbound track extended several hundred feet east of the platform to a switch where the cars reversed and went into the lower outbound track. The outbound cars boarded on the left side. At the end of the outbound platform, there a fourth track where Liberty Bell Limited cars boarded. The upper outbound track was rarely used after WW2 other than for storage. There were several pocket tracks for storage on the East side of the station, as shown in your photos. There was another storage track, mainly for LVT cars next to the outbound track, and 2 siding tracks for LVT cars west of the station.
The view of the Media car is looking East at Providence Road and State Street in Media at the end of private r-o-w

 

[MidlandMike]

daveklepper

From Ridchard Allman: 

The “Temporary” P&W terminal (1907-1961)was just north of the Market-Frankfort Subway-Elevated station. The inbound track extended several hundred feet east of the platform to a switch where the cars reversed and went into the lower outbound track. The outbound cars boarded on the left side. At the end of the outbound platform, there a fourth track where Liberty Bell Limited cars boarded. The upper outbound track was rarely used after WW2 other than for storage. There were several pocket tracks for storage on the East side of the station, as shown in your photos. There was another storage track, mainly for LVT cars next to the outbound track, and 2 siding tracks for LVT cars west of the station.

Why were the inbound and outbound tracks on different levels?

[rcdrye]

P&W was a part of a Jay Gould project that would link the P&W, Western Maryland, Pittsburg & West Virginia, Wabash, Missouri Pacific, D&RGW and Western Pacific into a super-transcon.  Some of it did get built, notably the WP.  The eastern section quickly faded in importance as the rest of the project hemorrhaged money.  The yard at 69th St had a connection to the PRR (Which lasted into Penn Central days) which was used a couple of times for interchange freight and more often for company materials.  The "temporary" station was laid out mainly to make passenger transfer to and from the PRT Market-Frankford line easier.  The gauge mismatch (M-F is 5'2 1/2") made a direct connection impossible.  There were a number of less-than-plausible plans to extend the P&W downtown that obviously were never attempted, so the odd multi-level track layout just stayed in place.

[Overmod]

Wasn't this George Gould, not Jay?

[rcdrye]

Overmod

Wasn't this George Gould, not Jay?

 

Of course - my bad.  Neither one saw his dreams come true.

[daveklepper]

The P&W inbound track was on the upper level and the outbound  track was on the the lower level, and both were served by a platform south of the track (right-hand unloading for arrival and left for departure.  Departure was one level above the Market-Frankfort Subway-Elevated tracks, wlhich had two separate platforms, and the Philadelphia Suburban tracks, south of the PTC M-F tracks, originsally a stub-end four(?)-track terminal, but a loop for both railcars and buses in my day.

Lehigh Valley Transit Liberty Bell cars had their own departure platform on the upper level, but used the P&W inbound track and platform.

Here are PTC trains going and coming, with P&W Stratford cars on the inbound track in the backround:

Here are the "pocket-tracks" just south of the Red Arrow (Phil. Sub.) loop:

 

 The track going left is the regular inbound (arrival) loop track.

[daveklepper]

 

 Market-Frankfort PTC below, P&W above

 

The view of the 3 P&W cars was at the stub where they changed ends then went down the grade to the outbound terminal. You were standing in the PTC Park and Ride lot when you caught these photos. You have another view of a Bullet car there with a two-car train of Frankford cars approaching the Terminal that is a serious contender for a future East Penn Calendar!

I'll correct errors in an earlier posting, based on this.

 

 

 

 

David-actually, the 80 series cars were built in 1932-ordered in 1931-2-five car orders. It is shown here on the West Chester line, eastbound having just taken the switch at the Brookthorpe Hills-New Ardmore Avenue siding in Broomall. This was the first siding west of the end of double track at Westgate Hills (where I grew up). This siding was added late (around 1939) and was rather long-around a third of a mile, in order to allow for more flexible headways as the suburban development was burgeoning. It replaced another short siding on the hill rising to the west in Marple Township near the Bergdahl estate which was removed when the Brookthorpe Siding was built.

 

 

The guys on our calendar committee are thrilled with these. The one at the top of their list is the meet @ Chester Road siding- I like all the views- I strongly suspect that one of these will be in our 2023 calendar.

 

 

 

 

 Downtown West Chester, just before crossing over the PRR.

Below, fan-trip 42 layover at Drexel Hill.  Car 1 is inbound from Media. The siding is still in place:  Enter from outbound track on Sharon Hill line and leave on inbound track on Media line.  Fans all over the place!

 

 

 

 

 Media-at the end of double track at Providence Road in Media, looking east

 

 

downtown Media, State Street, end-of-line, looking west.

 

Media town-outbound car on State Street at Orange Street, looking east, one block from end

[rcdrye]

I wish I could.  I'm not all that familiar with PST. I'm more familiar with the P&W but mostly by photographs.  The P&W photo is from the 69th St. teminal,  I think the lower track is the connection to PRR's Cardington branch.  I'll double check later today when I can find the track diagram.

[daveklepper]

Lower track = Market - Frankfort, see earlier postings.   I'll end up getting the info from Rich Allman.  He will know.

Done

[daveklepper]

Drexelbrook when it was still single track on the Media line. With a regular Media car in hot pursuit, probably last westbound photo stop.

 

 

[daveklepper]

 

 

[daveklepper]

The triple-meet at Chester siding photo is posted a second tinme, becase with some help from Richard Allman, the contrast is improved slightly, and the somewhat sporoken-phole sky is corrected.

 

[MidlandMike]

https://www.inquirer.com/news/septa-belgian-block-history-preservation-safety-20220712.html

Belgian blocks being removed in trolley track maintenance.

[daveklepper]

Back to 1947. and my age 15. and the streetcar from the PRR 30th Street Station ovwe the bridge to the old tunnel portal:

 

 

.

[daveklepper]

With some help from Richard Allman, improved veraions uf two 30th Street photos:

[daveklepper]

Air-electric PCC, Rt. 6 from Willow Grove to Broad and Olney. 1947 

a

[daveklepper]

Same line, further from the city on the PRoW.

Not sure that my photo editing restored the roll-siign entirerly accurately, and comments are requested.

[daveklepper]

A more recent (1970s)  visi8t to the Philkl,y area yielded this photo of the ex-PRR Chestnut Hill West Line: