"OUR" PLACE - SEE NEW THREAD!

[LoveDomes]

Hi Tom

You were absolutely correct - my back IS aching today![swg] And I'm spending this day indoors - not quite what the grandkids wanted, but . . . .

As you know, we've had a whopper here in the NYC area. But now we are headed for a warm up, so the mess will just change in appearance. Hope that basement work we had done a few years ago holds up!!

How about a bottle of Schaefer's and a bowl of those pretzels! In the mood for some snack food.[swg]

Sweet! new series! Good idea. I'll bet we'll be treated to all kinds of info that many of us weren't aware of. This will have trolleyboy Rob all lathered up - he'll be your friend for eternity. Well, I suppose given the current state of affairs between the U.S. and Canada, we can use A friend![swg]

Nice offering by CM3 this morning. Always enjoy those Epistles with humor. Makes one just want to jump on a train heading for WVa - wellllllllllllll, maybe not.[swg]

Here's something just for you, Tom in two parts:

Domes - BY NAME
====================================

QUOTE: "Astra Domes" - General Motors
"Astra Domes" - UP

"Big Domes" - ATSF full domes
"Big Domes" - Auto Train ex ATSF cars

"Colorados" - Holland America Colorado Railcar "ultradomes"

"Dome Cars" - Amtrak
"Dome Cars" - N&W
"Dome Cars" - Southern
"Domeliners" - UP trains with dome cars(generic)
"Domes" - Holland America (generic to differentiate from 'colorados')

"Goldleaf Domes" - Rocky Mountaineer (honorary)
"Great Domes" - GN

"Hi-Level" or "High-Level" - ATSF "El Cap" lounges(honorary)
"Hi-Level" or "High-Level" - Amtrak ex-ATSF lounges(honorary)

"Lounge in the Sky" - NP rebuilt sleepers
"Luxury Domes" - Transcisco

"Maxi Domes" - Ferrovias Mexicanas ex US baggage cars cars
"Maxi Domes" - Auto Train ex UP cars
"Mini Domes" - Auto Train ex WP cars

"Park" cars - CP Rail observation domes
"Park" cars - VIA Rail observation domes
"Planetarium" dome - IGN
"Planetarium" domes - MP
"Planetarium" dome - T&P
"Pleasure Domes" - ATSF short domes
"Princess Domes" - Amtrak ex Princess Tours cars
"Princess Domes" - Princess Tours ex-MILW cars

"Scenadomes" - Holland America Westours
"Sceneramic Domes" - CN
"Scenic Domes" - CP Rail (all)
"Sightseer Lounges" - Amtrak Superliner lounges(honorary)
"Skyline" cars - CP Rail 'midtrain' domes
"Skyline" cars - VIA Rail 'midtrain' domes
"Skytops" - Milwaukee Road observations(honorary)
"Stairway to the Stars" - SP
"Strata Domes" - B&O
"Sun Lounges" - SAL(honorary)
"Super Domes" - Milwaukee Road

"Turbo Domes" - Amtrak for their UA Turbos
"Turbo Domes" - PC/USDOT (honorary)
"Turquoise Domes" - ATSF short domes(not official)

"Ultra Domes" - Princess Tours ex SP bi-levels

"Vista Domes" - Alaska RR
"Vista Domes" - C&O
"Vista Domes" - CB&Q (orginator of the term)
"Vista Domes" - D&RGW
"Vista Domes" - GN short domes
"Vista Domes" - IC
"Vista Domes" - NP short domes
"Vista Domes" - SCL
"Vista Domes" - SP&S
"Vista Domes" - Wabash
"Vista Domes" - WP

(from: www.trainweb.com)

As always, these are not intended to be all inclusive, but should suffice for the purposes of what we do here and over at your other tread![swg]

Next will the the listing by railroad![tup]

Until the next time!

Lars

[siberianmo]

A NEW SERIES! A NEW SERIES!

Canadian Railways of the Past

Number One: Canadian Northern Railway (CNoR)


Used with permission from: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Formatting differences made necessary due to Forums requirements. Some heralds from other sources.

Locale: Canada

Dates of operation: 1899 – 1918

Track gauge: 4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm) (standard gauge)

Headquarters: Manitoba

The Canadian Northern Railway (CNoR) is a historic Canadian railway.

Manitoba beginnings

CNoR had its start in the independent branchlines that were being constructed in Manitoba in the 1880s and 1890s as a response to the monopoly exercised by Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR). Many of these branchlines were built with the sponsorship of the provincial government, which sought to subsidize local competition to the federally subsidized CPR; however, significant competition was also provided by the encroaching Northern Pacific Railway (NPR) from the south.

Two of these branchline contractors, William Mackenzie and Donald Mann, took control of the bankrupt Lake Manitoba Railway and Canal Company in January, 1896. Mackenzie and Mann expanded their enterprise in 1897 by building further north into Manitoba's Interlake district as well as east and west of Winnipeg. They also began building and buying lines south to connect the U.S. border at Pembina, North Dakota, and east to Ontario.

Connecting the Prairies to the Lakehead

The Canadian Northern Railway was established in 1899 and all railway companies owned by Mackenzie and Mann (primarily in Manitoba) were consolidated into the new entity. CNoR's first step toward competing directly with CPR came at the turn of the century with the decision to build a line linking the Prairie Provinces with Lake Superior at the harbour in Port Arthur-Fort William (modern Thunder Bay, Ontario) which would permit the shipping of western grain to European markets as well as the transport of eastern Canadian goods to the West. This line incorporated an existing CNoR line to Lake of the Woods and two local Ontario railways, the Port Arthur, Duluth and Western Railway and the Ontario and Rainy River Railway whose charters Mackenzie and Mann had acquired in 1897. To reach Port Arthur which became the lake terminus of the CNoR, the line extended south of Lake of the Woods into northern Minnesota before heading northeast through Rainy River District to the head of navigation on the Great Lakes. The Winnipeg-Port Arthur line was completed on December 30, 1901 with the last spike being driven just east of Atikokan station by Ontario's Commissioner of Crown Lands, Elihu J. Davis.

Throughout this time, Mackenzie and Mann had been busy expanding their prairie branch line network to feed the connection to Port Arthur. This network expanded in subsequent years to cover most parts of the prairies.

In 1914 the Canadian Northern Railway bought a 150 acre homestead north of Winnipeg on the shores of Lake Winnipeg. They purchased the land in order to develop a resort on Grand Beach.

Going it alone

In 1903 the federal government and Grand Trunk Railway (GTR) were seeking a 2nd transcontinental railway for Canada and approached Mackenzie and Mann to seek their co-operation. This effort was spurned and GTR and the federal government would go on to form a system composed of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway (GTPR) and the National Transcontinental Railway (NTR).

Nationwide expansion

Mackenzie and Mann began their first significant expansion outside of the prairies with the purchase of Great Lakes steamships, railways into northern Quebec's Saguenay region and the acquisition of branchlines in southwestern Nova Scotia (the H&SW) and western Cape Breton Island. Other acquisitions were in southern Ontario and a connecting line was built from Toronto to Parry Sound.

In 1905, CNoR reached the newly formed provincial capital at Edmonton, Alberta. In 1908, a line was built east from a connection at Capreol, Ontario on the Toronto-Parry Sound line to Ottawa and on to Montreal. In 1910 a direct Toronto-Montreal line was built, as well as the start of construction on the line west of Edmonton through Yellowhead Pass to Vancouver, thanks to subsidies provided by the government of British Columbia. In 1911 federal funding was made available for completing the line from Montreal-Ottawa-Capreol-Port Arthur.

In 1912, with GTR and CPR holding the ideal southern routes around Mount Royal to downtown Montreal, CNoR started building a double-tracked mainline north by building the Mount Royal Tunnel under the mountain.

Obstacles in the Rockies

CNoR's initial expansion in the 1890s and 1900s had been relatively frugal, largely by acquiring bankrupt companies or finishing failed construction projects. By the 1910s, significant expenses were adding up from the construction north or Lake Superior and the Mount Royal Tunnel, but the largest costs were from building on "the wrong side" of the Thompson and Fraser rivers in the mountains of British Columbia. CPR already had trackage on the desirable eastern side, leading to the port of Vancouver, forcing CNoR to blast tunnels and ledges out of these canyons.

The most infamous construction folly on the CNoR in British Columbia happened in 1913 when blasting for a passage for the railway at Hells Gate triggered an enormous landslide which partially blocked the narrow swift-flowing Fraser River. The resulting damage to Pacific salmon runs took decades to reverse by the governmental construction of fishways.

In addition to difficult construction between Jasper and Vancouver, CNoR started construction west of Edmonton in 1910, fully two years later than GTPR, which had started construction east from Prince Rupert in the Skeena River, leading to Yellowhead Pass.

Bankruptcy and nationalization

The last spike of the CNoR transcontinental railway was driven January 23, 1915, at Basque, British Columbia. Freight and passenger service north of Lake Superior also started in 1915, resulting in a system between Montreal and Vancouver, with lines in Nova Scotia, Southern Ontario, Minnesota, and on Vancouver Island. Between 1915 and 1918, CNoR tried desperately to increase profits during the height of conflict in the First World War when the majority of wartime traffic was moving on CPR. The company was also saddled with ongoing construction costs associated with the Mount Royal Tunnel project.

CNoR was heavily indebted to banks and governments, and its profitable branchlines in the prairie provinces — "Canada's breadbasket" — would not generate enough revenue to cover construction costs in other areas. Unable to repay construction costs, the company requested financial aid. In exchange for funds, the federal government gained majority control of shares and CNoR was nationalized on September 6, 1918, when the directors of CNoR, including Mackenzie and Mann, resigned. The replacement board of directors appointed by the federal government forced CNoR to assume the management of federally-owned Canadian Government Railways (CGR). On December 20, 1918, a Privy Council order directed CNoR and CGR to be managed under the moniker Canadian National Railways (CNR) as a means to simplify funding and operations, although CNoR and CGR would not be formally merged and cease corporate existence until January 20, 1923, the date that CNR was formally consolidated. Legally, CNoR existed until 1956.

Remnants of CNoR today

Today, significant portions of the CNoR system survives under CN (as the CNR has been known since 1960); for example, the Mount Royal Tunnel and lines north to Saguenay, as well as most of the CN main line west from Toronto to Winnipeg, and from Yellowhead Pass southwest to Vancouver. The majority of CN's former CNoR branchline network across Canada has either been abandoned or sold to shortline operators. An important U.S. subsidiary of CNoR, the Duluth, Winnipeg and Pacific Railway forms part of a key CN connection between Chicago, Illinois and Winnipeg.

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Northern_Railway"

Used with permission from: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Formatting differences made necessary due to Forums requirements. Some heralds from other sources.

***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** *****

Enjoy!

Tom [4:-)][oX)]

A NEW SERIES! A NEW SERIES!


Waving flag credits to: www.3Dflags.com

[siberianmo]

Hello!

CM3 - figured we'd see you today. Missed you and your always interesting Posts at the end of the week past.

Now that MTA subway piece was first given to us way back on June 17th, 2005 on page 28! Does it seem THAT long ago[?][swg] Time marches on, and on . . . .

Snow, ice, dogs, trains, a [i[]Wurlitzer[/i] and good conversation - that just about sez it all 'round here![swg] Thanx always for the round & quarters. Does appear that our [tea]Coal Scuttle[/teal] can use a "feeding!"<grin>

Kinda wonderin' when I'm going to see the first installment of your Pix for Photo Posting Sunday! No need to send 'em all at once - but the important thing is to get started as I'm really diggin' deep and finding few things "new" for the guys. Thanx!

While living in Boston, I didn't travel the subway all that often, but when I did it was hard NOT to make comparisons with the NYC system. No comparison. It's just what one has been "weaned on" I suppose. Now if Poor Charlie had found himself on the IRT - IND or BMT - he'd not only never have returned, he surely would've been mugged - at least three times and then some![swg]

Your accounting is something special and just as enjoyable as the first time 'round - thanx![tup][tup][tup]

Later!

Tom[4:-)][oX)]

[coalminer3]

Good Morning Barkeep and All Present; coffee, please; round for the house and $ for the jukebox. 10th Anniversary? As Ol' Diz used to say, "Whod'a thunk it?" Yogi-isms, too. "And they give you cash, which is just as good as money."

I apologize for the long absence, but work trumps everything. We had a nice snowstorm here over the weekend; abt 8" with accompanying ice, etc. The K-9 Korps has enjoyed all of it; specially the big yellow dog who thinks he's emperor of the north.

Many intesting pictures and stories over the past few days. KCS survey, more Wabash material, and a survey of train wrecks (check out the Federal wreck shot a little more closely and you'll see all sorts of NH equipment in the basement of WUT.) The we have G scale layout shots outside - all provide inspiration. Many thanks.

Then we had Charlie on the MTA. Kendall Station is still with us (on the Red Line), but Scollay Square (presently Government Center) is long gone. Back in the day, however, it was full of all sorts of attractions for wayward sailors as it was not too far from the Boston NAvy Yard. There were many "entertainment" places and it was home for quite a few burly houses. Ann Corio was the main performer, but there were more than a few others.

Since we are talking abt. Charlie, here's an encore abt. the MTA back when Charlie was around.

Subway

Riding the subway was always an adventure. The Boston subway was old when I was growing up. There were not as many stations then (sit and read the stations marked on the glass map in the holder beside the car door; Harvard, Central, Kendall, Charles, Park St., Washington, South Station, Broadway, Andrew Columbia, Fields Corner, Shawmut, and Ashmont - that was it), and the trains only ran as far as Harvard Square, although the streetcars ran out to Arlington, but that’s another story for another time.

Most of the time we rode the bus to get to Harvard Square. This involved a walk to the corner, crossing there and waiting at the bus stop. There was not much of a sidewalk to stand on as the concrete, or what had been concrete was pretty well broken up. There was a lot of dirt and sand and a few tree roots sticking up, but that was about all. The traffic was much more interesting than trying to write my name in the dirt with the toe of my shoe and getting yelled at by my mother for “scuffing up your good shoes.” Trucks were, of course, smaller and noisier. I always looked for Macks, especially the ones with chain drive since they made a glorious racket as they rolled past. Lowbeds (which is what they were called then) with construction equipment were good, too. The bus would come in time and we’d get on, pay the fare and sit down. There was a fare box at the front of the bus which automatically counted the money as the passengers dropped it into the slot on the top of the box. It made a neat “blinka-blinka-blinka” money-counting sound.

After awhile, we’d cross the bridge at Fresh Pond that went over the Boston and Maine’s four-track main line. There was always something to see there, even if it was just a cut of freight cars, but usually I’d get lucky and see at least a switch engine pushing cars around, mostly for Bethlehem Steel which had a fabricating operation to the north and west of the bridge. The New England Brick Company, which burned in a spectacular fire one Halloween night when I was about 12 years old, was just to the west of the bridge, and the Dewey and Almy chemical plant glowered threateningly in the distance. The brick company stretched for several hundred feet along the B&M tracks and when it did burn it was a total loss. We could see the flames from the top of one of the hills in the neighborhood when we went out trick or treating and terrorizing the neighbors. Past the bridge was a rotary, and the bus slewed around there, thumped across a railroad siding that served a coal and lumber yard, and headed into Cambridge.

The buildings were different here, wooden triple deckers and brick commercial structures with stores on the ground floor and apartments above them.
I wondered what it would be like to live in a place where if you wanted something to cook for dinner all you had to do was go downstairs and buy it - not bad. The store windows were full of canned goods stacked in pyramids and there were usually placards or posters in the windows advertising the wonders that awaited within at incredibly low prices - this week only! One week faded into another, however, and the incredibly low prices remained from week to week. Some markets had outside displays of fruit and vegetables where customers could pick what they wanted and have it weighed, bagged and paid for; all outside. A lot of the stores had cloth awnings which the store owners raised or lowered by using a long wooden pole with a crank at one end. The storekeeper stuck the pole into a receptacle at one end of the awning and turned the crank at the bottom of the pole. ‘Round and ‘round it went and the awning rolled up or down. The parade of stores passed by the window, stores selling food, clothing, furniture, funeral parlors, flower shops, restaurants and package stores. In the alleys between the buildings were stacks of garbage cans and here and there a garage, radiator shop or a store that fixed radios, TV’s, or small appliances. Television was just starting to make its influence felt and the tops of many buildings had silvery TV antennas sprouting upward among the clotheslines.

A little closer to the end of the ride, we’d see the wires for the electric buses or “trackless trolleys” which ran through the center of Cambridge. The trackless trolleys were noiseless, but every so often a blue cracking arc of electricity between the overhead wire and the poles on the bus would remind me of what they ran on. Traffic was always heavy through here, but even a metropolitan Boston driver respected a Twin Coach product. Squeezing through a narrow space between a dark blue Plymouth station wagon, two bright yellow Checker taxis, and a coal truck, the bus braked to a stop, the driver opened the door and we were at Harvard Square.

The subway station was in the middle of Harvard Square. It was a low gray stone structure with a metal roof and some ornamental iron work. In red letters above the doors was a sign which said “Rapid Transit to All Points - Eight Minutes to Park Street.” People were always in a hurry there and it was hard to get a chance to take in all of the activity. You had a choice of walking down the stairs or riding a narrow wooden escalator to get to the station’s “lobby.” Here was a change booth and turnstiles. The process was quite simple - shove a dollar bill through the slot in the glass window and get some subway tokens and some change pushed back to you by the bored looking man sitting inside. Then take a token, put it in the slot in the turnstile and push your way through. Little kids rode for a nickel and had to reach up to drop their nickels into a change counter which was pretty similar to the one on the bus. That done, we went down the stairs to the platform and waited for the train.

Harvard Square Station was on two levels. The upper level, which allowed passengers quick access to buses and trackless trolleys without going outside, was for trains coming from Boston. Inbound (to Boston) passengers boarded their trains on the lower level. There was a single track on each level. The upper level went to the car barn (actually an open area for car storage) which was occupied a space near the Charles River between the Harvard University campus and Memorial Drive.

I always liked going by the yard when driving into Boston. Row on row of subway cars sat parked on the tracks waiting for their next trip. Sometimes, trains ran past the Harvard Square station to the yard to discharge passengers going to a football game at Harvard Stadium which was just across the Charles River. I remember walking by the yard a few times when going to the stadium with my father or uncle to see a football game. There was a cement and brick wall around the yard which had a few gaps in it and I wished I was taller so I could see more of the trains behind the wall. I could hear trains approaching the station from Boston as they pulled in above me and the entire station rumbled and shook with a deep, menacing, growl which was almost deafening because of the confined space in the station.

Just about all of the old Harvard Square station was ripped out in the late 60s and early 70s when the subway was extended from Harvard Square to Alewife, so what I’m about to describe no longer exists. As I mentioned, the subway line was single track with a high level platform to let people board and leave the trains quickly. The track resembled that of a regular railroad, except that a third rail was mounted outside the right rail. The third rail carried the electricity which powered the subway car’s traction motors. Every so often on the third rail was some white lettering which said “DANGER - THIRD RAIL DO NOT TOUCH!” I was concerned most of the time that I might fall off the platform, touch the third rail and be instantly fried, so I never got too close to the edge of the platform. Everyone knew of somebody that had been fried because they weren’t paying attention - never mind that there was no hard evidence of anyone ever being fried, except for a drunk in South Boston or some despondent person who threw themselves onto the tracks as the train pulled into the station, the thought of being electrocuted frying, swelling up and bursting into a million fragments was enough. The track was not really ballasted but sat in what appeared to be deep layers of grime, oily dirt, dust, candy wrappers and old newspapers; I suppose there were ties underneath that mess somewhere. The walls were dingy white porcelain tile and there were brightly colored advertising signs attached to them at intervals. Most of the signs I remember advertised Wrigley’s gum. Behind me was a brightly lighted newsstand which sold Boston papers, candy bars cigarettes and cigars (in those more innocent days), and magazines. The station itself was not well lighted. Rather there were a few bulbs that tried ineffectually to pierce the darkness. I found that I could see pretty well once I got used to it. I tried to get close enough to the edge of the platform so I could see up the track to where the tunnel coming from the car barn curved away, but not close enough so that I might fall off, wind up against the dreaded third rail and be fried - INSTANTLY!!!

After awhile I could hear a train coming. It sounded differently than did the ones on the upper level as the noise was not as deep. I could hear the wheels squealing around the curve from the yard and hear the hollow whistling sound of the brakes being applied as the motorman brought it closer to the station. Then, there it was - four red lights marking the corners of the lead car, the blue-uniformed motorman sitting in the cab with one hand on the controller. The train of dirty, green painted, steel cars clomped into the station and screeched to a stop. The wooden doors banged open and the passengers began boarding the train.

These cars were not luxurious, they were utilitarian in the best sense of the word since they had been built to last through years and years of hard service. The windows would be open if the weather was warm and I could smell the pungent sweet scent of oil and warm traction motors. A compressor cut in under one of the cars with an urgent “lunga, lunga, lunga” sound, and then cut off with a harsh snap of air under pressure. It would be time to leave pretty soon and I made sure to try and get a seat near an open window so I could see everything. One feature of these cars I remember was a map of the MTA system in a glass panel by the door. I wonder now and then how much one of those would bring if offered at a memorabilia auction. Enough of that, though, it was time to go. The doors banged shut, “snuuffaaa,” went the air brakes, the traction motors groaned into action and the train began moving forward slowly at first, then much faster. I don’t think we were really went all that fast, but the fact that the windows were open and we were in a tunnel gave the illusion of really moving rapidly. Central was the next stop, just a short distance from Harvard Square. The section of the line from Central to Kendall was about the longest stretch between stops and the train really moved along here. The noise was thrilling, palpable, and altogether wonderful. You truly could not, as my mother always said, “Hear yourself think.” The racket was redoubled whenever we met a train. The other train roared past us in a blur of lights. This was what it was all about - going some place fast.

Years later I read a passage in a novel by Thomas Wolfe in which the hero, tormented by a desire to be everywhere, see everything, and absorb all of life’s experience in the process, would ride the subway from Cambridge to Boston and see if he could hold his breath between stops - I did this when I was five years old and enthralled by Little Golden Books rather than the Sage of Asheville. The run from Central to Kendall was a long one, whether I held my breath or not.

I mentioned that I tried to sit by the window. Deciding which side to sit on was a tough decision. Inbound the left side was the track side which would allow me a closeup view of the trains we met. The right hand side of the train would give me a good view of the Boston skyline when the train exited the tunnel and climbed over the bridge from Cambridge to Boston. Most of the time I chose the left side because from there I could see a lot of industrial buildings and in the distance the smokestack of the Boston and Maine’s roundhouse at Mystic. Peering ahead I could see it was getting lighter as we got closer to the tunnel portal. A rush and a clank and we were out of the tunnel for a little while and back into the daylight.

Up we went across the bridge to the Charles Street station. A brief stop there and then back into the tunnel underneath the storied streets of Beacon Hill. The train swung around a right hand curve before plunging back into the darkness. On the left was the frowning hulk of the infamous Charles Street jail; an ancient facility even when I was young. A roast beef sandwich stand was on the street right beside the prison walls. Legend had it that their sandwiches were so bad that the inmates would throw them back over the wall when kind hearted folks tossed a bag of them into the prison yard. A quick glance out the window allowed me to sort of see into the jail before the train plunged back into the tunnel. Park Street Under was the next station and we often got off there to transfer to another train, but sometimes we rode to Washington Street which is where the big department stores were. Still other times, we rode to South Station when we were going to ride the New Haven Railroad; always a great adventure. Beyond South Station lay unknown territory. I explored that later when I was older and started riding the subway by myself.

Park Street was about the biggest station on the MTA system. It had two levels. The subway was on the lower level and streetcars ran on the upper level. Historically, the oldest section of the entire MTA system was the one that ran into the upper level at Park Street. Some of the old Type 5 cars were still around when I was small, but mostly I remember riding on PCC’s. The PCCs were painted traction orange with a stripe separating the orange-colored lower half of the car from the cream-colored upper part of the car. The PCC’s ran from overhead wire so there was no danger of getting fried on the third rail. The PCC cars also did not run from a high level platform as did the subway cars. Park Street was a little better lighted than some of the other subway stops. The PCCs ran underground and on the surface and would take you virtually anywhere you wanted to go in the city.

work safe

[siberianmo]

Good Mornin' Gang!

So, does anyone beleive in coincidences[?] Just received an Email from Sir Nick over in West Wales and he assures me all is well. Been up to his ears with the new band venture and life in general. The BOOK has been received (don't know when!) but he assures me it will be mailed to the next guy on the "list" - that's YOU, DOUG!

Coincidence OR power of the "pen"'[?][swg]

Later!

Tom[4:-)][oX)]

[siberianmo]

”Our” Place RR Book Relay!




Status report:

The first mailing was to Nick on Jan 23rd. Haven't received a confirmation of receipt, however, my guess is he has it and is so wrapped up in the pages that it has simply been "too much" for him to handle![swg]

There is STILL TIME to join in on this idea - ship me an Email with your address and I'll add you to the list of recipients.


Tom[4:-)] [oX)]

[siberianmo]

Good Morning!

A blue sky mornin' here in mid-Continent USA - cold start with a warm-up expected. Brisk walk for Juneau as I thaw out at the keyboard![swg]

Another fine effort from our Pix-posters yesterday, as commented on in the SUMMARY.

I see barndad Doug is back with us for a Monday start - two informative Posts along with a couple of jokes to help start off the day.[tup][swg]

passengerfan Al has treated us all to Streamliner #30 and the MoPac Colorado Eagles. Nice livery and a huge part of railroading history where I am living. Lots of folks are still upset with the acquisition of that fine road by UP - logic and business concerns notwithstanding.

By the by - I was here yesterday too, Posting Pix![:(]

Good to see trolleyboy Rob return to the "fold" with his submissions yesterday. Now if we could only figure out what happened to nickinwestwales NIck (again!!)[swg]

Hope Lars is safe 'n sound in snowbound Staten Island, NYC![swg][tup]

Just a quick comment on our 10th Month Anniversary for "Our" Place - everyone who has contributed to keeping this thread going is to be commended. Boris Ring the bell and serve 'em all the OJ they can handle this AM![swg]

It shouldn't be hard to figure out who the people are (and have been) who participated in the manner expected of an interactive site. Two guys remain from that first day back on April 12th, 2005 - Al & Rob - so here's to you; have a mornin' pick-me-up on moi![tup][tup][tup]

A new series begins around NOON today - watch for it!

Tom[4:-)][oX)]

[passengerfan]

Good Morning Tom and the rest of the gang. Time for my usual Crumpet and Coffee
Great Photo Sunday nice to hear from Doug,Russell, Lars, Rob, Pete, Ted and Nick.
Makes me wish my photo collection hadn't gone missing in one of my numerous moves.

PASSENGERFAN AL'S Streamliner Corner #60

COLORADO EAGLE MP-D&RGW Trains 11-12 June 21, 1942 St. Louis - Denver nightly 1021.1 miles each way 16 hours 40 minutes

The final new lightweight streamlined trains to enter service after the beginning of WW II were the two COLORADO EAGLE trains. The Missouri Pacific inaugurated the new COLORADO EAGLE on June 21, 1942 between St. Louis and Denver overnight in each direction. The COLORADO EAGLE operated over MP tracks from St. Louis to Pueblo, Colorado and from there to Denver over the Denver & Rio Grande Western using their train crews. The distance between St. Louis and Denver via the MP-D&RGW route was 1,021 miles and the schedule called for 18 hours 50 minutes westbound and 19 hours 30 minutes eastbound. This would be the fastest schedule between these city pairs until 1946 when the Union Pacific and Wabash began CITY OF ST. LOUIS service. Each of the two consists was comprised of seven lightweight cars pulled by an A-B pair of EMD E6 units. The train carried a modernized heavy-weight 8 Section 1 Drawing Room 3 Double Bedroom Sleeping Car painted to match the lightweight cars between Geneseo, Kansas and Denver in each direction nightly, this was a through car to and from Wichita brought to Geneseo and back by a stub train operation. The first five lightweight streamlined cars in each consist were Budd built and the two lightweight streamlined sleeping cars were Pullman Standard built cars. The complete train was painted in the Blue and Cream paint scheme of the Missouri Pacific Railroad.

7002 EMD E6A 2,000 HP Diesel Passenger Cab Unit

7002B EMD E6B 2,000 HP Diesel Passenger Booster Unit

703 Baggage Car

712 Baggage 30’Railway Post Office Car

733 56-Revenue Seat Coach

722 48-Revenue Seat Coach 3-Seat Grill 6-Crew Dormitory

742 CHEYENNE MOUNTAIN 24-Seat Dining 19-Seat Lounge Car

606 ARKANSAS RIVER 6-Sections 6-Roomettes 4-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

608 EAGLE RIVER 6-Sections 6-Roomettes 4-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

TEMPLE TOWER Heavyweight 8-Section 1 Compartment 3 Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

CONSIST TWO

7003 EMD E6A 2,000 HP Diesel Passenger Cab Unit

7003B EMD E6B 2,000 HP Diesel Passenger Booster Unit

704 Baggage Car

713 Baggage 30’Railway Post Office Car

734 56-Revenue Seat Coach

723 48-Revenue Seat Coach 3-Seat Grill 6-Crew Dormitory

743 SAN ISABEL 24-Seat Dining 19-Seat Lounge Car

607 COLORADO RIVER 6-Section 6-Roomette 4-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

609 GUNNISON RIVER 6-Section 6-Roomette 4-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

BEACON TOWER Heavyweight 8-Section 1-Compartment 3-Double Bedroom Sleeping Car

Heavyweight sleeping cars operated between Wichita and Denver added to the WB COLORADO EAGLE and set out by the EB COLORADO EAGLE Geneseo, Kansas

In June 1948 the COLORADO EAGLE received Budd Dome coaches, one per consist with an extra one operating between St. Louis and Kansas City only.

New 10-Roomette 6-Double Bedroom Sleeping cars arrived from Budd in September 1949. The four built for the COLORADO EAGLE trains were:

610 CANYON RIVER
611 CRYSTAL RIVER
612 ELK RIVER
613 ROARING RIVER

On April2, 1966 the COLORADO EAGLE trains made their final runs.

TTFN AL

[Anonymous]

Here's the start of another series!

Our Own Lingo by John A. Miller from Oct. 1943 Railroad Magazine

“Hose Jumper” is a temporary track arrangement bridging a fire hose laid across a street railway track. This one on the the PTC, Philadelphia, Pa.


“Get a couple of jumping irons!” yelled the night carhouse superintendent. “That last pulling split the switch at the end of the ladder. Call the pit man too! She busted her life guard on the blind side. Dog-gone these boobs from the extra list who work the trippers, anyway!”

To the casual passer-by this monologue is so much senseless jargon. But if you are an old electric railroader the situation is quite plain. You know that a car completing a trip in charge of a rather inexperienced motorman has become derailed at the head of one of the tracks leading into the barn, and the life-saving device under the front platform had been broken at the left. Naturally, the superintendent is calling for equipment to rerail the car and a mechanic to repair it.

All of which goes to show that electric railroading, like many other industries, has a picturesque lingo of its own. Some terms are more or less self-explanatory, such as near-side stop, pay-enter car, and dead man’s handle. Other terms (anti-creepers, bolster, pedestal jaws, etc.) are used in both steam and juice railroading. Still others are unique in the electric field. The last-named category includes overs and shorts, split-run, swinging load, and the like.

In some cases the same expression has different meanings among electric and steam men. I might mention, for instance, guard rail and box car. A steam railroader looking for a guard rail on a trolley system probably wouldn’t recognize the thing when he saw it. And a hundred box-cars (electric version) might pass him unobserved.

Getting back to the harassed superintendent with the derailed car, we find that jumping irons, often called rerailers, are heavy iron castings shaped somewhat like the sliced-off top of an orange. When laid on the pavement alongside the rails, they aid in getting derailed rolling stock on the track again by directing the wheels toward the flangeway. These are quite different from hose jumpers. The latter are rails arranged to make a temporary bridge over fire hose laid across a street railway track, thus permitting car operation to be maintained.

The superintendent who described the derailed car as pull-in was using a very old term which originated in the days when a car was hauled into the bar by the faithful nag which had been pulling it up and down the street all day. The following morning the car would become a pull-out as it left the barn. Sometimes a pull-in is a cripple being assisted home by another car after a road failure. This job of helping, however, is either pushing or towing, not pulling.

In this connection you should bear in mind that a tower wagon, despite the first three letters in its name, does no towing. It is an emergency vehicle, formerly horse-drawn but now an automobile truck, with a platform that can be extended upward to enable linemen to repair the overhead wires. Note, too that a pull-off is not a car being pulled off the road, but a wire used to hold the trolley wire in position on a curve by pulling away from the center or curvature.

The ladder to which the superintendent referred is a track layout in which a series of switches connect a group of parallel tracks with a single main stem. Because a ladder is usually built up of parts not used in the construction of ordinary track, it is known as special work,. The latter term is applied also to all sorts of switches, crossings, etc., that have to be specially built.

Splitting the switch is a difficulty that arises when the forward truck of a double-truck car takes the switch in one direction while the rear of the truck takes it in the other direction. Usually some movement of the switch tongue has occurred during the brief interval of time between the front and rear trucks reaching the switch point.

A run is a day’s work for a one-man car operator or a two-man car crew. It is identified by a run number, whereas the vehicle’s place on the timetable is identified by a train number as long as it stays on the road. Thus the car carrying train number 7 on the Broadway line might leave the south end of the line at 7:05, 8:05, 9:05 etc. This is unlike steam railroad practice, where additional trips made by the same equipment would carry different train numbers. Moreover, in a street railway system we might find train number 7 on the Broadway Line, on the Market Street line and also on the Mt. Pleasant line. A steam road would more likely designate them as, let us say, trains 7, 107 and 207.

Sometimes the run number and the train number coincide in whole or part. Train number 1 ordinarily would be assigned to the first regular car to pull out in the morning (disregarding trippers, which I will take up later). Run number 1 would normally be assigned to the first straight run on the timetable – i.e. the day’s work that began earliest. This might very well be on the first regular car, but not necessarily.

Many runs are continuous from the time of pulling out to the time of pulling in. These are called straight runs. On the other hand, the day’s work may be divided into two or more pieces, with time off between them. These are split runs or swing runs. They may be two-piece runs or three-piece runs, the interval between being swing time. The over-all time from pulling out to pulling in is called the spread. To assist the men in picking the day’s work they would like best, the timetable generally carries a run guide, which shows the times or reporting, times of relief and total platform time for which the company pays.

Circumstances may, of course, interfere with the operation of service strictly according to the timetable. Run 1 may be delayed by frozen air, freezing or moisture in the airbrake apparatus, and so pick up a swinging load where ordinarily it would carry only a second load. This may put the motorman so far off his time that he has to have a turn-back or a set-back. In the first case he will have to change over to another car going in the opposite direction that has been dispatched especially from the car house in charge of an extra man un Run 1 to get back on his regular schedule. On the other hand, a set-back simply places Run 1 on the schedule time of Run 2 and leaves the whole road running behind schedule until the cars pull in.

However, the car concerned in the mishap we are discussing was not a regular car running back and forth all day, but was only a tripper (a car making a single round trip to provide extra service during the rush hour). That is why it was in charge of a man from the extra list – a man, as in steam railroading, without sufficient seniority to rate a regular run. Had this vehicle had an assignment that called for making a series of trips on various lines where peak demands came at different times, it might have been called a sight-seeing car, because its operation afforded the crew such a good opportunity to become acquainted with the city.

“Special Work” on the Youngstown (Ohio) Municipal Railway, photographed in 1929


[:I] A tourist has been visiting Mexico for a week. He is leaving the next day and he still hasn't tried the food. He goes to a restaurant and sits down to order and then sees what the man next to him has. It looks very tasty.
The waiter comes to take his order and the tourist tells him he wants what the other man beside him is having. The waiter says there is no more left.
The tourist then asks him what the meal is and the waiter replies that it is the testicles from the bull that lost the bullfight earlier that morning. He tells the tourist that if he comes back tomorrow he'll save this meal for him.
The tourist thinks, "What the heck, it'll be my last day here," so he comes back the next day and the waiter has his food prepared for him when he comes.
The man eats the meal and thinks it is delicious. But he is confused about one thing. He calls the waiter over and asks him why his meal looked smaller than the meal the other man had the day before.
The waiter replies, "Oh, sorry sir, sometimes the bull wins." [:I]

[Anonymous]

Good morning Tom and friends! I'll take 1 1/2 light breakfasts please. Did you hear about the sandwich that went into a bar and ordered a drink? The bartender told said "no", because they didn't serve food!

But seriously folks, I thought we had another great pix day! Many thanks to Tom, Rus, Nick, Al, Lars, Ted, Pete, and Rob! This is going to be another long-hour work week for me, so I'm not sure how much I can be here, but here's the final part tof the cab series. Have a great day!

Cabs – by George Hart, from the pages of Oct. 1943 Railroad Magazine



Cab applied to Sante Fe 2-10-4 oil burner presents contrast to coal burning cab above. Oil feed lines take the place of stoker elevators. On what would be the coal gates of the conventional tender is a large bin, fed from above, and used to carry sand. A shovelful, thrown into the firebox when the engine is working under draft, serves to scour sooty flues.


The men who run trains aren’t the only ones who are interested in having a comfortable cab. Locomotive messengers – men assigned by builders to deliver the engines to their purchasers – are frequently obliged to make their home right in the engine cab. These men are experienced engineers who ride in the cabs of newly outshopped power as they ride in freight trains from Alco, Lima or Baldwin to destinations that are frequently the full breadth of the continent away. Even though the new engines travel as freight and the messenger never touches the throttle, he sits with his head out the window as though driving the train, constantly on the alert for sound or smell of something which indicates trouble to his precious charge.

As long as the journey lasts, the messenger remains with his locomotive, eating, sleeping and frequently cooking in the cab. Before such trips this housing is equipped with a rough bed of planks over which the attendant can spread his light mattress when he wants his “spot.” When the man wants to cook, he has a “canned heat” burner for the purpose.

No matter how comfortable an engine cab might be, few messengers or enginemen would care to pass their spare time in it. But to youngsters in the country over, it suggested the last word in romantic shelters a generation ago. “I recall,” writes an ardent railfan named C.W. Moody,”the wonderful day when my dad brought me home a full sized cab that he had just stripped from the Wheeling & Lake Erie’s No. 17, which was having a new one applied at his carpentry shop in Massillon, Ohio. We kids set out with a boiler backhead, seat-boxes, throttle and, of course, the inevitable whistle cord. I can’t tell you how many thousand imaginary miles we traveled in her dark green interior, but I’ll never forget the memory of those wonderful runs.”

In the early days the names of the engines used to be emblazoned under the window of the cab. The practice of naming engines has more or less died out, but the cab is still the accepted background for the engine number on most lines. The Southern Railway still has a few engines which bear names on the cab, the “handles” of company engineers. During the 1920’s the road conceived the idea of honoring its veteran enginemen by assigning them regular locomotives and painting their names on the cab. Naturally, the men were proud of the distinction of having their own engines. They adorned the interiors of the cab with Masonic emblems, bronze eagles, deer horns, and other talismans, s well as an occasional cheesecake picture. The practice began to die out when the “pooling” system inaugurated.

Through the years the engine cab has kept pace with every step in the modernization of motive power. One of the latest wrinkles is the aluminum cab, which helps keep down the weight on non-power producing parts. In 1938 the Aluminum Company of America built the first cab made completely of aluminum alloy for New York Central engine 5437. This cab was put together with steel rivets, but Alcoa later made similar cabs for the Central which were fusion welded, the latest method of joining light metal. Of course, such cabs are not to be confused with the engine crew’s quarters on duraluminum streamliners, since the latter are naturally made of the same metal as the rest of the engine.

The modern cab is the last word in comfort and convenience. Tightly joined to the adjacent tender and invisibly welded to the engine, it is a far cry from the flapping canvas awnings which pioneer railroad men erected to keep the sun and rain off their heads as they ventured out on the rails in the flimsy grasshopper engines of a hundred and more long years ago.

Engineer of C&NW – UP-SP’s City of San Francisco uses phone to call maintainer or trainmen


[:I] A biology graduate student went to Borneo to take some samples for his thesis work. He flew there, found a guide with a canoe to take him up the river to the remote site he where he would make his collections. About noon on the second day of travel up the river they began to hear drums. Being a city boy by nature, the biologist was disturbed by this. He asked the guide, "What are those drums?" The guide turned to him and said, "Drums OK, but VERY BAD when they stop."
Well the biologist settled down a little at this, and things went reasonably well for about two weeks. Then, just as they were packing up the camp to leave, the drums suddenly stopped! This hit the biologist like a ton of bricks (to coin a phrase), and he yelled at the guide,
" The Drums have stopped, What happens now?"
The guide crouched down, covered his head with his hands and said:
" Bass Solo" [:I]

[siberianmo]

[tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup]


SOMETHING SPECIAL WILL BE POSTED CLOSE TO NOON TODAY –
WATCH FOR IT!


Tom[4:-)] [oX)]


[tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup][tup]

[siberianmo]

We open at 6 AM (all times zones!) (Don’t ask how we do that!)[swg]

MONDAY’s INFO & SUMMARY of POSTS

Good Morning! The best way to start the work week is to start it right here![tup] Some pastries from The Mentor Village Bakery along with a hot cuppa freshly brewed coffee “works” well! Then we have our <light> and <traditional> breakfasts from the Menu Board. So, c’mon and join us![tup]


Many THANX to barndad Doug – Trainnut 484 Russell - LoveDomes Lars & trolleyboy Rob for the fine, fine Pix! Additional THANX go to pwolfe Pete – Theodorebear Ted & nickinwestwales Nick for the Pix by Email & foto disc!! Honorable mention to passengerfan Al for jumpin’ in with some timely amplifying info! [tup][tup][tup]


Daily Wisdom

Asking his wife where has she been, she responded, “I took Tim to see Dr. Zhivago.” Yogi’s replied, “What the H’s wrong with him now?”.
(yogi-ism)


Info for the Day:

Railroads from Yesteryear: Santa Fe arrives Tuesday! This will be the THEME for the DAY!

* Weekly Calendar:

Wednesday Pike Perspective’s Day!
Thursday Fish ‘n Chips Nite!
Friday Pizza Nite! & Steak ‘n Fries Nite!
Saturday Steak ‘n Trimmin’s Nite! – and – ENCORE! Saturday


SUMMARY

Name …..…………… Date/Time …..…..………. (Page#) .. Remarks

(1) barndad Doug Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 05:08:49 (244) 6 Pix & joke!

(2) barndad Doug Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 05:14:17 (244) 6 Pix & joke!

(3) siberianmo Tom Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 06:57:10 (244) Sunday’s Info & Summary

(4) siberianmo Tom Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 07:45:25 (244) Now Showing!

(5) passengerfan Al Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 08:06:56 (244) Anniversary comments

(6) barndad Doug Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 08:45:17 (244) 6 Pix & joke!

(7) siberianmo Tom Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 09:01:13 (244) 4 Pix from Pete!

(8) barndad Doug Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 09:36:10 (244) 7 Pix & Joke!

(9) siberianmo Tom Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 10:40:40 (244) 4 Pix from Ted!

(10) Trainnut484 Russell Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 11:01:46 (245) 13 Pix!

(11) Trainnut484 Russell Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 11:57:21 (245) 12 Pix!

(12) siberianmo Tom Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 12:06:27 (245) 14 Pix (in 5 segments) from Nick!

(13) Theodorebear Ted Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 13:19:26 (245) Anniversary & Pix comments

(14) siberianmo Tom Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 14:15:02 (245) 4 Pix from Pete!

(15) passengerfan Al Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 16:01:16 (245) Comments & MoPac dome cars

(16) Trainnut484 Russell Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 17:23:02 (245) Anniversary & Pix comments

(17) siberianmo Tom Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 17:31:07 (245) 4 Pix!

(18) pwolfe Pete Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 19:46:21 (245) Anniversary & Pix comments – Pix descriptions

(19) trolleyboy Rob Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 23:09:33 (245) Anniversary & Pix comments

(20) trolleyboy Rob Posted: 12 Feb 2006, 23:25:04 (245) [red[8 Pix![/red]



NOW SHOWING:

The Mentor Village Emporium Theatre
. . . . . Double Features, all of the time . . . . .

. . . Sunday, February 12th thru 18th: Bound for Glory (1976) starring: David Carradine, Ronny Cox & Melinda Dillon – and – Emperor of the North Pole (1973) starring: Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine & Keith Carradine.


That’s it! [tup][;)]

Tom [4:-)] [oX)]
Proprietor of “Our” Place, an adult eating & drinking establishment!

[trolleyboy]

Okay a few photo's to wind out the day. All these shots are from my 1995 trip to Chicago and area. The first 4 are from Marion Ohio's jct.









The next four are other pictures from the Chicago leg of the July trip









Enjoy Rob

[trolleyboy]

Good evening folks/ I'm enjoying as always the fine photoposts from today. First off Let me say that I've been happy to have spent the last 10 months here with everyone, and I'm looking forward to the next ten. Round of applause for the Boss [tup][tup][tup]

ted, Nick, Pete, Tom Great shots all thanks to the Boss for posting them for you, always good to see the british rail and other preserved rail equipment,

Lars Some fab dome pictures as well. Here's hopping that most of that snow melts before youi have to shovel it.

Russ Loved the musuem shots, what a nioce diverse collection they have there.[tup]

Doug Nice work on those wreck shots as well, a nice sobering reminder of the not so pretty side of early railroading.


Rob

[pwolfe]

Hi Tom and all.

HAPPY 10TH ANNIVESARY TO OUR PLACE[tup][tup][tup].

Another great Sunday photo day
Many thanks all. DOUG The destructive power of a locomotive boiler is unbelievable and the jokes are still new to me and raise a [(-D][tup].
TED Good to hear from you. The outdoor G-Scale layout looks great it will be good to see more photos as it developes.
RUSSELL. Wonderful photos at the St Louis museum I think that they have moved some of the exhibits about since I was last there and it looked as though the weather was good the day you visited.

NICK Looking forward to the details on the model and full scale locos and railways.

LARS Great dome photos and thanks for the details on them AL.

TOM Thanks for the B.R. pics I will give some details tomorrow and Many Thanks for posting mine and thanks for the kind words all. [tup] the details on them are.

Page 244
York #13 L.N.E.R. A4 class 4-6-2 #4468 (later B.R. # 60022) MALLARD. THE WORLD STEAM SPEED RECORD HOLDER of 126.5 MPH on 3rd July 1938. She as been refitted with the wheel valences which were removed from the class in the 1940s.

York #14 The Dynamometer Car which recorded the record run with Mallard.

York #16 Great Northern Railway Stirling Single 4-2-2 of 1870 #1 with an 8 foot 1 inch driving wheel. These locos worked fast lightweight expresses at the time. This loco class was invoved in the Race to the North for the East Coast route. A rival engine on the West Coast can just be glimpsed in background of photo #20, if it is enlarged, above the N on #1s tender. This loco is the London and North Western Railway's 2-4-0 # 790 Hardwicke.

York #17 An18 inch guage 0-4-0 of 1887 WREN. it was used in the works of the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway at Horwich Lancs. to transport materials between the shops.

Page 245
York #18 A typical loco used in Industrial use at the turn of the century this one I believe worked in a quarry, it is named BAUXITE. The diesel loco in the background is Bru***ype 4 # 47798 Prince William recenly retired from Royal Train duties and is in Royal Train livery.

York 19 North Eastern Railway 2-2-4T loco Aerolite not sure about its early days but later it was used to haul the railway officials on tours of inspection on the N.E.R.

York #20&21 General views of the Great Hall as it is known at the museum. This was one of the two roundhouses on the site in steam days. The roof had to be replaced and is fairly new. The turntable is still used to turn the occasional steam loco which has worked in on a special. The power car in the left fore-ground is from the prototype diesel High Speed Train.
Thanks again TOM for letting me share these photos from across the pond PETE>

[siberianmo]

The 10th Month Anniversary of "Our" Place [yeah][wow]

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL WHO HAVE MADE IT POSSIBLE TO SURVIVE ON THE FORUMS WITH ONLY A RELATIVE HANDFUL OF CONTRIBUTORS!


Even though ”Our” Place is CLOSED on SUNDAY’s we do observe Sunday Photo Posting Day!

Check these beauties out from Great Britain!

(1) BR Class 375 Electrostar (from: public domain)


(2) BR Class 390 Virgin Valiant (from: public domain)


(3) BR Class 170 First ScotRail (from: public domain)


(4) BR Class 489 Gatwick Express (from: public domain)



If you are browsing, how about letting the guys know that you’ve enjoyed their efforts!

That's it for me . . . it's been quite a Sunday Photo Posting Day! and a huge THANX goes to all who participated![tup][tup][tup] See y'all in the 'morrow![tup]

Tom [4:-)] [oX)]

[Trainnut484]

Hello again Tom and all. Just slidding this through the slot.

Congrats to those of us who helped this establishment make it to 10 months.

Doug, Tom, Ted, Nick, Lars, and Pete, nice work on the pixs. I do have to say those wrecks, Doug, are a somber reminder of the dangers of railroading. It's always sad when railroaders are killed while doing their jobs. Ted, your loopback on your G scale railroad looks like it's taking shape. It's always good to hear from you. Pete, those musem pix from England are great. I bet one could spend endless hours in that museum. Nick, did you weather those model boxcars? Nice job on them. Your real guage pix are fine too. One of those steamers looks like it was the inspiration for Thomas the Tank engine. Lars, fine dome pixs, and thanks to Alfor the 411 on the MP domes.

Take care for now,

Russell

[passengerfan]

Good Aftrenoon Everyone. I Know the bar is closed on Sunday but could not resist those MP dome pictures by Lars.

Also Lars I just went out to lunch with the better half I wore Shorts and a Tee Shirt temp 71.

Hey everyone great photos posted today.

Missouri
Pacific Streamlined Dome Cars
(MP)
By AL

In May-June 1948 the Missouri Pacific received three stainless steel dome coaches from Budd. These three cars were delivered painted in full MP colors and were lettered for the roads COLORADO EAGLE. The COLORADO EAGLE entered service June 21, 1942 between St. Louis and Denver by way of the MP to Pueblo and the D&RGW between Pueblo and Denver. The sleeping cars were from Pullman Standard and the other five cars in the eight car trains were Budd built.
It was originally intended to have a St. Louis – Denver connection with the VISTA-DOME CALIFORNIA ZEPHYR. This was the reason for the MP ordering the odd number of Planetarium-Dome cars for the COLORADO EAGLE train sets when two would have been sufficient. The three Planetarium –domes 890-892 delivered to the MP were identical to the Vista-Dome coaches built for the VISTA-DOME CALIFORNIA ZEPHYR except for the fact they were painted. These domes featured 46-leg-rest seats on the main level and 24-seats in the dome.
One Planetarium-Dome was assigned to each COLORADO EAGLE train set with the third initially held as a spare but later being assigned to one of the COLORADO EAGLE train sets. Later one of the Budd built MP domes was assigned to one of the MISSOURI RIVER EAGLES. The other MISSOURI RIVER EAGLE operated with a Pullman Standard built Planetarium dome after 1953 or 1954. All three of the Budd built Planetarium Domes were renumbered in the MP-T&P general renumbering that took place between February and June 1963. At that time they were renumbered from 890-892 to 590-592.
All three of the Budd built Planetarium-Domes were sold to the Illinois Central in June 1967 and were renumbered 2200-2201 for their new owner. See Illinois Central Chapter for further details of these cars.
In June-July 1952 Pullman Standard delivered 5- Planetarium Dome coaches for TEXAS EAGLE service. Three of the new Planetarium-Domes were owned by the MP 893-895, one was owned by MP subsidiary International Great Northern (IGN) 896 and the fifth was owned by Texas & Pacific numbered 200. These cars seated 42 on the main level with 17-seat lounge area beneath the dome and 24-seats in the dome.
The MP cars were painted in the blue and cream scheme with yellow separation stripes in the center of the letter board above the windows were the words THE EAGLE.
The MP assigned one Pullman Standard Planetarium Dome to each WEST TEXAS EAGLE operating between St. Louis and Fort Worth only. Another pair was assigned to the SOUTH TEXAS EAGLES one per train set. They operated between St. Louis and San Antonio. The extra car was assigned to the MISSOURI RIVER EAGLE, so one of those trains operated with a Budd dome the other operated with a Pullman Standard dome.
In the 1963 renumbering the five Pullman Standard domes were renumbered from MP 893-895 IGN 896 and T&P 200 to MP 593-596 and T&P 597.
In later years the cars are known to have operated in the T&P LOUISIANA EAGLE for a brief period and in June 1967 three of the Pullman Standard built domes 594,596, and 597 were sold to the Illinois Central becoming their 2210-2212 respectively. The 593 was part of the Illinois Central deal as a parts source for the other cars purchased. See Illinois Central chapter for further details.
The 595 the last remaining Planetarium Dome operating on the MP was retired in June 1967 when the others were sold to the IC. The car remained at the MP Sedalia Missouri shops until scrapped by the UP in 1985. It was rolled onto its side in 1970 outside the Sedalia scrap line where it remained until finally cut up by the UP.

TTFN AL

[LoveDomes]

Good Afternoon Tom

Yes, it’s me in snowbound Staten Island, NYC – howling, blowing, drifting, cold and winter wonderland Island that it is today![swg] Spent most of the day snow blowing, but it was a colossal waste of energy, both mine and the fuel. Winds just kept putting it back and then some! Got at least 2 feet, impossible to get the car out – but that’s ok – who needs it on a day like this??

My wife has declared that I am NOT to venture outdoors until this ends – so, I fired up the ‘puter and here I am![swg] Sorry to say that the inane nonsense postings really tick me off – you know – the polls and the crap questions from guys who must have nothing better to do in their lives than to come up with the nonsense being put out. Why is it on Classic Trains is my question?? Looks like we have some guys who think they should be responding to it all – which means they are ENABLING these jerks. Ok, ok – [soapbox] and [#offtopic] I know.[tdn]

Good job on the part of all who have provided pix on this Photo Sunday! – should add a smile to the barkeep’s mug, eh[?][swg] Always wondered what that museum out your way had to offer and thanks to Trainut484 Russell we all know. Great shots, better than their web site! A three-[tup] salute to you![tup][tup][tup]

Those jokes are great, barndad Doug – even on a day like this there’s room for a smile or two![tup][tup] Pix are well done also …. Train wrecks however aren’t things to smile about. Many, many great photo’s and narratives. Fine effort deserves a three-[tup] salute![tup][tup][tup]

Thanks to Pete – Nick & Ted for their shots as well. I know this takes lots of your time and efforts, Tom but we appreciate it! A three-[tup] salute to you![tup][tup][tup]

Finally, on this 10th Month Anniversary Day let me slide this $50 thru the slot – use it during the week for rounds as you see fit!! Congrats to all who helped Tom keep this joint rockin’ on!![yeah]


So, I found some pix that should remind you, Tom of your S-gauge layout, check ‘em out:[tup]


Missouri Pacific Magazine 1952



Misouri Pacific (MP) #890 as #590 (1964) (from: www.trainweb.com)



Illinois Central #2200, former MP #890 (from: www.trainweb.com)



Missouri Pacific #891 – The Colorado Eagle (from: www.trainweb.com)



Illinois Central #2201, former MP #891 (from: www.trainweb.com)



Missouri Pacific #893 – The Eagle (from: www.trainweb.com)



Illinois Central #2210, former MP #894 repeat 894 (from: www.trainweb.com)



Until the next time!

Lars

[siberianmo]

The 10th Month Anniversary of "Our" Place [yeah][wow]

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL WHO HAVE MADE IT POSSIBLE TO SURVIVE ON THE FORUMS WITH ONLY A RELATIVE HANDFUL OF CONTRIBUTORS!


Even though ”Our” Place is CLOSED on SUNDAY’s we do observe Sunday Photo Posting Day!

More recent pix from Pete while over in Merry Olde! – Part II of II – suspect Pete will provide some descriptions either today or tomorrow.

(5) (york18)


(6) (york 19)


(7) (york20)


(8) (york21)


Thanx again Sir Pete! That wraps up the Pix from your trip home.[tup][tup][tup]


If you are browsing, how about letting the guys know that you’ve enjoyed their efforts!


Tom [4:-)] [oX)]


REMINDER! Read the SUMMARY!

[Anonymous]

I will just slip this note through the slot for future perusal. Many thanks to Tom for posting my humble efforts on this Sunday Photo Posting Day and the auspicious occasion of the ten month observance of "Our" Place.[tup] There may be slightly less volume of "steady" posts but the superb quaity has not diminished one Iota through the months. Nick, Pete, Doug, Russell and , of course, Tom have done it again. Sunday is fast becoming a highlite day of the week. Many thanks for making Sunday browsing a unique and enjoyable experience.

As you know, I've been "tied up" with endless community work. I hope to see some relief efforts from other volunteers in the next couple of months. Until then, it is "catch as catch can" for me.[V] Still, I wanted to take this brief opportunity to send best regards to all who keep this Thread "leading the pack."[tup][tup][tup] As far as the four "G" gauge pics, they are pretty self evident. Since those shopts, I've added a 21 ft. passing siding. I hope to send some pics of the Doodlebug (At&SF) and box cars at first opportunity. For now, may I bid all of you a happy ten month "pat-on-the-back." Tom, here's a Jackson for Monday's A.M. "Rounders." Happy rails to all.

[siberianmo]

The 10th Month Anniversary of "Our" Place [yeah][wow]

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL WHO HAVE MADE IT POSSIBLE TO SURVIVE ON THE FORUMS WITH ONLY A RELATIVE HANDFUL OF CONTRIBUTORS!


Even though ”Our” Place is CLOSED on SUNDAY’s we do observe Sunday Photo Posting Day!

Here are some Pix from our friend Nick who once again has come through to entertain us all on this fine day!

(1) Model trains


(2) Model trains


(3) Real trains, Brit style!


(4) Real trains, Brit style!


(5) Real trains, Brit style!


Thanx, ,Sir Nick! We look forward to the descriptions . . . . [tup][tup][tup]


If you are browsing, how about letting the guys know that you’ve enjoyed their efforts!


Tom [4:-)] [oX)]


REMINDER! Read the SUMMARY!

[Trainnut484]

Hello again Tom and all. Here’s the second part of my St. Louis transportation museum pics, which are steam.

Please forgive me for not mentioning the specifics on these. I’m restricted on time today (Wife honey-do list).

Since I ended the diesels pix with UP, I’ll start here with UP steam.

UP BigBoy #4006.


View of #4006’s cab.


Rare view of inside of the firebox. Some people don’t have respect [:(!] for this magnificent machine (Coke bottle in firebox [tdn][tdn][tdn]).


A site that no Fireman wanted to see, an empty tender. Note the feeder screw at bottom.


Santa Fe 2-10-4 #5011. Visitors to this cab can ring the bell.


Frisco #1522. This was the saddest site to see [V] sitting cold on display like just another museum piece as I have pix of this steamer in excursion service. Brought to the museum in 2003, and already there’s rust on the pilot wheels. Rumor has it that the 1522 is in the process of being sold, which details about that are unkown.


C&O #2727


Nickel Plate 4-6-4 #170


NYC 4-8-2 #2933


Steam era pix…

Reefer cars


Milk car


SSW wedge snowplow #95589. Looks like this snowplow was made from the tender of a steam engine, but don’t know for sure.


That’s it for today. ENJOY.

Russell

[Trainnut484]

Good morning Tom and all congregational members. I know we’re closed today, so I’ll slip these pics for Sunday Photo Posting Day quietly through the mail slot.

All of these were taken at the Museum of Transportation in St. Louis, MO. I’ll post the diesels pics first, then the steam pics will be later.

Photo descriptions are from the museum unless noted otherwise.

Click to enlarge.

Rock Island’s Aerotrain- Two GM Aerotrain prototypes (called LWT-12 for Light Weight 1,200HP) were built around 1955, with one going to the Pennsylvania RR and the other to NYC (www.discoverlivesteam.com). The Aerotrains rode poorly at high speeds and had high noise levels. They were also prone to mechanical problems. After a year of service, Pennsy and NYC sent theirs back to GM, and both were eventually sold to the RI, and used in Chicago Commuter service until 1965. This Aerotrain was donated to the museum by the RI in 1966.


CB&Q “Silver Charger” #9908- This was the last of the early Zephyr trains in which the car body housed the engine and doubled as a mail/baggage car. The train originally powered the General Pershing Zephyr from ST. Louis to Kansas City and was the last shovel nose in service. Built in 1939, it is 80’ long and weighs 202,000 pounds, and was donated to the museum by the CB&Q in 1966.


CB&Q E8 #9939A


MARC #66 E unit ex-BN


EMD demonstrator FT #103 “The Diesel that did it” built 1939- donated by the Southern Ry in 1961, and was declared a “National Engineering Landmark” June 1982.


Illinois Terminal Railbus “The Dinky” bt. 1939- Built by the White Motor Company as a school bus, it was modified by the Illinois Terminal railroad for rail service between Grafton and Alton, Illinois. It was donated to the museum by the IT railroad in 1953.


EL SD45 #3607.


UP Centennial 6944- Currently undergoing cosmetic restoration. It was one of UP’s biggest diesels.


UP rotary snowplow #900081- It was designed and built in 1966 at the UP Omaha shops. This rotary snowplow is the heaviest ever built weighing 367,400lbs and is 52’2” long and 17’ high. Three or four locomotives, which were controlled from the non-propelled plow, pushed it at four to six mph. The snowplow is powered by an EMD 16 cylinder 3,000hp turbocharged diesel engine that drives an electric generator, which provides power to turn the 12’ rotary blades at up to 150rpm. A steam generator provided heat to the cab and can thaw out the blades if they became frozen. The rotary snowplow was last used in Green River, WY in the mid 1980’s, and it was donated to the museum in 1994 by the UP.


If caught by surprise, one would have to change their shorts after seeing this in full spin moving towards him/her. Note the numbers on the blades.


Side view. Note the snow discharge chute on top in front of windshield.


Another side shot with a gauge to determine depth of snow.


A view rarely seen. The rear of the snowplow. Note the fan above the door.


That’s it for the diesel part. Steam is coming later this afternoon

Enjoy

Russell

[siberianmo]

The 10th Month Anniversary of "Our" Place [yeah][wow]

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL WHO HAVE MADE IT POSSIBLE TO SURVIVE ON THE FORUMS WITH ONLY A RELATIVE HANDFUL OF CONTRIBUTORS!


Even though ”Our” Place is CLOSED on SUNDAY’s we do observe Sunday Photo Posting Day!

Here’s an installment from Theodorebear Ted featuring his efforts in building a G gauge outdoor layout: (we’ll have to await descriptions from Ted)

(1) A work in progress!


(2) A work in progress!


(3) A work in progress!


(4) A work in progress!



Thanx, Sir Ted! Next week, a return to Ted’s HO layout.[tup][tup]


If you are browsing, how about letting the guys know that you’ve enjoyed their efforts!


Tom [4:-)] [oX)]


REMINDER! Read the SUMMARY!

[Anonymous]

Wow! Nice pix Pete! Thanks for posting them Tom! This will be my final pix submission for the day. I wrote a little blurb at the end about the author. This book is described as "A pictoral history of Accidents on the Main Line", but is filled with useful text as well. Hope you enjoyed these few pictures well enough to want to add this book to your collection!

More pix from Train Wrecks by Robert C. Reed

A direct hit, broadside. This mangled schoolbus stalled on the B&O tracks near Rockville, Md. In 1959. Fortunately the bus was empty, and the driver was able to jump out just before the Metropolitan crashed into it at 70 MPH.


A rare boiler failure (explosion of the front course) is shown in this view of an old Baldwin eight wheeler on the Houston & Texas Central Railroad.


Although the boiler and cab were blasted clean away in this explosion, this “Katy” mogul remained on the rails. In fact, she rolled on for fifty-five feet beyond the point of the explosion. The scene is Cumby, Texas, 1921.


The entrails of a Santa Fe locomotive lie bent and gnarled after a violent disembowelment near Standish, Mo. In the winter of 1921.


A crown sheet failure plopped this St. Louis Southwestern’s boiler neatly beside the engine at Paragould, Ark. In 1945.


In a rocky cut near Lehigh, Pa., a double-headed Lackawanna passenger train blew up on a steep grade in late July 1930. The twisted fire box and boiler of the 1172 were thrown fifty yards ahead.


Looking like frozen spaghetti strands, these superheater tubes lie exposed after Southern Pacific No. 4402 burst near Richvale, Calif. On Christmas Day, 1931.


About the author: “Bob” Reed was born in Toledo but grew up in Lima, Ohio, home of the Lima Locomotive Works where he acquired a deep interest in things pertaining to railroading. He got his B.A. degree at Miami University and his M.A. at Bowling Green University and has worked as a reporter, writer and teacher. For the past four years he has been on the staff of the English Department at St. Stephens School, Alexandria, Virginia. He resides in Capitol Hill Restoration are of Washington, D.C. His proximity to the Library of Congress has given him ample opportunity to collect the pictures and do the research necessary to prepare this book. He enjoys spending weekends at his Piece-d-Terre in the country near Middleburg, Virginia, which he deserts once in a while to travel to Europe.

[:I] An older gentleman had an appointment to see the urologist who shared an office with several other doctors. The waiting room was filled with patients. As he approached the receptionist desk he noticed that the receptionist was a large unfriendly woman who looked like a Sumo wrestler.
He gave her his name. In a very loud voice, the receptionist said, "YES, I HAVE YOUR NAME HERE; YOU WANT TO SEE THE DOCTOR ABOUT IMPOTENCE, RIGHT?"
All the patients in the waiting room snapped their heads around to look at the very embarrassed man. He recovered quickly, and in an equally loud voice replied, "NO, I'VE COME TO ENQUIRE ABOUT A SEX CHANGE OPERATION, BUT I DON'T WANT THE SAME DOCTOR THAT DID YOURS." [:I]

[siberianmo]

The 10th Month Anniversary of "Our" Place [yeah][wow]

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL WHO HAVE MADE IT POSSIBLE TO SURVIVE ON THE FORUMS WITH ONLY A RELATIVE HANDFUL OF CONTRIBUTORS!

Even though ”Our” Place is CLOSED on SUNDAY’s we do observe Sunday Photo Posting Day!

Some recent pix from Pete while over in Merry Olde! – Part I of II – I suspect Pete will provide some descriptions either today or tomorrow.

(1) (york13)


(2) (york14)


(3) (york16)


(4) (york17)


Thanx Sir Pete![tup] … More to follow a bit later on.


If you are browsing, how about letting the guys know that you’ve enjoyed their efforts!

Tom [4:-)] [oX)]


REMINDER! Read the SUMMARY!

[Anonymous]

More pix from Train Wrecks by Robert C. Reed

A chaotic scene of wheels, rails, and parts strewn on top of the locomotive after a spring washout. A shoofly has been built around the wreckage so that traffic could be maintained.


A broken side rod swiped clean the engineer’s side of the cab on this Delaware & Hudson engine. This ever present danger to the engineer explains the eventual outlawing of “Mother Hubbard” locomotives.


No exit. A brick wall did not stop this runaway. She burst through her roundhouse berth in Hartford, Conn. On July 8, 1905, narrowly missing a plunge into the river.


A serious pile-up happened on the PRR at New Portage Jct., Pa., in 1916, killing seven employees. The brakes on a freight failed on a down mountain grade. The runaway collided with four engines at the foot of the mountain. ICC investigators blamed the engineer for allowing air brake pressure to become too low.


A large crowd gathered to look at the fractured remains of the Washington, D.C. runaway of 1887, with the Capitol dome in the background.


The all-time sensational runaway wreck was the Washington, D.C. terminal disaster of 1953. Loaded with inauguration-bound passengers, the Pennsy’s crack Federal Express sped out of control headed straight for a dead end at the Capitol’s classical marble station. The express smashed through the station and into the main concourse where the floor collapsed under the weight. Luckily no one was killed.


[:I] On Friendship between women:
A woman didn't come home one night. The next day she told her husband that she had slept over at a friend's house. The man called his wife's 10 best friends. None of them knew about it.

On Friendship between men:
A man didn't come home one night. The next day he told his wife that he had slept over at a friend's house. The woman called her husband's 10 best friends. Eight of them confirmed that yes, he had slept over and two claimed that he was still there. [:I]

[passengerfan]

Good Morning Tom I realize that Our Place is closed on Sunday Just wanted to say how much I for one appreciate the efforts of everyone who has made it possible to enter our tenth month.
Looking forward to Sunday Photo posting day.
Getting ready for Santa Fe Tuesday.

TTFN AL

[siberianmo]

The 10th Month Anniversary of "Our" Place [yeah][wow]

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL WHO HAVE MADE IT POSSIBLE TO SURVIVE ON THE FORUMS WITH ONLY A RELATIVE HANDFUL OF CONTRIBUTORS!


Even though ”Our” Place is CLOSED on SUNDAY’s we do observe Sunday Photo Posting Day!

NOW PLAYING at the Mentor Village Emporium Theatre!

Bound for Glory (1976)

A biography of one of America’s greatest folk singers, Woody Guthrie (David Carradine). In the dust bowl days of the 1930s, he left his Texas home to seek work. While doing so, he witnessed the strength and suffering of the working class of America.

Emperor of the North (Pole) (1973)

Portrayed by Ernest Borgnine, “Shack” is a despised sadistical railroad conductor with a vengeance directed at “hobos” riding his trains. Then comes along “A” Number One, played by Lee Marvin, who accepts the challenge of becoming the first to survive a journey on “Shack’s” infamous train.


If you are browsing, how about letting the guys know that you’ve enjoyed their efforts!


Tom [4:-)] [oX)]


REMINDER! Read the SUMMARY!