"Our" Place reborn! 3rd Year of adults 'n REAL Classic Trains in a special environment!

[siberianmo]

SPECIAL - SPECIAL - SPECIAL

Congratulations to DL-UK for the 1,000th Post on our reborn Thread!

Always pleased to recognize the guys who take the time 'n make the effort to participate in our goings-on 'round here in the lighthearted 'n informative manner hoped for!

Now to your Post at 11:11 AM today:

Yes, VIA Rail is using the Budd corrugated steel passengers cars, formerly from CP Rail stock, on the Hudson Bay route from Winnipeg to Churchill. VIA Rail "may" be putting on a Park Car observation dome, but that still hasn't been firmed up.

The shower facilities in the bedroom cars are indeed community as opposed to communal (sorry, Boris!).

A point of order though regarding the Chunnel Chugger Renaissance Euro cars <phew> - only those in the DELUXE bedrooms get the shower. Been there done that and my bedroom was not so equipped because I didn't pony up for the rather exorbitant "surcharge."

Back to the Hudson Bay - there is a diner, there may be a Skyline dome car, of course a baggage car (maybe two - depending on time of year and advance notice for things like canoes, kayaks, etc.). And yes, the VIA Rail site IS indeed nebulus on the "details" for these trains. The reason escapes me, but that's the way "they" seem to prefer it at VIAs HQ. Call 'em HEP when that's NOT a proper descriptor. <arrrrgggggghhhh> <grin>

In the not so distant past, the Hudson Bay actually ran a "mixed' passenger car consist of "smooth sides" in the blue/yellow livery along with some Budd corrugated stainless . . . looked "funky." Once the decison was made to pull the Budd equipment away from the eastern routes, those cars did in fact wind up on the western trains. Noteable exception being a Park Car for the "Ocean" during the "tourist season" - which seems to vary from year to year. This year apparently it begins in early June, whereas in the past it was early May. Golly gee, oh gosh!

Enjoyed your trip report and the URLs to supplement it! Fun on the rails is the way to go, eh

Lars at 11:15 AM today: Good to see Manager Lars drop in this AM and appreciate the conversation. Not to sweat the small stuff, Mate - guys are gonna do what guys are gonna do. We KNOW who the serious supporters of this bar are and there's no sense in going through all of that again. <grin>

My Cardinals may have snapped out of their "power failure" yesterday, but they have yet to show the sports world that they are anything close to resembling last year's World Champs. Still very, very early and a long road ahead. By the by, I watched that Detroit - Calgary game from start to finish. Was amazed at the intensity of play and gotta hand it to the Flames, they really tried their best. Detroit is awesome and just may take it all. I was glad to see the winning goal scored by the guy who got "nailed" at the end of game #5 by Calgary's goalie. Poetic justice, eh

Only reason I follow the Yanks is Joe Torre. Once he retires, I'll probably totally lose interest in "George's Bizillionaires" on the Harlem River. BoSox put it to 'em over the weekend and I'll bet the frenzied fanatics in Fenway are still forthing at the mouth! <grin>

Whatever contribution you can muster up for the 'morrows "Theme for the Day" will be most appreciated.

Is Ruth going to Florida too?? Also, WHEN are you planning to "cash in" your weekend in the Penthouse Suite for the 10,000th Post?? Gotta ensure that you 'n "whoever" get the privacy deserved . . .

Boris, ring the bell - drinks on Da Bossman!

Later!

Tom

[LoveDomes]

Ahoy Cap'n Tom ‘n fellow travelers at the bar!

Ruth my deAH you are the bright note on an otherwise bland Monday. I'll take a Larsman special hero sandwich of ham ‘n Swiss, mustAHd ‘n buttAH with two extra crunchy ‘n large pickles from the barrel. Of course, a tray of seed for Awk, a saucer of brine for Tex, a bucket of ice cubes for Frostbite, a LARGE doggie bone for Juneau and a small jar of pickled pig's feet for Boris! <phew> And, a round for the house - keep the change my lovely! <blush>

Weekend has come ‘n gone, we're counting down the month of April and B4 we realize it, May will be upon us! Gotta hand it to Da Bossman, for he surely kept the place runnin' pretty much on his lonesome on Saturday. Loved the Via Rail shots and the movies look fine as well!

There really is something to be said for those who stick it out through thick ‘n thin ‘round this joint. Pete ‘n Eric are "regulars" in every sense of the word and if only we could muster up a few more, huh We do seem to be able to muster up support for special occasions, though - so all isn't lost - yet! But I surely can see where if we don't and can't pick up the "slots" for morning - noon - evening - things are going to be rough in the very near future.

Yeah, I noted "one of ours" out ‘n about, but not ‘round here. Surprised, but then again really not. Hey, if this bar or the other thread isn't enticing enough, then take it elsewhere. Isn't that the way of the forums anyway? Shouldn't surprise anyone. We've seen all kinds of guys come ‘n go. I figure it this way. The bar is the ONLY reason I'm logged on. What I have to say and what I like to read are on these two threads that Cap'n Tom has put together. To each his own . . . but don't pretend to be what one isn't! That's crap now, yesterday and tomorrow.

Chesapeake & Ohio for tomorrow and I'll make a post, at least one. After that, no guarantees!

Some pretty good sports on the tube over the weekend and I've had my fill of watching it! Feel like I'm going to resemble Boris one of these days in that I'll have one eye, centered right above the bridge of my nose! Cyclops, that's us! <grin. Mets are hangin' in there with Atlanta for the division lead. My Islanders are history in the NHL playoffs and figgered they would be against the Sabres. Rangers on the other hand look to be the team to beat in the east. That game last night (this morning) up in Calgary was something else. The Red Wings outshot ‘em five zillion to nearly nothing and it went into a 2^nd overtime B4 they pulled it out. Something to be said about parity in the NHL with the #1 and #8 "seeds" squaring off in a great game #6. Figure Detroit should get to the final round. Also noted that the Red Birds of St. Loooooo had a great time in Chicago yesterday. More home runs flying out of that place than up in Fenway where the Sox demoralized the Yanks (again)!

So much for the "sports report"!! <grin>

So what's it been, two weeks since we heard from West Coast S - Dave over in Iraq?? Guess he got his transfer to that Coast Guard squadron he mentioned. A strange thing. Anyway, thought he was coming back stateside in May. Well, let's just hope he makes it safely through the "tour" and gets back home for the resumption of his life with family ‘n friends ‘n the bar!

Figgered I'd swing on by knowing that Shane wouldn't be ‘round this morning. Hopefully we'll see another customer B4 the late afternoon appearance by our Bar Chandler, Pete.

JUST Caught that post from DL - I'll catch up with it a bit later on . . . . I think it is YOU that made it 1,000 posts on the new thread!  When I Posted this it showed as 1,001 - so my guess is you were at 999 and your post made it 1,000.  Congratulations!

Until the next time!

Lars

[DL - UK]

Hello all

I'd better start the week with some breakfast please, orange juice would be nice too.

Wow, I had the privilege of my very short post being the 9,999^th - did not realise at the time - nice to clear the way for Lars to make the big one!

Tom, nice pics of VIA service from your archive (and thanks for the info on the buffalo location for me too - and also to Eric for the distance answer as well).

Incidentally Tom, do you happen to know if the VIA Hudson's Bay service is still Budd carriage stock (or HEP as I know you like to call it.....)? I'm just trying to answer a query on this for someone. Via site always slightly ambiguous. I presume it is as that is the stock used out west. Further to this, what is the onboard shower facilities on Budd stock for passengers - are there showers in communal areas (no, not communal showers Boris) like on Superliners (as opposed to private shower rooms as on Chugger cars?)

Anyway - here's the promised TRIP REPORT

Friday eve the Midland Mainline 125 HST pulls in 10 minutes late and by the time we head off towards Leeds we are 15 mins down which is rather poor.

Here is one of these trains:

http://www.alveyandtowers.com/details.php?image_id=9628&sessionid=b1d7ea86b7ca90234bf8b19d56def5ae

This service is pretty much a ‘positioning move' to take a train that has left London in the evening peek up to Leeds for servicing, so it does not attract many passengers - but offers higher levels of comfort than most railcar trains on the route, which require a change, and serves to be empty much of the way.

We took our seats in the mobile free quiet car, with only 3 other passengers (one of whom immediately commenced a tedious telephone call but did have the courtesy to leave the car when my other half pointed out to her that she should not be ringing from there - just why the heck do people think that the rules somehow are optional and they don't need to respect them? There are a d**n 7 other cars to sit in a speak to your hearts contents for c****sake!).

Also the whole car is completely bedecked in the litter left behind by the passengers from London, empty beer cans, endless newspaper, snack food cartons etc - a real tip - I've talked before about litter and the British public - they are slobs of the first order. Since the car was virtually empty I grabbed a carrier bag and collected it all up since sadly the on board staff don't seem to see this as their job.

No hope of much catch up time wise en route to Sheffield (approx 50 miles) as we seem stuck behind a slower moving train up ahead. At Sheffield nearly everyone else gets off (and one guy gets on, sits down, starts the mobile phone.....). Sheffiled is the city The Full Monty film is set in by the way.

We make slow progress through what was the South Yorkshire coalfield, but light has gone by now. Eventually we arrive at Leeds Station 30 minutes down.

Checking into our hotel, the ex London Midland and Scottish Queens Hotel we ask for a quiet room and get one on the top floor at the back - this has the bonus of overlooking the whole of the west end platforms of Leeds station! Why leave the room you ask.....

Leeds is still major rail centre - although back in the day there would have been much more to see (in fact a friend of mine in Leeds, who is a train driver, gave me a run down on the former routes into the City which was very interesting).

This site is worth a look (Pete, in particular I think you'll enjoy the photos below the map on this site - some very good stuff here)

http://www.lostrailwayswestyorkshire.co.uk/leeds%20west.htm

Well, next day did afford time for a trip to Howarth, so mid morning we took the electric commuter service up to Keighley - this is the former Midland Railway Route.

Changing at Keighley we had a good half hour to look round the preserved platforms before. As Pete says this is a superb preserved line (which is re-created in the image of a 1950s branch line) see:

http://www.kwvr.co.uk/

Our loco for the trip was Ivatt designed steam tank 41241 as pictured here

http://www.kwvr.co.uk/stockbook/index.htm

 

"British Railways Ivatt Tank No. 41241  is the very soul of the Worth Valley Railway. Built by B.R. at Crewe in 1949 to an LMS design, it worked from Bath Green Park and was briefly at Highbridge on the Somerset & Dorset line. 41241 ended up at Skipton in 1965 and was bought from there for the KWVR in 1967, arriving under its own power. The locomotive hauled the train at the reopening of the branch line in 1968 and has become synonymous with the Railway ever since. "

We travelled out in an open saloon BR Mk 1 coach to Howarth. Where we had plenty of time for a trip to the Bronte parsonage museum where the famous authors lived (as Pete says it is a steep 15 minute uphill walk from the station).

Pete - I probably would have checked out The Fleece had I read your review, but I forsake the beer options in order to have time to see the sheds from the viewing point at Howarth, and press on to the end of the line to see the Jubilee loco in the sheds there - you will see my dilemma!

We returned to Keighley travelling in the rather unusual MK 1 suburban carriages - part of the way in a second class compartment, part in a first class compartment - the Mk1 suburban composite coach in our train is probably quite rare in preservation - although would have been familiar to many commuters in the 1950s and 1960s. As the note on the link points out - even for short commuter journeys the class distinction was available in the carriage. These days 1^st and 2^nd class seating is only available on trains for longer inter city type journeys.

A picture of this car is here:

http://www.vintagecarriagestrust.org/se/CarriageInfo.asp?Ref=1928

Anyway - next instalment can include the rtn journey - with a trip through the middle of Toton Marshalling Yards.....

Regards

DL

PS - Pete not too sure about your trivia question about The Fleece - was it The Railway Children?

[siberianmo]

G'day Gents!

PASSENGER TRAIN NOSTALGIA #33

Initially Posted on page 177 of the original Thread

Here's something to ponder with regard to our appreciation and fascination with
Classic Trains. Check this out (from The Official Guide of the Railways - 1956)

Roomettes Now Available On

The "WINNIPEGGER"

BETWEEN

ST. PAUL - MINNEAPOLIS - and WINNIPEG

For the Best Meals on Wheels and Complete Beverage Service

In the Soo Line Dining-Club Lounge Car

 

Roomettes, Bedrooms, Bedroom Suites and Open Sections.

Clean Comfortable Coaches

Restful Individual Reclining Seats

All Equipment Air-conditioned

 

NORTHBOUND. . . . .(Daily - Central Standard Time). . . . .SOUTHBOUND

Lve. ST. PAUL . . . . . . . . . . 7 45 PM . . . . . . . Lve. WINNIPEG . . . . . . . . . . 7 10 PM
Lve. MINNEAPOLIS . . . . . . 8 40 PM . . . . . . . Lve. THIEF RIVER FALLS . . 11 25 PM
Arr. THIEF RIVER FALLS . . 3 55 AM . . . . . . . Arr. MINNEAPOLIS . . . . . . . . 7 15 AM
Arr. WINNIPEG . . . . . . . . . . 8 15 AM . . . . . . . Arr. ST. PAUL . . . . . . . . . . . 8 00 AM

The Milwaukee Rd. Hiawatha leaving Chicago 100 p.m., arriving St. Paul 7 15 p.m, Minneapolis 7 45 p.m., and C.B.&Q. No. 25 leaving Chicago 11 30 a.m., arriving St. Paul 6 15 p.m., connect with the Soo Line Winnipeger for Winnipeg and Western Canada.

Southbound "Winnipeger" makes convenient connections with morning "Hiawatha" and "Zephyr" and other important early morning trains from St. Paul to points East and South.


Enjoy!

Tom

[siberianmo]

Courtesy: http://www.viarail.ca/

 

A smile to begin the week!

If you ask me a question I don't know, I'm not going to answer.

(A Yogi-ism!)

G'day Gents!

Monday once more and time to check out the Menu Board for a <light> or <traditional> breakfast at the Tavern by the Tracks. While you're at it, don't forget The Mentor Village Bakery case selections along with a freshly ground ‘n brewed cuppa Joe to kick start the morning!

This is going to be a tough week, as there should be some absences along the way. Just a head's up to those who actually read these morning Posts - it's up to YOU to keep this going!

Definintely in need of some early MORNING and MID-DAY help on FRIDAY! Any takers

The Tuesday Theme for the Day is Chesapeake & Ohio (C&O)!

Customer ACKNOWLEDGMENTS (since my last narrative):

Lars at 12:05 PM Saturday: Nice ENCORE! shots from the last Page of the original Thread! Really good stuff and THANX for the RDC book cover - always enjoy that!

In reference to that story Pete told, my guess is YOU have some stories from "below decks" that would send a bit of "reality" into the lives of those who think the otherwise. Shipboard life in quite a few ways must've been quite similar to those engaged in rail operations aboard the trains. The guys depended on one another for competence in the performance of their respective duties. Quite simple as I see it.

 

Pete at 1:33 PM Saturday: Yours was the final Post of the day (other than mine, of course) sooooooooooo, what's to say, eh

Appreciate the time ‘n effort you put into your submissions and it's always enjoyable viewing those Pix your Mate, Alan, sends. Reruns or not, some good stuff there, fer sure, fer sure!

Man that 26020 electric sure looks like a "boxed rectifier" - very little "style," eh But I'm sure it was extremely functional. Looks to be in "showroom condition" too!

 

Eric at 12:51 AM today: Nice to be able to count on our Resident Desert Swede for an early, early morning visit (or late, late night)!

Interesting streetcar from Japan! Rob should have something to add . . .

Well, stranger things HAVE happened in my life - I never thought I'd ride (and stay on) a mechanical bull in a Dallas saloon - so why not partake in some Swedish yellow pea soup??? <grin>

Heat in those Budd cars I think is still a hot water circulation system - but not sure. I found long distance travel to be very comfortable in summer ‘n winter. The only recent times I've traveled in Budd coaches has been on "corridor" service (Toronto - Montreal; ‘n Brantford - Toronto) and I prefer those to the more modern equipment too. All of my other trips in the Budd equipment has been in a bedroom with dome seating! Guess it all depends on what one's expectations are for train travel, eh

Regarding Budd's "other" cars - the rail diesel car: RDC travel actually was quite comfortable even over long distances. Those "dome looking things" on the roof of an RDC are actually overhead cooling radiators. The car's heat is provided by drawing hot water 75 gallon sump tanks beneath the car and then circulated throughout the car. That system also provided for cooling of the engine. The fans were located inside those "domes" and kicked on ‘n off by means of an electric thermostat. Quite interesting!

Be sure to remind me when you visit the Can-Am Trainroom for the RDC book containing pretty much all one needs to know about those fine machines!

Appreciate the visit and dialogue!

 

OBSERVATION: Saw "one of ours" on Sunday on this Forum  - but he didn't stop by with a "note" for us through the mail slots or visit "my other Thread." Hmmmmmmm. That's what separates the regulars from irregulars - always did and still does. Oh well . . .

 

Reminder: Ruth has the bar from 9 AM until Leon the Night Man comes in at 5 PM ‘til closing.

Boris, serve ‘em all of the "spiked" OJ they can handle!

Tom

[EricX2000]

Ah. tonight is the light on! Let's see, here is the mail slot. Ooops, what... who was that running up the stairs? Ru... No, it couldn't be, she has this weekend off. Hmm.

Doug –  I hope everything went well with the horses!

Thanks for the pictures of the Zephyr! I wonder about the seats in the smoking car, are they leather or maybe vinyl?
That “simulated” passenger is opening his briefcase. Today he would open his laptop instead. Times have changed!

Tom –  Sorry to hear that you don’t like pea soup! But I am sure you have not had any Swedish Yellow Pea Soup. The only place you can buy that in this country is at IKEA and they don’t have it all the time. It is veeerrryyy goood!!!  Not to be compared to any other kind of pea soup and no, you don’t drink it. <geesh>

Thanks for the link to the Canadian War Museum! Read about the bombings and all i can say is that I agree with Lars and his (and yours) opinion about it. What are they trying to do?

Nice pictures of those HEP... sorry, Budd cars! I still don’t know if I would like to make that kind of trip in the winter though. But I guess they have a good heating system in those cars (electric?).

Good choice of movies for this week at the Mentor Village Emporium Theatre! Especially the first one, Action in the North Atlantic! I saw that movie many, many years ago and liked it a lot!  Have to see it again!

Lars –  Hope the weekend in the Penthouse suite was great! I hope Ruth didn’t hear your comment to Cindy. Not to talk about the Captain!

Very nice looking book covers, all different railroads except NYC that got two! I wonder why? Who cares, I like them anyway!

Pete –  I remember I read a book with a lot of tales from old time engineers and firemen when I was a kid, 8-9 years old. I was very fascinated and believed every single word!

The picture from Germany shows a Kof II, a two-axle light tractor for light switching. Built between 1934 - 1966. Diesel hydraulic, 118/128 hp.

The old steam locomotive has been saved as far as I know.

Nice pictures! Interesting signalbox, still in use. I guess they have upgraded to more modern equipment inside it?

The electric loco has that typical hose for vacuum brakes on the front.

 

I spent a good part of Saturday in Tucson, visiting the Pima Air Museum. But I also took a ride in this old streetcar originally from Kyoto, Japan. Built 1953.

 

Eric 

 

[siberianmo]

ENCORE! Saturday ‘n Photo Posting Day!

at "Our" Place!

We are CLOSED on SUNDAYs!


Starting Sunday at the Mentor Village Emporium Theatre!

 

. . . April 22^nd thru 28^th: Action In The North Atlantic (1943) Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Raymond Massey, Alan Hale & Ruth Gordon - and - The Pride of The Yankees (1943) Starring: Gary Cooper, Teresa Wright, Babe Ruth, Walter Brennan, Dan Duryea. SHORT: The Three Stooges - How High Is Up? (1940)

 

Action In The North Atlantic (1943)

PLOT SUMMARY:

Excellent study of WWII merchant marine crew sailing between the U.S. and Murmansk, Russia, the only supply line then open between the Western Allies and the Soviet Union. Bogart plays a loyal, brave, and rugged first mate to idealistic captain Massey. After their first tanker is torpedoed, and the two barely survive an eleven-day ordeal at sea, Massey and Bogart are given a spanking new Liberty Ship, with most of their old crew members as well as a sharp Navy gun crew. They sail with a massive convoy en route to Murmansk, but are repeatedly hounded by U-boats. Bogart and company battle through the Nazi attacks, managing to sink a surfaced sub by faking a shipboard fire and ramming the sub, then shooting down several German bombers on the approach to Murmansk. A powerful document of a class of men given little due for their heroic role during WWII, the film lives up to its title--there is action aplenty. The film earned an Oscar nomination for its original story.

from: amazon.com

 

The Pride Of The Yankees (1943)

PLOT SUMMARY:

Biopic traces the life of Lou Gehrig, famous baseball player who played in 2130 consecutive games before falling at age 37 to ALS, a deadly nerve disease which now bears his name. Gehrig is followed from his childhood in New York until his famous 'Luckiest Man' speech at his farewell day in 1939.

 

 from: amazon.com

 

SHORT: How High Is Up? (1940)


PLOT SUMMARY: Featuring Moe, Larry & Curly

The Stooges are itinerate tinkers who are above created work, but they get caught punching holes in workers' lunchboxes and have to run away.  They end up on a construction site and pass themselves off as "the best riveters that ever riveted," so they get put to work: on the 97th story!

from: threestooges.net

Enjoy!

Tom

[siberianmo]

ENCORE! Saturday - 'n - Photo Posting Day!

 

G'day Gents!

Here's something from way back on Oct 30th, 2005 - Page 151 of the original Thread:

Click to enlarge!

VIA Rail's "Ocean" and Revelstoke Park Car at Central Station, Montreal, QC, Canada


Eastbound "Ocean" and Chateau Argenson Bedroom Car at Moncton, NB


Eastbound "Ocean" and Revelstoke Park Car at Moncton


Eastbound "Ocean" and Tom & Revelstoke Park Car at Moncton


Eastbound "Ocean" at Moncton


Eastbound "Ocean" and Kent Dining Car w/Eddie the Attendant at Moncton


Eastbound "Ocean" ready for departure at Moncton


Between Moncton and Sackville, NB


(spent the night in Sackville at the Marshlands Inn)


This turned out to be "Our" Place's 3000th Post!

 - and -

Click to enlarge!

(boarded the eastbound "Ocean" at Sackville en route Halifax)

Eastbound "Ocean" and Chateau Varennes bedroom car at Halifax, NS, Canada


Eastbound "Ocean" at Halifax


Eastbound "Ocean" and Banff Park Car at Halifax


Eastbound "Ocean" and Banff Park Car at Halifax


Eastbound "Ocean" at Halifax


Westbound "Ocean" and Kent Dining Car at Halifax


Westbound "Ocean" and Chateau Bienville Bedroom Car at Halifax


Westbound "Ocean" and Revelstoke Park Car at Halifax


VIA Rail Dining Car Acadian at Halifax


Track entrance to VIA Rail Station at Halifax

That's it - Enjoy!

Tom

[pwolfe]

Hi Tom and all

A cup of coffee and a bacon sandwich, on this sunny Saturday please CINDY as RUTH as the weekend off.

ERIC Some of the stories from steam days does make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. Thinking about it there used to be the occasional story from footplate crews that used to appear in the British railway magazines but I have not seen any for quite a while now. There must be many good tales from the old drivers and firemen that deserved to be told.

Many thanks for the photos. The Swedish double-deck car looks a comfortable vehicle to ride in.

Interesting small vehicle from Germany do you know what it was used for. I suppose it was used by the Permanent way Department.

Loved the inside cylinder 2-6-0 steam loco, where there any of this class saved do you know. It would make a great loco on a preserved line.

DOUG. Thanks for the kind words. It seems you are having another busy day. I am sure the HAHS do a very good job a to them all.

It seems that was a good meeting at the L&HS on the Milwaukee Road.

Great photos of the inside of the Pioneer Zephyr cars.

LARS Good words on the bar.

Many thanks for the book covers from the old Our Place. There are a great variety of different railroads showing their steam and diesels

TOM My Slides and photos made it over from England although they only date from the mid 1970s apart from a couple of old family albums, when you think about it the ability to take photographs was a marvelous invention.

As you say although we are in a bit of drought at the moment at the bar the quality we are getting is still the very best, no wonder we get so many viewers, a fine tribute to the bar if I may say so.

With us it was motorcycles when we old enough to get a license. I only had a 175 cc 2- stroke but it went many miles. There were some old style transport cafes about those days mainly for use of truckers who served great food and tea for a cheap price. Of course for visits further afield there was the train or when visiting larger cities.

My Amtrak tickets have not arrived yet, hopefully Monday.

For my pics this week there are some ones I have shown before but not for a while. The next set from Alan will include some from Devon and Cornwall with some old lines no longer in use..

 A unusual signalbox at Canterbury Kent still in use

From the National Railway Museum York England

Furness Railway 0-4-0 No 3 known as 'Coppernob', note the old carriage behind the loco

An 0-4-0 saddle tank loco which  was used in industrial service with another old car behind the loco.

.

An Electric loco which was used on the ex Great Central DC electrified line between Manchester and Sheffield/ Wath. In the later years its main traffic was coal from the Yorkshire Coalfield to to Fiddlers Ferry Power Station in Lancashire. Sadly the middle section of the line including Woodhead Tunnel is closed and devoid of tracks.

Just to the left of 26020 the front of No 92220 Evening Star the last stem loco built for Bitish Railways can be seen in the enlarged version of the pic

Well I am in a little earlier than usual so I will have a quick Bathams before I go out please CINDY

Pete. 

[LoveDomes]

Ahoy Cap'n Tom 'n fellow travelers at the bar!

Cindy my deAH, you are in fine form 'n fashion this afternoon and in spite of Ruth being away, you more than make up for it!

Just a Piels today in a frosty mug and slide the snack trays over, wudja please

So, I'm the Ten Thousand Post guy, huh Hard to believe there's been that many posts, but here we are. Surely must give credit where credit is due, and my guess is Cap'n Tom "owns" at least a third or more of 'em.

Aside from the days when we had those B'day Bashes and other parties, I bet that the overwhelming majority of what our guys put together is far more substanative than the "one liners" seen elsewhere. But, that's one nice thing about CHOICE, huh?? We CHOOSE to be here!

Not much more to say today, as I think expended all of the small talk yesterday. Just wanna recognize Pete 'n Eric for holding up their respective "slots," and of course to MY assistant, barn weevil Doug for coming in so early today.

Here's something from the last page of the old bar site:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

and especially for Cap'n Tom . . .

 

 

Enjoy the weekend guys! Let's keep going, METS!

Until the next time!

Lars

[siberianmo]

Courtesy: http://www.viarail.ca/

G'day Gents!

Today is ENCORE! Saturday - ‘n - Photo Posting Day! at "Our" Place. And of course, the bar is CLOSED on Sundays.

Two nights in succession without a regular or irregular . . . . now that's a trend we should be thinking about. BUT, it IS spring and that's when our thoughts SHOULD be on ‘n about other things to DO!

Customer ACKNOWLEDGMENTS (since my last narrative):

CM3 Shane at 9:53 AM yesterday: Morning visit from the coalminer in WVA and all's well with the world! Two outstanding bits ‘o thought from our "profound thinker" - one on those who I call "revisionist historians," and the other related to the B&O and coal. Nicely done on both counts!

All of my B&O travels were between NYCity ‘n Baltimore in the days of heavyweights. Never rode in or even saw a B&O dome car. Must've been nice!

We'll muddle along without ya on Monday, and perhaps Tuesday and are looking forward to your C&O material!

Thanx for the quarters, round ‘n visit!

 

DL at 11:14 AM yesterday: A quick stop is better than no stop at all! Hope your rail adventure makes for a most relaxing and enjoyable weekend!

Ah, "The World's Fastest Indian" had many a poignant moment and it truly is one of those movies that in time may develop a "cult like" following. I'm very surprised at the low to no billing it received ‘round these parts when playing the theatres. Reminds me of another one of my favorites, "Wind" that also was a sure-fire winner in all respects, but just didn't seem to win favor with those who control the releases and scheduling of flicks.

Good  to see ya!

 

Lars at 11:38 AM yesterday: Great to have our Manager provide us with another "daily scoop" from his island in New YaWk! <grin>

My bride offers her appreciation for your willingness to take part in an effort to support the Canadian WWII vets in their uphill struggle with the museum folks. I'm not aware of any organized effort, but will surely let you know if one develops. I have some addresses of Canadian military organizations that I could provide you by Email if needed . . .

Photos, memories and the passing of time. I'm pretty much in the same boat as so many others. Have "tons" of photos and just haven't gotten ROUNDTUIT when it comes to sorting ‘em, labeling ‘em and putting them into proper albums. We all know what happens to old family and personal photos . . . kinda like the breakfast one had the "other day," who thinks about it?? <groan>

Well, now that you have a bona fide weekend in the Penthouse Suite, I'm guessing there will be a "parade" up ‘n down the stairwells to stock the bar and so forth! Congrats, again, on Posting the 10,000^th  at the bar!

 

Pete at 5:37 PM yesterday: See what I mean about "anchoring" that mid-late afternoon "slot"???? Makes all the difference. Just look at the amount of time between visits (not counting my own of course). Droughts are droughts and we seem to be in ‘n out of ‘em. HOWEVER, the quality remains and when stacked up against guys dropping off "one-way" or "hit ‘n run" Posts, I'll take what we have ANY DAY!

Amtrak tix arrived on Friday so I'm set for our KCity trip!

I enjoyed your story and it goes to show that one doesn't have to be a complete JO or AH in order to get a point across. My guess is that fellow NEVER dozed off again while at work in the van (caboose)! There were a few occasions aboard ship where "things" were handled in a similar fashion. <uh oh>

Never took a train to get a beer at the other end! But, I recall driving from NYCity to Philadelphia for a cup of coffee back in high school times. Only a few of my buddies were 18 and had driver's licenses, and fewer had cars. One of my friends used to think going the 90 miles (or so) to Philly was the "thing to do" - so we did. Used to stop a diner outside of the city, have a cuppa and a roll ‘n buttAH (as Lars would say), then jump back in the jalopy and head home. Crazy, eh I'd rather have taken the train, but we nevAH thought of it!! <geesh> Then again, kids ‘n cars - can't beat it!

You been TOLD that you HAVE TO GO to Pat's Place????!!!!!???? Yeah, right. Don't try to "kid" the "kidders," Mate - ain't gonna work ‘round this joint!

 

Eric at 1:49 AM today: Fine early morning start and the Pix really provide a great "jump start" for the day! Love that bi-level passenger car - when does she board?? I'm ready!

Sorry, but the combination of PEA SOUP (yellow or green) ‘n PANCAKES somehow makes me want to head for the lee side of the ship! <ugh> BUT, to each his own, eh <grin> One of the major "flaps" in my childhood at the table was the refusal to eat the pea soup (or

[Anonymous]

Good morning Tom and friends! I'll have a light breakfast please. Congrats to manager Lars on acheiving our 10,000th post. Quite an accomplishment for any thread here, but this one in particular has provided volumes of information that you can't find anywhere else.

I see that Eric has fired the first volley of pix, as he usually does. Nice looking stuff too. Thanks for sharing. Still trying to find a way to contribute myself, and will find a way through all the horsing around of lately. I went to a pre-program meeting last night, so I would be properly trained to open and close gates for horses and their handlers. Actually, the subject was never covered, but I think I can manage. Todays' program is for members of the police and fire department who have had no experience handling horses, and learning how to deal with large animal rescue situations. The program is sponsered by HAHS (Hooved Animal Humane Society), and the volunteers come from riding clubs in the area.

Nice job on the part of Cm3, Pete and everyone, really, on keeping the B&O theme going. I just might have something to add myself later today.

Oh yeah, my last Locomotive and Historical Society meeting dealt with the Milwaukee and the C&NW. Nothing that James would have been interested in ....

Getting back to the Pioner Zephyr, here are a few shots of the smoking car

Here's the interior of the passenger car. The simulated passengers "talk" to each other

That's it for now. Got my horse program to attend to!

 

[EricX2000]

Good morning Captain Tom and Gentlemen!!

Leon, yes, I'll have that Filet Mignon and lots of mushrooms!! Nice of you to wait for me! 

A quiet Friday here at the Bar! I almost didn't make it here tonight. Our cable network went down tonight. No TV, no Internet! It was down for a little more than two hours. This Saturday I am going to Tucson and will be gone all day. I'll try to make it back here before the Bar closes for the weekend!

Tom –  In the old country Thursdays are the days for pancakes (for lunch or dinner)! Yellow pea soup and pancakes! Thin pancakes with strawberry jam or lingonberries or something else. Not fish!

I fully understand how you feel about missed opportunities in the past to watch trains, check infrastrucure, take pictures, etc. I worked for the railroad for 29 years and didn’t bring my camera to work more than a few times. Talk about missed pictures!

Nice pictures of those B&O dome cars! Obviously it was not only the Strata-Dome cars that had floodlights, the cars in your pictures have them as well! Nice looking drumheads! I like the first one the best!

CM3 –  Thanks for the info on B&O and coal! One question. Considering the number of coal mines in West Virginia, how many miles of railroad was there? Must have been a lot!

DL – Looking forward to a trip report!

Lars –  Congratulations to the 10,000th post!! A weekend in the Penthouse suite!! Hmm. No, I don't want to know.

Thanks for the nice words!
I thought it was normal for a retired guy to feel rushed! All the retired people I know are always short on time, in a hurry, etc.

What website did you find that article about the allied bombings of germany during WW II?

Connected, huh? I’ll take that into consideration. We don’t want any ZAPs around the Bar by the siding.

Pete –  I have done some research but have not been able to find out if B&O #5600 has been preserved. I don’t think so, but I don’t know.

I fully understand that fireman, giving the guard a black eye. They were all lucky to still be alive!

The B&O museum in Baltimore is the one where the roof collapsed.

 

A few pitures in no particular order.

Not too many passengers. Stockholm, Sweden. 

Altoona, Germany. Outside Hamburg.

 

 

Retired.

 

Eric 

[pwolfe]

Hi Tom and all.

CONGRATULATIONS MANAGER LARS ON BEING THE ONE TO POST THE 10,000^TH POST AT OUR PLACE. Although I did see RUTH pick up the phone after DL had posted the 9,999 post, surely she did not know the prize was a weekend in the penthouse suite. Anyway let me get a round in to celebrate please RUTH..

ERIC Thanks for the info on the B&O 4-4-4-4 #5600, it was a nice touch to see the locomotive was named after the chief of motive power. Do you know if the locomotive was saved and is in a museum today..

Talking about he unbraked freight trains on British Railways reminded me of a story, I read once, told by the driver of the train. On one route there was a fairly steep grade down hill, anyway as the train descended the hill speed started to increase so the driver whistled for the guard to apply the brake in his van. This seemed to have no effect and it was with a great deal of effort, with the loco brake and the tender handbrake, to keep the train under control. Luckily the loco crew were able to stop the train before a junction and a red signal.

After the train stopped the fireman (stoker) walked back along the train until he reached the brake van (caboose) and felt the brake blocks on the van, next the fireman went into the brake van only to reappear a few minutes later to walk back to the engine. He climbed back into the cab and tended the fire without a word to the driver. When the train reached the yard and the crew were relieved, as they walked to the loco shed the driver noticed the guard was sporting a large black eye. Obviously the guard had been asleep in his nice warm van. He had obviously had a rude awakening, but that was the end of the matter, if it had been reported to management the guard would have been fired and I bet he never fell asleep again. In fact the guard worked with the same crew many times afterwards and always done his job well.

Thanks for the photo. I was of an age as well when the annual holiday started with a train trip to the seaside.

CM3 May I say that I agree with what you say about history, and how well you put it into words.

Thanks for the Chevy Chase info. Enjoyed the B&O coal post, it really was coal that was the reason many of the early railways were built and over 200 years later it still accounts for the major tonnage carried by many railways.

Looking forward to your C&O posts.

DL Have a great weekend.

 Sounds a good start with the HST direct to Leeds. Pity is isn't in the past with a Jubilee to Leeds and a Royal Scot north,or in diesel days with a change of ‘Peak' class 45s, at Leeds as the Thames-Clyde Express reverses, next stop Keighley.

The KWVR is one of my favourite preserved lines. Will you be sampling the Timothy Taylors, which is brewed in Keighley. The Fleece in Haworth (when I was last there) serves six of Timmy Taylor's brews although it is up a very steep hill from Haworth KWVR station. The Globe in Keighley is another good pub with a view of the KWVR from the back room of the pub; it is on the left from the train as it leaves Keighley up the grade to Ingrow.

A quiz question for you. ‘In which film was the Fleece pub mentioned in'

LARS I knew you would think the same as Tom and I did about that article about the museum. I really did not know they no longer teach history in schools

Real glad you Grandfather and Father's B&O photos survived in the basement, it would be great if you could scan some of them sometime.

I'm afraid the night in the tank of Bathams as only given me more of an appetite for the brew, as my mate says " No point in going out if you are not going to have a gallon" Seriously, I am a lightweight now with the beer, although we would travel over 40 miles by train to visit the Great Western pub in Wolverhampton on a Saturday evening to have the great Bathams and the Holdens they serve there, and see the railway photos and signs on the walls of the pub.

Have a great time in Florida, although RUTH will be miserable until you get back, no doubt with a present for her. I have to keep on Ruth's good side as if I upset her she runs the Bathams through the cooler. We will have to remember to feed the m

[siberianmo]

SPECIAL - SPECIAL - SPECIAL

The 10,000th Post at "Our" Place has been achieved!

We closed the original Thread at 9,013 Posts on Dec 31, 2006.

Today, at 11:38 AM (central) LoveDomes Lars Posted # 987 at our reborn Thread!

Add 'em up and that makes TEN THOUSAND!

CONGRATULATIONS to Manager Lars and I'm sure he'll put that weekend in the Penthouse Suite to GOOD USE! <grin>

Tom

[LoveDomes]

Ahoy Cap'n Tom 'n fellow travelers at the bar!

Ruth my deAH, I'll take a mugga Joe with a "jolt," but nothing more right now, thanks! Got lots to get going on B4 we head off to the Keys next week and all of a sudden I'm feeling "rushed." Crazy for a retired guy to feel that way, huh

I read that article in the Canadian press about the War Museum's WWII display about the allied bombings of Nazi Germany. All I can add is someone should throttle the living daylights out of whoever thought revisionist history would make an appropriate narrative in a War Museum at that! Good Grief Charlie Brown, what in the world has this world come to??? I know we have differences between countries, but this is absurd, simply outrageous and I hope the surviving veterans and their respective organizations get this changed. I'm so "charged" that I'd be happy to contribute to their efforts. <arrrrgggghhhh> <double arrrrgggghhhh>

Couldn't find anymore B&O stuff on the web, so I pretty much closed the "book" on it. We had a good run and looks as if what needed to be covered, was!

Somewhere in the depths of the basement storage shelving are albums of B&O "stuff" from the days of my grandfaher and father. Not that much, but "stuff" nonetheless. Last time I checked 'em out was right after the flooded basement when we were drying out, or throwing out, things. The albums were musty and modling, but the black 'n white photos looked to be in fair shape, with the expected degradation over time. Don't know how they'd measure up to scanning and transferring to digital. Anyway, I'm hardly "into" that kinda punishment! <ugh>

Really a slow night on Thursday and I was really surprised at the no-shows. Seems like things took a shift, now we're seeing daylight customers again. Go figger, huh??? Thanks to Rob, the trolleyMAN and his four appearances, we had a good day at the bar. That's not to say the rest of youse guys aren't appreciated, for you are. Have one on the Larsman, all who entered these premises yesterday!

Nice of you to make mention of the treats for the critters, Cap'n Tom. We do want them to stick 'round, huh??? Also, treating them well means we'll be treated similiarly. Who needs that ankle biting Tex and dive bombing Awk to turn their attentions to us!! <arrrrgggghhhh> dddddddddddddddddddddddd

Enjoyed seeing one of Tom's old B&O ads rerun by the Wolfman along with today's installment of dome cars AND drumheads from Da Boss! Sweet!

Shane came through (again) with the continuing edu-muh-kay-shun on the B&O and coalmining - always an interesting topic. I'd like to read a bit more about the B&O in the Civil War and somewhere 'round this house is at least one book on the subject. Some really interesting material on it, for sure. Anyway, enjoyed your commentary on the "revisiionists" and wonder just what sory of "history" the future holds for us in terms of the "record" and "facts." Just a bit frightening to witness how much our society has actually rebelled over teaching our kids the essentials of this 'n that. <barf>

C&O for next week and I should be able to at least provide something, good Lord willing 'n the ocean doesn't rise! Shane will be coming back just about when I'll be packing up to go. We're leaving on Wednesday, at oh-dark-thrity. <ugh>

Was really a surprise and treat to see my "bookend" stop by yesterday, almost "on top" of my post too.

Nicely done B&O history and steam locos!

Whenever you are able, we hope to see you 'n Lydia pass through those portals. She brightens up the joint almost as much as Ruth! <grin>

Happy to note that barn weevil Doug has relented consented to become the Assistant Manager! Squandering, you say! Squandering! Ha. Monies to be well spent and just think of how nice it would be to have the Florida Keys as a "playground" for a Rendezvous one day!!! So be careful with the terminilogy! <geesh. Nice of you to be so nice to the "hosses"

Eric 'n Pete: You two really bring lots light into this joint and I look forward to  reading your submissions. The numbers game with the bar, old 'n new, is rather impressive I'd say. Even the old place is way down on the forum pages by now, it's still getting "hits" - lots of 'em according to what I've been seeing.

Pete, sorry that you're squandering spending your salary at the bar in amounts exceeding the income. I'd have thought that a night in the "tank" would've given you your "fill" for some time to come. But then again, you ARE an Englishman, and we all know about the beer drinking prowess of the lads from across the pond. <grin>

Eric, yes, we are "connected" and once those 'wires' are put together - ZAP! <uh oh>

Ok, time for me to stop with the rambling and get below decks to tend to the matters at hand.

Ruth, one more - a round - and I'm off . . . Boris, stop looking so sad, of course you can have your jar of pickled pig's feet, and while you're at it, get the treats out for the critters!

Until the next time!

Lars

[DL - UK]

Hello Tom and all in

Very quick post, butr I'll have a pint of Tetley's Mild whilst I'm in - just wanted to say I was glad you'd see the Fastest Indan Tom - I reckon any regular here would enjoy that - quite a cast of characters he meets on his travel but i guess my favourite bit was when the Hell's Angels types surround his car in a particulalry threatening manner (after having beaten him on the beach run) simply to thrust a wad of cash into his hand to help with the trials and tribulations ahead , and then escort him on his way- a nice touch.

 Anyway - got to shoot as off to Leeds in a bit - I'm heading for the one direct train of the day for this 80 odd mile trip north - Pete this could be the remains of the Waverely or Thames Clyde Express if the times were right - St Pancras, Nottingham, Chesterfield, Leeds by 125 HST. Hopefully be able to get a trip report in before too long, and prospects of KWVR steam in the offing too.

 Have a good weekend.

DL

 

 

[coalminer3]

Good Morning Barkeep and all Preset; coffee, please; round for the house and $ for the jukebox.  Let's play "Jine the Cavalry," and "Captain Jinks of the Horse Marines" for Barndad - sounds like he needs it; I took many a turn on the "dragline" dealing with needs for bovine and equine inhabitants at my father-in-law's place.  His horses had "senses of humor" such as grabbling you by the belt and lifting you up in the air (just to see how you'd react, of course). 

Turning out to be a decent day here as we will be seeing the sun (as soon as the fog lifts out) and it is supposed to get somewhat back to normal re temperatures. 

A few comments and then some more "stuff."

Pete - You are absolutely correct - The G motor is hiding beside the train.

Lars - Good B&O pictures; what a fine looking Atlantic!  Thanks.

BK stopped by.  You mentioned Mt Clare in your post.  The B&O Museum is there, of course.  It was the B&O shops in Baltimore.  Issue 195 of Railroad History has an excellent article on the Mt Clare shops with 1872 era (and beyond) photographs.

OSP - I know about huskies running, but it's hilly enough here that he might (again I say might) slow down (yeah, right!).  Thanks again for the drumheads.  "Moonlight Dome" brought back a few memories as I rode in that car after it went to SCL, IIRC; the floodlights wree gone by then, of course. 

Let me digress for a moment.  Boris, siddown and listen. 

I looked at the museum link you sent along - very similar to what Air and Space did awhile back.  Some of you may know that in a previous life (for many years) I "did history."  One of the things I learned while dealing with "historical methods" was that it is not desirable to apply present biases to things that happened in the past. 

To survive, we must,of course, learn from the problems of the past so we don't repeat them, but we should not fall into the psychobabble (often politically motivated) traps of guilt, self-flagelation, etc. which we often do today.  It's all too easy, since history is no longer taught in school. 

As the great historical philosopher, Spanky McFarland, once said, "Pups is pups."  By extension, "Facts is facts."  Let the facts speak for themselves and don't try and blacksmith them to fit present-day attitudes and experiences. 

Thank you - we now return back to our regularly scheduled programming.

Chevy Chase was on the Georgetown Branch of the B&O which operated 11 miles from Georgetown Jct. to Georgetown via Chevy Chase and Bethesda.  It's probably all paved now.

Here's some more material I put together which will help answer some questions re the B&O and coal.

The Fairmont field covered all or parts of six northern West Virginia counties.  Coal mined here came from the Pittsburgh seam which was 12 feet thick in places.  Mining had existed in the Fairmont field since the early 1830s with the first coal from the area being shipped by steamboat to Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, and New Orleans in 1835.  Steamboats came to the city of Fairmont itself in 1850 and area mines opened immediately after that.  The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) reached Fairmont in 1853 and coal was soon on its way to Baltimore by railroad for transhipment to other coastal points.  Sustained development began in 1857 with the completion of the Northwestern Virginia Railroad (later part of the B&O) from Grafton to Clarksburg and on to Parkersburg.  The B&O operated throughout the Civil War (despite the best efforts of the Confederates to destroy it) and Fairmont field produced coal helped to fuel the Union war effort.

Mine operators in the Fairmont field after the Civil War faced difficulties similar to those of their counterparts in the Kanawha Valley - lack of outside investment, and poor transportation   Completion of the B&O extension from Fairmont to Morgantown in 1866 helped to improve the operator's situation as financiers from New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Ohio saw the potential of the area and invested heavily in coal mining.  Smaller coal companies (as in other industries) joined with larger firms.  An example of this was the 1901 incorporation of the Fairmont Coal Company which two years later was absorbed by the Consolidation Coal Company.  Mining was never the center of life in the Fairmont field as it was in other parts of West Virginia.  Many of the towns in the field existed before the mines opened and the area's economy was mainly agricultural.  Miners in the Fairmont field came from many nations but most of them were American-born.  Italians and African-Americans ranked second and third in numbers after American-born miners.

I'll be offline on Monday for sure and maybe Tuesday (hope not) so everyone have a good weekend.  In any case when I return I have a ton of C&O material to post.

Work safe

[siberianmo]

G'day Gents!

A wee bit more on the B&O before the week winds down . . .

B&O #5551 Sky Dome (from: http://www.trainweb.com/)

 

B&O #7600 Moonlight Dome (from: www.trainweb.com)

 

Some DRUMHEADS of the B&O

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoy!

Tom

 

[siberianmo]

Courtesy: http://www.viarail.ca/

*Idiot of the Week #12 

A co-worker was forced to leave the company due to 

downsizing. At her farewell luncheon our manager commented

cheerfully, "This is fun. We should do this more often!" 

Not another word was heard as we all sat silently with 

that "deer in the headlights" stare.

Stay Alert - they walk amongst us and they reproduce!

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

G'day Gents!

End of the work week (for many) and the weekend begins in earnest at the end of this Friday!

Check out The Mentor Village Bakery case, our Menu Board for <light> ‘n <traditional> breakfasts, and of course our freshly ground ‘n brewed coffee!

Tomorrow is ENCORE! Saturday - ‘n - Photo Posting Day! at "Our" Place. And of course, the bar is CLOSED on Sundays.

Customer ACKNOWLEDGMENTS (since my last narrative):

Eric at 1:45 AM today: An evening to forget, as we had none of our regular or irregular customers show up. <groan> Good to see our Resident Desert Swede come through for us in the early morning hours - most dependable customer, fer sure, fer sure!

Many thanx for the elaboration on your photo . . . For as many times as I traveled the rail route from New England to New York City, my memory of that right-of-way at "the split" is hazy at best. Back in those times I was more interested in getting a start on the weekend rather than anything else. Also, on the Sunday night returns it was after dark, so not much to look at other than lights. The New Haven was a great experience and as I've mentioned previously, it was a 6-month love affair too soon to be replaced with my first sea going assignment. Stories for other times ‘n places.

That painting of the B&O freight is indeed another marvelous work, fer sure, fer sure! Talent that I surely don't have!

Thursdays ‘n fish seem to go together ‘round here. BUT, there are alternative choices on the expanded menu. Our food service, other than sandwiches, provides for several selections on Thursday thru Saturday nites!

Appreciate the visit, conversation ‘n business!

 

Reminder: Ruth has the bar from 9 AM until Leon the Night Man comes in at 5 PM ‘til closing. This is Pizza ‘n Beer Nite! - ‘n - Steak ‘n Fries Nite! at the bar. Servings begin at 5 PM!

Boris, serve ‘em all of the "spiked" OJ they can handle!

Tom

[EricX2000]

Good morning Captain Tom and Gentlemen!!

No thank you, Leon, no fish for me! I'll have a danish and a cup of coffee! In other words, a continental breakfast. I don't know what is so continental about that, though.

More B&O today. More info I didn't know so I learned more new things!

Tom –  The pix is from New Rochelle, NY. We were coming from New Haven with the X2000 (revenue service) and ended up behind another Amtrak train, waiting for the train coming from the oppsite direction. This is not far from the point where the tracks to Grand Central Terminal and Penn Station (via Hell Gate Bridge) split.

More info on B&O! Interesting new info (for me) about those branches!
That painting is very, very nice!!

CM3 –  I don’t remember what the speed restriction was that ended by that R board but they were doing some maintenance work in that area. When I took the picture, the X2000 was running all the way between Washington D.C. and New Haven in revenue service. It was in April and May of 1993.

Lars –  Second National Bank of Mentor Village!? Wow, you (or Ruth) must be very important to get economic back up from that bank! Interesting! All I can say is I wish you good luck down in the Keys finding the right place!

Interesting pictures of those B&O locomotives! Especially the one of 4-6-4 #2. That locomotive looks so “clean”, a little bit of British touch to it! And the tender has the same shape as the cars!

BK –  Lydia is absolutely right, it is good to “escape” from everyday issues whenever possible! My best regards to Lydia!

Thanks for the History of the B&O Railroad! Very easy to read and get an overview when it is set up that way!

I made a comment about a picture of B&O  4-6-4 #2, that it looked so clean. But the 4-4-4-4 #5600 in your last picture looks even “cleaner”. It is a Class N-1, the only one. Built 1937 and retired 1950. That was actually a named locomotive, George H. Emerson, who was B&O’s chief of motive power 1920-1950. It was his ideas that was put together in that locomotive.

Doug –  5 horses? That sounds like a lot of work so I guess you know what you are doing next week!

Pete –  I think you are right about BR and vacuum brakes vs air brakes! Those short wheel base cars and the use of the handbrakes going down a grade, sounds like the use of retainer valves on freight cars in this country!

You are correct about the picture. We had to wait for the train going towards New Haven before we could continue to Penn Station, New York City and then to Washington DC.

“All Aboard” is a good way to start a holiday! B&O was right in their ad!

 

Eric 

[siberianmo]

G'day Gents!

Pete turned the 50th Page! Drinks on the house! No, no, Boris, don't ring that thing 50 times . . . . <arrrgggghhhh>

Customer ACKNOWLEDGMENTS (since my last narrative):

CM3 Shane at 9:04 AM today: Husky dogs are singularly minded when it comes to running. They run ‘n run ‘n run and absolutely could care less about returning. Nope, I'm afraid that turning Juneau loose in WVA would most probably mean good-bye. Anyway, I've seen what Racoons do to dogs and it ain't purty!

Great eye! Didn't think anyone (other than perhaps Pete 'n Eric) would find that GG1!!

Honestly don't know where one can be assured of safety at work, at home or at play. In aircraft, ships, cars, trucks, motorcycles or walking. There's always that "something" just waitin' to nail ya! <groan> Stop - Look - Listen! Wonder if that's still inculcated in our kids these days

Many thanx for the B'day greetings - quarters for Herr Wurltizer's Coal Scuttle - round and visit!

 

Lars at 12:05 PM today: The Manager and B&O, kinda like salt ‘n pepper, they just go together. But then again, we KNOW it really isn't your most favorite of favorites! <grin>

Nice book covers, as usual, and always well received by the crew.

Email received . . . thanx!

Ya know, if I've never mentioned it before, it's past due to say THANX for the attention you give the critters of "Our" Place! You're the only one who regularly considers them and makes sure they get the "treats" indicated. A 5- to you from the critters!

Yes, we are closing in on a total of 10,000 Posts for this new Thread and the old. Just remember, we shut ‘er down at 9,013 at the old place. So add ‘em up!

Good observation about "my other Thread" too. Never figured it would be up ‘n running for that long. But there she be . . .

 

BK at 12:50 PM today: What a surprise from the mountains of Alberta! Very appreciative for the visit and of course some fine B&O material as well. Great to see ya again and of course we can always use the business! <KaChing KaChing>

Enjoyed that History of the B&O piece and it's something I'll have to archive for it's chock full o' good stuff!

Best regards to Lydia and pass along a ‘wag o' the tail' from Juneau!

Email received too!

 

Doug at 4:00 PM today: Awwwwwwwwright! You "volunteered" for the position of Assistant Manager of the bar! We have confidence in your abilities and I'm sure the "staff" will support you <????> in whatever decisions you have to make. <hoooooo hoooooo haaaaaaa haaaaaa> But in all "seriousity," we thank you! <grin> <hoo boy> <hooked another one!>

You surely are a friend indeed to and for those "hosses." They just don't know how fortunate they are to have someone to care for ‘em the way you and yours do. Most admirable thing to do!

 

Pete at 5:08 PM today: A fine offering by our "poor" Bar Chandler who seems to be spending far more at the bar than he takes in from the tub. <what?> Yup, that's a fact and only those who fully understand and appreciate the goings on at this Saloon by the Siding can figure out what that means!

Figured you'd be prone to thoughts when that article about the Canadian War Museum was read. Isn't that the "way" these days ‘n times Hopefully, with sufficient pressure and backing from those in places of influence, that piece of work can be turned about.

Thanx for providing another Encore! of a B&O piece.

Perhaps one day we'll make it to Baltimore for an east coast Amtrak adventure. Then we could take in at least two fine sights in the area - the B&O RR museum and the Inner Harbor. I've been to the latter a few times, but never the museum.

A little something on Chevy Chase:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevy_Chase,_Maryland

I can't think of anything more enticing to do for a living than the idea of a model RR shop in an operating train station with a bar ‘n grill too! Now that would have it all covered, eh Wonder how much money would wind up in the "tills" of the bar as opposed to the hobby shop??? <grin>

You are absolutely correct about the canine friendships. Only those who have experienced that bond can understand . . .

Thanx for the visit,

[pwolfe]

Hi Tom and all.

A pint of Bathams bitter please RUTH and,of course, some Fish ‘N' Chips for later.

ROB Sorry the link would not work, there are a lot of photos on the one about the Kansas City Streetcars.  I did not know there was an elevated section in K.C. There is even a pic of a steam tram and I gather the last trolley ran in 1957, I see 50 years later the people of KC have voted for a light rail system.

Yes H&H do seem to be very fond of the prune danishes.

ERIC I think one of reasons the British railways stayed with vacuum brakes is that they did not want to pay the money for patents on air brakes.

Right up to the 1970s there was an unbelievable number of short wheel base 4 wheel wagons fitted only with a handbrake. On lines with a steep grade the freight had to stop and have the handbrakes on some of the wagons pinned down to control the speed of the train down the grade, of course the train had to stop again at the bottom to have the brakes taken off again.

 In case of a break away there were spring loaded ‘catch points' on the grade, which would derail any runaway wagons. It must have taken a great deal of skill from the driver and the guard in his van at the rear of the unfitted train to prevent broken couplings and runways especially where the line grades were of a ‘saw tooth' profile.

Great photo. I guess the train nearest as stopped and the approaching train with cross over to another line on the points in front of the stopped train. At least I hope so.

CM3 It is good to hear that the Impossible Challenge book is as good inside as the cover promised it to be.

Thanks for the tip to look at Tom's ‘Columbian' photo. Is that a GG1.

LARS We do indeed seem to reaching a lot of different mileposts at Our Place. I see on the old Our Place we are very near 200,000 views, just think if all those who viewed bought a pint we could by that model shop for TOM.

 Thanks for the kind words. Usually there was a couple of letters short when they meant to call me an‘asset'. Seriously though I must have done something right or I would have not been there as long as I was.

Great photos of the B&O steam locos. The 4-4-4 Abraham Lincoln looks an impressive loco; by her looks I bet she was capable of a fair turn of speed.

BK Great to see you in. Thanks for the kind words and regards from Lydia.

Enjoyed the B&O History. I did not know about Samuel Morse's connection with the B&O, certainly a very big day in the history of communications. There is wonderful artwork in the ‘Historic B&O poster'

I was just admiring the photo in Lars post of the 4-4-4 locomotive and then there is your photo of a B&O 4-4-4-4 loco. What a great looking engine. I wonder what she sounded like when pulling a heavy train.

 My Regards to LYDIA

DOUG Thanks for the two rounds. Good to see you in and it is great news you are taking the assistant managers job, although it sounds as though you have a very busy schedule at home. I will have to talk to you about my bar bill being a lot more than my chandler's pay, when you have a minute.

Enjoyed today's joke.    

TOM Thanks for the kind words Juneau soon had me weighed up as someone who would play with his toy's with him, to have a friendship with our 4-footed pals is a great thing.

What a great thing it would be for the regulars of Our Place, in our younger years, to run a model shop and a bar in an old railroad depot, with an operating line running alongside.

Thanks for the B&O Railroad of Yesterday. I see it was another railroad that served St Louis. It is a good testimony of the workmanship in the early days that many of the bridges are still in use today carrying locomotives and loads that were unimaginable when they were built. I think we had some posts at Our Place on the riots that took place in 1877 with the B&O railroaders.

I never knew there was a town called Chevy Chase, the bar is a great place to learn

[Anonymous]

Hello Tom and friends. I could sure use a drink! Kindly make it my usual bottomless draught, and I'll spring for two rounds since I missed yesterday. I'm still a very busy boy, and hope ya'll can put up with that for awhile. For example, all next week I'll be tending to 5 horses and performing barn maintanence prior to going to work, but I will do what I can do in my appointed capacity of assistant manager (yes, I noticed) while the stockholders of the bar squander invest their dividends in the Keys. Speaking of which .. will you be needing anyone to "tote your barge" or post your bail?

I'm still very behind in reading the many recent excellent posts. Belated from me to Juneau as well, the first mascot of Our Place. Would he like a Siamese cat for a gift? I know where to find one.

Take care for now.

A drunk walked into a bar crying. One of the other men in the bar asked him
what happened.

"I did a terrible thing", sniffed the drunk, "Just a few hours ago I sold my
wife to someone for a bottle of Southern Comfort."

"That is awful," said the other guy",and now that she is gone you want her
back right?"

"Right!" said the drunk, still crying.

"You're sorry you sold her because you realized, too late, that you still
loved her, right?"

"Oh, No," said the drunk. I want her back because I'm thirsty again!"

[BudKarr]

Good Morning Captain Tom and fellow sophisticates!

Just could not sit here and idle away another week without stopping by to sample a mug of coffee, with a "splash" to make it interesting, and a pastry or two from the bakery case. Ruth, it is good to see you again and although things are rather quiet lately, I noted my "booked" has been in today. Brightens up your day, so I see!

Not very much to pass along from our mountain retreat other than to say thankfully life goes on. I have not spent very much time on this "thing" but have been reminded that it is a good way to get "occupied" with something other than everday issues. A wise recommendation from Lydia, who passes her regards to all and noted the birthday for Tom's best friend, Juneau! A belated happy day to THE mascot of "Our" Place!

I have reviewed this page and the previous one and am pleased to see the return of our friend and long time supporter, Sir Rob in Ontario! Also heartening to see the continuance of support from Sirs Eric, Pete, Doug, CM3 and Lars. A fine core group to help sustain this the third year for the bar!

I have a narrative and a few photos to drop off in support of the B&O railroad "theme" that began on Tuesday. Hope those of you who have been participating find something redeeming and enjoyable from these efforts.

 

History of the B&O Railroad

1827 -- The Baltimore & Ohio Railroad (B&O), our nation's first common carrier railroad, was chartered on Feb. 28 in Baltimore. 1828 -- Construction of the B&O begins July 4, 1828.
1833 -- President Andrew Jackson boards a B&O passenger coach at Relay, Maryland, in June and travels to Mt. Clare Depot in Baltimore, becoming the first U.S. President to ride a railroad. 1844 -- The B&O Railroad signs its first commercial contract in February to haul large quantities of coal from Western Maryland coalfields from Mt. Savage, Md., to Mt. Clare, Md. 1844 -- On May 24, Samuel F.B. Morse sends the first telegraph message from the basement of the Supreme Court Building on Washington, D.C. to the Mt. Clare Depot. The message "What God hath wrought" was transmitted across overhead wires following the B&O's Washington Branch. The message was received by Alfred Vail and Ezra Cornell in the little passenger depot at Mt. Clare. For the first time in the history of mankind, two persons communicated out of sight and 40 miles apart. 1902 -- President William McKinley passed through Meyersdale enroute to the Baer-McKinley wedding in September. A large number of people were at the station. 1948 -- The B&O's last steam locomotive #5594, Class T-3C rolls out of Mt. Clare's erecting shop in Baltimore on October 16.
1952 -- President Harry S. Truman stopped at the Meyersdale station on a "whistle stop" campaign on behalf of Democratic candidates running in the November election. More than 5,000 people were estimated to be on hand to see him. 1952 -- A steam engine and twin-engine diesel engine sideswiped in a violent crash that tore up track just east of the Keystone Crossing near Sand Patch November 12. There were no injuries. 1964 -- The C&O (Chesapeake & Ohio) and B&O jointly filed for permission to acquire control of the Western Maryland Railway with the Interstate Commerce Commission. 1973 -- Chessie System Inc. was formed February 26, and Chessie System Railroads was adopted as the new corporate identity for the C&O, B&O and WM railroads. 1980 -- CSX Corporation came into being Nov. 1, resulting from the merger of Chessie System Inc. and Seaboard Coast Line Industries Inc. 1983 -- Operation of the Western Maryland Railway was taken over by the B&O, and WM's ownership was assumed by the C&O. 1987 -- The B&O was merged into the C&O on April 30, and the C&O was merged into CSX Transportation Sept. 2.
Sources: CSX Transportation Rail Heritage and B&O Railroad Museum; Sand Patch Hotel Image, Somerset County Bicentennial Calendar 1995

B&O  2-8-0 #2846 (photo: Paul Stringham - yesteryeardepot.com)

 

B&O P7d 4-6-2 #5301, 1950 (photo: Paul Eilenburger - yesteryeardepot.com)

 

B&O 4-4-4-4 #5600, 1937 (photo: James F. Byrne - yesteryeardepot.com)

 

BK in Alberta, Canada's beautiful high mountain country!

[LoveDomes]

Ahoy Cap'n Tom 'n fellow travelers at the bar!

Ruth my deAH, 'tis the Larsman with a powerful thirst and hunger! No, it was food I was referring to . . . <ahem> ah yes, a tankard of Keiths finest ale and a Larsman special hero sandwich of ham, Swiss, mustAHd 'n buttAH with two large 'n cruncy pickles from the barrel. A doggie bone for Juneau, a tray of seed for Awk, a saucer of brine for Tex, a bucket of ice cubes for Frostbite and of course a small jar of pickled pig's feet for Boris! That should do it. <phew> Of course a round for the house and the change is yours, you sweet "thang" you! <grin>

Took note that this thread is approaching page FIFTY! AND Da Boss' other thread is nearly at ONE HUNDRED!

Also see that this thread in combination with the old place is almost at the 10,000 posting mark.

Some continuing B&O material from Da Boss, which always goes over well. Really liked that pix at the end. Nicley done art work for sure! Nice of the guy to give permission for its use.

I see some positive words on the book covers. My pleasure, gents, my pleasure. Glad you liked 'em!

Eric, under the circumstances, my attorney has advised that I refrain from discussing this investigation further. Fortunately, Ruth is related to one of the partners of the Mentor Village law firm of Rookum, Bilkem 'n Smiley, a leader in defamation of character cases. They have taken on our case on a pro bono basis with all costs borne by Vito the Hit and the Second National Bank of Mentor Village. As Elmer Fudd says, "Be vewwwwwwy cawwwweful!" That "thing" you tromp all over may be your OWN! <uh oh>

Rob 'n Tom as model train store owners 'n operators. Sounds like a sure-fire-winnAH to me! So how much dough is needed??? Surely we can come up with the funds and I know Vito would love to "hold the note." <grin>

Good to see Pete swing on by yesterday to provide one and all with his typically all encompassing posts. Don't know how you do it, mate, but you surely have an eye for the details. You must've been quite the valuable asset at whatever you did in your career. For I've always respected the guy who got it right the first time and who never spoke until he had something to say. HOWEVER, I do recall that night when you were in your wet suit at the Bar Chandler Exam and Inquisition session. You surely 'sang' quite a song that night! But, that's a story for another time 'n place. The Rendezvous would be appropriate, huh

Shane, I never worry about things not under my control such as flying. Now, I'd be far worse off if they put me up in the cockpit and said, "you got it." That noise you heard is a sphinctor slamming shut! <grin>

Also, perhaps we have more in common than trains. You seem to revel in things under ground, whereas I thrived in the below decks enviornment of engine and boiler rooms. Strange "likes," huh

Rob, you have come back to us with quite a flurry of activity AND managed to squeeze in a phone conversation with Da Boss too. That's quite a day. I counted four appearances, which most certainly helped keep the place rolling along.

Ok, that pretty much covers the bases, so let me get on with some B&O steam!

 

B&O 2-6-0 Loco #2444 (from: www.yesteryeardepot.com) photo: Robert H. Kennedy)

 

B&O - 4-4-2 #1474 (from: www.yesteryeardepot.com - Photo: Paul Eilenberger)

 

B&O - 4-6-4 #2 First Run, B&O "The Royal Blue" 1935 (from: www.yesterdepot.com - photog: unknown)

 

B&O 4-4-4 Abraham Lincoln Loco #1 (from: www.yestyeardepot.com - photo: W. R. Osborne)

 

Until the next time!

Lars

 

[siberianmo]

G'day Gents!

And the Baltimore & Ohio continues . . .

A form of this was initially Posted on Page 233 of the original Thread


Now arriving on track #1 .....
Railroads from Yesteryear! Number One


Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O)

 

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


Locale:  New York City, New York via Baltimore, Maryland to Chicago, Illinois and St. Louis, Missouri

Reporting marks: B&O

Dates of operation: 1830 - 1963

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


The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) is one of the oldest railroads in the United States, with an original line from the port of Baltimore, Maryland west to the Ohio River at Wheeling, West Virginia and Parkersburg, West Virginia. It is now part of the CSX network, and includes the oldest operational railroad bridge in the world. The B&O also coincidentally included the Leiper Railroad, the first permanent railroad in the U.S.

The railroad's former shops in Baltimore, including the Mt. Clare roundhouse, now house the B&O Railroad Museum.

History

Chapter 123 of the 1826 Session Laws of Maryland, passed February 28, 1827, and the state of Virginia on March 8, 1827, chartered the Baltimore and Ohio Rail Road Company, with the task of building a railroad from the port of Baltimore, Maryland west to a suitable point on the Ohio River. The railroad, formally incorporated April 24, was intended to provide an alternative, faster, route for Midwestern goods to reach the East Coast than the seven-year-old, hugely successful, but slow Erie Canal across upstate New York.

Construction began on July 4, 1828, and the first section, from Baltimore west to Ellicott's Mills (now known as Ellicott City), opened on May 24, 1830. Further extensions opened to Frederick (including the short Frederick Branch) December 1, 1831, Point of Rocks April 2, 1832, Sandy Hook December 1, 1834 (the connection to the Winchester and Potomac Railroad at Harpers Ferry opening in 1837), Martinsburg May 1842, Hancock June 1842, Cumberland November 5, 1842, Piedmont July 21, 1851, Fairmont June 22, 1852 and its terminus at Wheeling, West Virginia (then part of Virginia) on January 1, 1853.

On July 20, 1877 there were bloody riots in Baltimore, Maryland from Baltimore and Ohio Railroad workers. Nine rail workers were killed at the hands of the Maryland militia. The next day workers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania staged a sympathy strike that was also met with an assault by the state militia; Pittsburgh then erupted into widespread rioting.

The Pennsylvania Railroad acquired the Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad in the early 1880s, cutting off the B&O's access to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The B&O chartered the Philadelphia Branch in Maryland and the Baltimore and Philadelphia Railroad in Delaware and Pennsylvania and built a parallel route, finished in 1886. The Baltimore Belt Railroad, opened in 1895, connected the main line to the Philadelphia Branch without the need for a car ferry across the Patapsco River, but the cost of its Howard Street Tunnel drove the B&O to bankruptcy in 1896.

The Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad took control of the B&O in 1963, and incorporated it, along with the Western Maryland Railway, into the Chessie System in 1973. In 1980, the Chessie System merged with the Seaboard System Railroad to create CSX. In 1986, the B&O finally went out of existence when it formally merged with the C&O (which itself formally merged with CSX later that same year). At the height or railroading's golden age, the B&O was one of several trunk lines uniting the northeast quadrant of the United States into an industrial zone. It marked the southern border and corresponded to the New York Central's marking of the northern border. The Pennsy and the Erie railroads worked the center. The corners of this map are Baltimore in the southeast, Albany in the northeast, Chicago in the northwest, and St. Louis in the southwest.

Early engineering

When construction began on the B&O in the 1820s, railroad engineering was in its infancy. Unsure of exactly which materials would suffice, the B&O erred on the side of sturdiness and built many of its early structures of granite. Even the track bed to which iron strap rail was affixed consisted of the stone.

Though the granite soon proved too unforgiving and expensive for track, most of the B&O's bridges have survived until the present, and many are still in active railroad use by CSX. Baltimore's Carrollton Viaduct, named in honor of Charles Carroll of Carrollton, is North America's oldest railroad bridge still in use. The Thomas Viaduct in Relay, Maryland was the longest bridge in the United States upon its completion in 1835, and remains in use as well.

Branches

Washington

In 1831 a law was passed in Maryland, enabling the B&O to build its Washington Branch, connecting Baltimore to the national capital of Washington, D.C. This opened in 1835, and later served as a terminus for the Annapolis and Elk Ridge Railroad to Annapolis.


Frederick

The Frederick Branch was built as part of the original line, opening on December 1, 1831. The continuation of the main line from Frederick Junction opened April 2, 1832.

Metropolitan

The Metropolitan Branch was opened in the early 1870s. It leaves the District of Columbia and proceeds northwest through Montgomery County, joining the B&O main line at Point of Rocks. It serves as a bypass around Baltimore and is still in active use.

Georgetown

The line was operated in some manner from 1889 until 1985 when it was proposed for abandonment; it served basically as a minor freight spur carrying coal and building materials to local outlets in Chevy Chase, Bethesda and Georgetown. It was originally built with the intention of connecting to southern railroads to compete with the Pennsylvania Railroad's Long Bridge, but no bridge across the Potomac River was ever built. The abandoned right-of-way is now used as the Capital Crescent Trail.

Trivia

• In the U.S. version of the board game Monopoly, the B&O is one of the four railroad properties on the bo
  Happy Railroading! Siberianmo
  

[coalminer3]

Good Morning Barkeep and all Present; coffee, please; round for the house, and $ for the jukebox.  Gas is "down" to $2.95 (dropped a whole nickel).  Sheesh!  First off, Birthday Greetings from the K9 Korps in WV - as they say, any excuse for a meal.  Milk Bones all ‘round (the last I saw they were still safe) - they're not too bad if you soak them first - kinda like hardtack or, ship's biscuit.  OSP - if you want, send Juneau over here - he chase real raccoons; it's big sport in this part of the country.

Some comments (in no particular order); anybody who got "left out," it was not intentional. 

Lars - Off to the southland - good luck and be careful. Appreciate the book covers.  B&O in the Potomac Valley is a good picture book.  Harwood's Impossible Challenge is simply excellent!  Another excellent book by the same author is Royal Blue Line.  This was o/p for awhile but has been reprinted.  The Roberts books are encyclopedic, but have some good maps and pictures.

James - The B&O r/b the hw cars you mentioned because it was all about the $.  They had the shop forces to do it, so they did.  Also, thanks for the pictures.

DL stopped by with commentary as did Pete with comments and B&O material.

Mike sent links - The National Limited was a once-proud train which was transformed beyond all recognition by Amtrak - back off, Boris - that's all I'm going to say.  The Virginia Tech Special Collections are well worth a visit, especially in person as they have wealth of material relating to the N&W.  We do a lot of stuff with their staff and students and look forward to a return to "normalcy" if that will ever be possible down there. 

Eric - There's not as many mines in northern WV as there was back in the day, but there are more than a few large operations.  BTW, nice NH picture, got me all homesick.  R board indeed, with all the activity in the area.

Rob sent Canada Southern material; nice to reread that.

Last, if you haven't done so, enlarge the picture of the Columbian that OSP posted.  Look down the track to the left of the train and you'll find a fine beastie - just about new, too.

Also thanks a lot for the historical material - drumheads are wonderful.

Highwalls are dangerous things especially this time of year because of freeze and thaw cycles and rain which all combine to create unstable conditions; something we preach about all the time.  The recent weather in the area has been just that.  Surface operations have their own concerns as do underground mines.  Then you get some common problems at cleaning plants and at surface areas of underground operations.  That being said, I still feel better underground than on an airplane.

Work safe

[siberianmo]

Courtesy: http://www.viarail.ca/

G'day Gents!

Thursday with another fine spring day forecast for this part of mid-continent USA. Petrol has dropped to $2.65 (rounded) and we're thankful! Can you imagine THAT??

Coffee's fresh, breakfasts ready for orderin' and The Mentor Village Bakery has just delivered the day's supply of pastries. Time for breakfast!

Have a few things going on ‘round the Haus this morning, so I'll be in ‘n out for a bit . . .

Many thanx to all for recognizing Juneaus B'day!

Customer ACKNOWLEDGMENTS (since my last narrative):

Pete at 4:43 PM yesterday: A fine inclusive, informative ‘n enjoyable Post from our Bar Chandler, Wolfman Pete! Covered many bases and wound up with a B&O Encore!

Juneau had a fine day, thanx, and is looking forward to your visits in May, especially when you stay over. You remind me of "me" many years ago, I always got along quite well with the mothers of the gals and the dogs of the Haus! <grin>

Did it again, did I, with that Toy Trains piece! Thanx for catching it (again)!!

I used to "dream" about owning a bar once upon a life, but now it's a train store. Owning a bar is like being married to two women - translated: two mothers-in-law! At least with a train store, you can shut ‘em down and go home for the nite!

Thanx for keeping to the mid-late afternoon "slot."

 

Rob at 7:39 PM yesterday: Some people are "cut out" for certain aspects of life, which includes the things they do to earn a living. You'd be a ‘natural' for that train store. Perhaps I left my "money printing press" in your neck of the woods. If you find it, feel free to use it! <grin>

Just the thought of a prune Danish makes me wanna . . . <grin>

Clean bill o' health for the food service, eh Let's keep it that way! And, time for the H&H "twins" (Mother ‘n daughter) to let go of the "sauer" anything on the menu. We're frightening off more customers than we're attracting. <yuck> However, we do have our weekend Mai Fest coming up . . . <oh boy>

Here's a URL that ticked me off . . . thought you'd find it of interest:

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2007/04/19/vet-museum.html

Thanx for the attention to the bar and good to see ya back amongst those of us dwelling in the Ether again!

 

Eric at 12:47 AM today: Last things first: That Pix is terrific! Tell us more, tell us more!

Methinks you're pushing the envelope regarding any thoughts of investigating where Vito the Hit may be in opposition. Proceed with extreme CAUTION, Mate! <ooooooooh>

Appreciate the visit, chat and business!

 

Reminder: Ruth has the bar from 9 AM until Leon the Night Man comes in at 5 PM ‘til closing.  Fish 'n Chips Nite! tonight with dinner at 5 PM!

Boris, serve ‘em all of the "spiked" OJ they can handle!

Tom

[EricX2000]

Good evening/morning Captain Tom and Gentlemen!!

I am not even sure what time it is! Leon, I would like a Sugar Cured Ham Sandwich! Fries and cole slaw! Oh, coffee of course. Strong coffee!

It really feels like the middle of the week tonight! Mittwoch (mid week), as the Germans say. This Saturday I'll send the Mrs to Nebraska for a week!

Rob –  I had quite a few interesting discussions with those CP guys! Very nice guys, by the way!

Bag and Gag specials edible? You know, one can eat everything but some things one will only eat once! I am glad that you will make sure that everything served at the tavern is okay from all points of view!

Reading the article about CSR reminds me about something I mentioned last summer, I need to get a good map of Canada so I can follow the locations/cities/towns mentioned. A visit to Map World is now on my list! Interesting article!

Tom –  You are lucky, paying only $2.75 for the gas! Here most of the stations are just around $3.00 but I managed to find one that was “only” $2.90 yesterday when I needed gas.

The Investigator? I don’t know, but I always want to know what is really going on when people are acting strange, talking strange (“round” things) and whispering when they think no one can see or hear them. I’ll keep my eyes open! Running in a direction other than circular?? What would that be? I thought that was the right thing to do, check all those guys driving the NASCAR races! Left turn, left turn, left turn.... Exactly like a circle!

This is part of my strategy, act like a fool and the people you are checking will relax and feel safe!

You are right, one day I’ll visit the B&O museum!

Interesting and informative article about toy trains! I have to check all my old, old pictures. I have a feeling there is one with at least some of my toy train cars I used to have more than 50 years ago.

Last, but not least, a belated Happy Birthday to Juneau!!!

Lars –  Don’t worry, I am very discrete investigating different leads!

Nice book covers as usual! You must spend an awful lot of time looking for all these books! It certainly helps me, every time I see something interesting I add it to my list of books to look for.

CM3 –  Thanks for the round!

Pete –  I agree, BR was very late changing from vacuum to air brakes for whatever reason. I have never operated a locmotive/train with vacuum brakes. I am way too young for that. Nice to be able to call myself too young!

Thanks for the B&O info! Obviously the Strata-Dome car were only used between Baltimore and Chicago.

 

All on the same track! 

 

Eric