The cover article in this month's Classic Trains is by Edward Theisinger entitled Two days with Western Maryland Steam. I highly recommend the article (and the entire issue). The photography is excellent and it is part of a trip taken by the author and a couple of friends during the early 1950's.
The action centered around Cumberland, Md with coverage of Helmstetter's Curve and the line down to Elkins, Wv.
I know very little about the Curve and am curious about it. Can anyone recommend any reading or website on the curve and the Cumberland area? Exploring it on Google Earth was fascinating, as there appears to be two back to back horseshoe curves within a short distance.
The line today seems to be intact with photos of WM steam excursions on the line. Are there any freight operations on the line at this time. It is now single track, but it appears to be in pretty good shape.
thanks,
ed
....Ed:
If you are fascinated by seeing special engineered RR locations on the satellite system....take a look at the area over in Pennsylvania near Friedens, Pa.
It was {abandoned 60 plus years ago, but still very visible}, the Boswell Branch of the B&O...a coal hauler....It contained 4 horseshoe curves one right after the other...to wrap around the terrain to attain a useable grade coming into Friedens from the northwest. Search from Friedens Northwest about a mile and try to locate it. At one location it crosses a county road and loops around the knoll in a field and returns to cross the same road within several hundred feet {or less}, after it gained a few feet of elevation....
Quentin
Q:Thanks, I will take a look at that location. The aerial shots are really a great tool for this hobby. Have you seen the Classic Trains issue? Really a great issue and the above mentioned article puts you right in the action.
I believe Helmstetter's Curve was on the WM and not the B&O. At least that is what the article and other printed material indicates.
MP173 - You are correct, HELMSTETTER'S CURVE is part of the WESTERN MARYLAND to Connellsville, not part of the B&O's Sandpatch grade. Today, you can actually hike/bike along the entire route of the old WESTERN MARYLAND, which you will actually traverse the famed SALISBURY and KEYSTONE VIADUCTS on your way down to Cumberland (they really did a nice job on this trail ).
Check out Emery Gulash's "WESTERN MARYLAND End Of An Era" by GREEN FROG Video.
There is an 8 page article covering the WM in Cumberland, with a good map showing the curve, in the Feb 2004 Trains.
fifedog wrote:Today, you can actually hike/bike along the entire route of the old WESTERN MARYLAND, which you will actually traverse the famed SALISBURY and KEYSTONE VIADUCTS on your way down to Cumberland (they really did a nice job on this trail ).
Wasn't this trail being extended right into Cumberland, forcing a tourist railroad running a steam locomotive through a tunnel, to shut down?
When I "searched" Helmstetter's Curve a number of videos and and photos were provided. It appears there is a scenic railroad running a steam locomotive on this line. It sure is a great horseshoe curve and the article in Classic Trains is great.
....Yes, that Helmstetter's Curve is still in place and utlized by the above mentioned "Western Maryland Scenic RR"......It spans from Cumberland to Frostburg, Md.....A round trip of about 3 1/2 hrs. A grand old depot is used in Cumberland....{from Western Maryland RR}, and there is even a turntable in use at the Frostburg end}.
No, have not seen the Classic Trains article...
Edit:
Ed....go to Railstation.com - Aerial Photos List.....and go down the screen to "Friedens, Pa.".....and click on my entry of the Frieden's site and that should bring up the TerraServer photo....It mentions 2 horseshoe curves but move the photo north and northwest and look closely, to find a continuation of 2 more....
ndbprr wrote:Helmstetters Curve is on Sandpatch grade. At least I am pretty sure about that. Sandpatch is the main CSX crossing of the alleghenys. The Capital Limited uses that line (or did when I rode it) between Pittsburgh and DC. You might try doing some internet searchs for Sandpatch.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
Q:I got something entirely diffferent for railstation.com. It didnt have an aerial view.
However, I did go to Terra Server. There was no line NW of Friedens, but did the B&O line snake thru the twin peaks? There is a nice pair of hills NW of town about a mile.
Also, the line heading east of town splits at Coleman. The southern line has a near horseshoe a little further east.
That looks like really pretty country. Is that where you grew up? What are the two lines that are there, or recently abandoned? Cant tell from Google Earth.
When you pull up that web address....you should be on a screen that gives you choices to click on: Click on Aerial photos. Should bring up the sheet that lists photos in different States. Click on Pennsylvania and and then on Friedens....Friedens should be in color and again click on it....That should bring up the photo site I am mentioning of the four horseshoe curves.
As I mentioned before....the site I'm referring to was abandoned roughly 60 years ago, but is still very visible to a rail fan's eyes....
And yes, it's about a mile or less NW of Friedens. Pull it up and give it a sharp look....Sounds like you might have found part of it. That was the Boswell Branch of the then...B&O and it came into friedens and connected to the Someset & Cambria {S&C} of the then B&O....It's still active. That was a heavy coal hauler in years past.
The split at Coleman is a branch that runs up to Shanksville. Just reactivated after being dormant for 8 or so years. It will be bringing coal out from a processing plant near Shanksville and the loads will be taken over to Rockwood where that branch meets the main CSX east west line. {That Shanksville is the famous one of Flight 93}.
If you follow the highway that passes thru Friedens North....4 miles, that is my home. Stoystown. Very small community, but a very old one....Founded in 1778.
The line you mention passing thru Friedens going north runs all the way to Johnstown.....Former major steel production city...{25,000}, employees. Johnstown....famous for major floods in the past. Check in Google.
The terrain NW of Friedens is high plateau country and rolling hills....and that might be what you were seeing "a nice pair of hills}....Elev. in the area 2,000'. Yes that's home.
Q:I will try again.
Looking at the Google Earth it is really nice country. Glad to hear coal is being mined again in some areas.
Big storm tonight about 30 minutes ago. I was ready to go to the basement. The initial front had 80mph winds. Be prepared, as it is a nasty one.
still not getting it at railstation.com
It says the domain site is for sale and lists and number of options on the left but no aerial views.
....Sorry fellows that we have confusion in getting this location. Let me try it again:
....Enter: railwaystation.com - Aerial Photos list
That should bring up a page you can click on "Aerial Photos List".
That should bring up a list of States to go to...You want Pennsylvania.
Then click Friedens, Pa.
Edit: Ed, a few miles makes a difference in such weather. It has been calm here all evening. Just one or two drops of rain right before sundown.
Today, early this afternoon we had a line of clouds that approached from the north...It was a weird line of different black clouds and it was a straight line across the sky and it was moving fast, but really nothing became of it...I thought there would be wind but not even much of that. I got the camera out of the truck and snapped a few photos....it was something different I had not seen for quite a while....Willy {NE}, should have seen it and he could have explained it perhaps.
Now....about one mile NW of Friedens we find {use sharp rail fan eye}, the abandoned ROW of the Boswell branch....Some of the ROW is leveled over but you should be able to pick up the ROW in that area where it starts it's curve to the right....around a hillside and swings left and heads to the next Horseshoe, etc....Just be very careful to follow it thru wooded area and some out in plain view.
Hope you both have a little better luck now.....
Note: I just added these figures: Longitude -79.00163 Latitude 40.07320 Perhaps these location figures will help...
Yet another storm got me up. Looking at the radar, my guess is you received the big one that hit us...probably about midnight.
I checked again and found your website and found the double horseshoe. Excellent.
Now, looking at the photo date (1993) and looking at the Google Earth view (oh ***, there it is!). I was looking in the wrong place on G.E. Now I have it...clear as day.
Now I can go back to sleep, well maybe not, yet another storm.
edit: I count 5 horseshoe curves. What an engineering feat.
Yes, we did get the weather front about midnight....and overnight, 1.7" of rain.
Sounds like you got it now....I'm glad you finally found it. I understand these things can get frustrating. The Boswell Branch was a real different track location feat. It seems the builders wanted to stay away from grades as much as possible but they sure did wind in a lot of degrees of curvature. One can drive close to many different locations of this old ROW and still take a good look at it from ground level. My home being only about 4 miles from it, has fasinated me for many years. And....I can remember of seeing a train on it at the crossing in Friedens and the power at that time was steam of course.
That {branch} line, originated in Somerset and started west from there and serviced a lot of small mining towns along the way and reaching over {north}, to Boswell and then working it's way back and finally out to the S&C branch and on back into Somerset....A giant loop that serviced all those small mining towns along the way. At Friedens, it was just 6 miles back into Somerset. A lot of coal was taken out of that area....
A few years ago you may have heard of the miners trapped underground at Quecreek....{The 9 for 9}, became the famous words of that emergency....They drilled several rescue bores {one successful}, down 240' to get those miners out {all 9 of them} and all alive....! That was one of the small mining towns the RR branch used to serve. A bit of trivia: The location for the bore hole to drill down to where they thought the men were located was accomplished in part, by GPS technology....! And they hit the pocket where the men were trapped precisely....
My 1946 OG lists a branchline from Rockwood to Johnstown, but nothing for the line in question from Somerset to Friedens thru Boswell. Boswell is listed in the index but is noted as not being listed in the timetable.
My current DeskMap Systems, Inc. United States railroad map shows the line from Rockwood to Johnstown still in place...confirming your report and the G.E. view. What are the operations of the line? Is it only coal? or other merchandise?
....I'm trying to think when it might have been of my witnessing the train crossing the road {then rt. 53, now 281}, at Friedens....and that would have been the route from Boswell around thru Ralphton and on to Friedens to connect to the S&C of the B&O.....I'll say it probably was right before WWII....Perhaps 1938 give or take a year.....That part of the Boswell Br. would have been abandoned first....From Boswell to Friedens. From Boswell back the other way thru Jenners, Harrison, Quecreek, etc....and on to Somerset would remain in service much longer. Perhaps back in the 60's or so.
The S&C from Johnstown to Rockwood was a super coal hauler, especially during WWII....and after. There were perhaps a dozen mines from the Johnstown area to Somerset and it was a constant job of pulling loads and replacing emptys to those mines....One area called Cat Head Turn had a grade in the 3% range and it required a steamer up front and sometimes 2 in back pushing a consist as the loads always went up grade....and on to Rockwood to the main line.
Today the traffic is minimal, but it is used daily. General freight and supplying one place I know of down in the Johnstown area, a Coca-Cola plant with Syrup.....via tank cars. For years the Car Shops in Johnstown that built new railroad cars, sent their product up that line to Rockwood. Actually until just a few years ago.
As I mentioned in former post, the reopening of the Shanksville branch will once again put coal on the line from there to Somerset and on to Rockwood. They did extensive renewing of that track...{roughly 7 miles}, to put it back in service....{I have some before and after photos of a section of that track}, and re worked the tipple and coal processing plant near Shanksville and that means coal will be coming down that branch in the near future if it hasn't already started. Big 6 axle engines and loaded hoppers consist have already made some first runs within the past year or so....Believe that coal will be going for export.
The S&C has been there for roughly a hundred years. At one time up to the Depresson of the 30's, there was some passenger trains on it between Rockwood and Johnstown....of which I never saw...right before my time.
What a fascinating discussion. There are many interesting lines in that area, much more interesting than our flatland lines.
Is that new line handling coking coal?
.....That's a question that I can't answer. I can say it {the coal}, will be soft coal but can't even tell you from what vein. It will be coal from the Shanksville area and on over to the Reels Corner area....That area coal should be from "strip mine coal"....as opposed to deep mines. I'm not sure, I seem to remember one of my friends mentioning of opening a deep mine in the Shanksville area...That part I'm not sure about.
The Reels Corner area is generally northeast of Shanksville....Looking on a map you can find it right on US highway 30 and route 160. There has been strip mining coal operations going on in that area for 50 plus years or so with some of the largest excavators ever built....
More trivia: Just 5 or so miles east of Reels Corner on rt. 30 the US Grandview Ship Hotel was located. A "ship" on the mountain top....Google if intertested.
Our community is FREE to join. To participate you must either login or register for an account.