For the railroad folks, like me....

[Michaelson]

I stumbled across this Norfolk and Western Railway link that has held me spell bound for hours. It has a TON of photos of my hometown in it's heyday (Portsmouth, Ohio) back when it was an industrial power house. Every photo you see of Portsmouth or Lucasville Ohio is of locations and things I actually remember. My grandfathers and father worked in its yard and buildings.

It's all gone now, as Portsmouth is only a crew changing stop now. In it's day they built cars, broke up and rebuilt trains, and serviced locomotives. One of the largest round houses on the route was there. It's all torn down now, and only ghosts remain.:cry:

Anyway, on that dreary note, please enjoy this link. Prepare to stare at your screen for a while......Oh, the only 'method to the madness' of photo order is that it's sort of in alphabetical order, but you'll find stuff scatter all through the pages. Enjoy!

http://www.sessions-station.com/N&W/index.html

Regards! Michaelson

 

[Michaelson]

An observation....in slowly plowing through this HUGE number of photos, it appears that among the N&W men, the paneled newpaper boy caps were as popular as the standard peaked railroaders cap during the 20's and 30's....maybe more so.

Interesting!

Regards! Michaelson

 

[Hemingway Jones]

Michaelson,
I was never a fan of railroads. I know that many people are passionate about it, absolutely passionate.
Every time I am in North Conway and I see the Conway Scenic Railroad I think about you. In Jackson, NH, a nearby town, there used to be an Art Deco Stainless steel engine and cars on a little bit of track sitting in a field, randomly. Now that was a train! That I could have gotten passionate about.
Then, one day, it was gone, just gone. Some things truly are ephemeral.
In those pictures, I think it is interesting that some of the train operating in the 1930's were the ones I indentified with the first years of the last century. Sometimes you think that when one age ends everything just goes away. Things from one age blend into another.
I've rambled enough. Thanks for posting the pics.

 

[cneil]

Railroders and Newsboy Caps.

An observation....in slowly plowing through this HUGE number of photos, it appears that among the N&W men, the paneled newpaper boy caps were as popular as the standard peaked railroaders cap during the 20's and 30's....maybe more so.

Interesting!

Regards! Michaelson

My Great Uncle Jess ( Named after Jessy James, My Grat Grand father new Frank and Jessy) was a Breakmen in the 1920 on the Southern Pacific Railroad.
Every photo I have ever seen of him at work he wore the 8 pice Newsboy Cap.

 

[Section10]

One year I played hookey from surveying and was a gandy dancer for the E&LS RR. It was different. Things weren't too automated and it was a lot of work. I don't believe railroads own any tools that weigh less than 20 pounds.
Hammered in a lot of spikes the old fashioned way.

 

[Dalexs]

Photo wise, I think the site is better then my favorite NewYork Central archives. It seems to lack any historical data, but the photos are great.
Makes me want to get my trains set up again.
(I currently lack the space, in case you're wondering.)

Dalexs

 

[Wild Root]

LOVE TRAINS!

Even when I was only 7 or 8, I'd hear a lady call a steam loco a "choo choo train" I'd alway correct her and inform her that it was known as a Steam Locomotive. Hahaha, I'd always get a blank stare from an adult woman who just was informed by an 8 year old boy in pinstriped overalls and cap! Loved it!

Any way, it's sad how they tear down such great places of rail road history! Very sad indeed! The look and feel of those old roundhouses were really something.

For me there is nothing like the sound of an old steam locomotive! The feel, heat and smell of those things just gets me! Can’t forget the sound of the whistle and bell! Oh man, bring back the glory of rail roads!!!

One of my favorite N&W locos… The 1941 N&W 611 J-Class 4-8-4

 

[Michaelson]

I rode behind 611 when it came through Portsmouth in the mid 80's, and had it thunder past me as I sat by the tracks outside Lucasville Ohio a year later. Scariest thing I've ever experienced, as the 611 was at speed (in that area it was allowed to 70 mph). The ground literally shook, and I was sitting a track over from the one it was travelling on!

As you go through these photos, there's one that just shows gauges in a locomotive at speed. It was taken in the cab of a running J, and the speedometer is sitting solidily at 90 mph. Those Northerns could move!!!!

HJ, I understand what you're saying. Some folks yearn for the past, and the railroad was the ticket to get around. My family were railroad people and worked inside and around these behemouths. It does get in the blood, and I wasn't even there! I DID crawl inside the cold firebox of a class E2 Pacific of the N&W to help knock out the flue of the box. Dirty job!

Oh, by the way Wild, 611 was actually built in 1950. The original 600 was built and introduced to the fleet in 1941.

Glad you're enjoying the photos!

Regards! Michaelson

 

[Clyde R.]

I must admit, my chief interest in the old railroads would have to be RR watches. I'm a watch collector and the old RR watches were marvels of precision and beauty. My pride and joy is a Hamilton 992 made in 1911 that still runs like a champ. I have a good friend who IS passionate about trains...he collects toy trains and belongs to a train club for train addicts.

 

[Michaelson]

My regular carry watches are a 21j 18s Waltham Crescent Street, and a 16s 19j Elgin model 455 B.W. Raymond, and both were railroad approved in their day. Perfect time keepers, as they should be. I have an Elgin B.W. Raymond 571 in rebuild as we speak from 1951, so my watches sort of span the railroad industry from the late 1800s until the early 1950's. The 571 is still approved today.

You'll find a lot of clock and time keeping photos in this compilation.

Regards! Michaelson

 

[Brad Bowers]

Hemingway,

Perhaps you are thinking of the "Flying Yankee," a Budd-built stainless steel train built in 1935. The train is still extant, and is being restored. Check out http://www.flyingyankee.com/index.html for more information.

And yes, this is definitely one to be passionate about!

Brad

 

[Wild Root]

"Flying Yankee"

Yes, I came a crossed this site once by accident. Really refreshing to see such a rare train get the royal treatment!

Does any one know if the original "Pioneer Zephyr" is still around? That was I believe the first train of this type. Was operated by the Burlington Route RR.

Any way, this stuff just gets me all worked up! I own a few HO Steam locos, a few IHC (4-6-2) and a (4-8-2) also a nice Athearn Genesis (2-8-2) and they run really well! I haven't had a chance to get down to the train club in a wile but, I miss running my trains The Athearn Genesis just creeps along the track! It's a very smooth runner and is so much fun to watch.

611: YOU SAW IT!!! Man that is such a sweet loco! Do they still take her out on excursions?

=WR=

 

[Michaelson]

Nope. She was retired again, along with Class A 2-6-6-4 #1218 in 1994.:cry:

The Norfolk/Southern, just didn't want to absorb the money required to keep her running.:rage:

Yes, I saw her three times...twice at speed, and once when she came into Portsmouth and switched her train into the station for the night, and rode her once. My daughter and I even appeared on the front page of our local newspaper watching 611 come into town. She was only 2 1/2 at the time. I have that article and photos laminated, framed, and hanging in my living room.

Regards! Michaelson

 

[Wild Root]

That's bad news! I have wanted to see that loco all steamed up one day. Maybe funding will bring her out of retirement some time down the road.

Another loco I just adore is the SP Daylight! Handsome looker she be!

=WR=

 

[Clyde R.]

Michaelson,

Sounds like you have some very nice watches to tote around. A friend has a nice 18 size Elgin BW Raymond that was his grandfather's watch. I don't carry my Hamilton around as much as I used to do. My wife gave me a nice wristwatch as a wedding gift so I wear that one most of the time these days. The old pocket watches are still close to my heart though.

 

[jake431]

Yes, I came a crossed this site once by accident. Really refreshing to see such a rare train get the royal treatment!

Does any one know if the original "Pioneer Zephyr" is still around? That was I believe the first train of this type. Was operated by the Burlington Route RR.

Any way, this stuff just gets me all worked up! I own a few HO Steam locos, a few IHC (4-6-2) and a (4-8-2) also a nice Athearn Genesis (2-8-2) and they run really well! I haven't had a chance to get down to the train club in a wile but, I miss running my trains The Athearn Genesis just creeps along the track! It's a very smooth runner and is so much fun to watch.

611: YOU SAW IT!!! Man that is such a sweet loco! Do they still take her out on excursions?

=WR=

There's a Zephyr on display at the Museum of Science and Industry. It's pretty cool. There's also a BoB era Spitfire and a Stuka hanging from the ceiling as well as a Boeing mail plane from the 1920's. And the U505. They have the golden age pretty well represented with some cool exhibits.

-Jake

 

[Brad Bowers]

Does any one know if the original "Pioneer Zephyr" is still around?

Root, yep the "Pioneer Zephyr" is at the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry, where you linked to their photo.

http://www.msichicago.org/exhibit/zephyr/index.html

The Daylight is a beauty. Wish I could have seen the 611 in action.

 

[Dalexs]

Wild Root,

Is that the 4449 that the City of Portland, OR owns?
A friend of mine works on the team that maintains the restoration of it and
the SP 700.

It was always fun to be driving into work and seeing them chugging down the tracks.

 

[Wild Root]

Thanks!

Wow Brad, that site is really cool! I took the tour and saw some really cool art deco stuff! That train is one of the only diesels I will enjoy.

Hey yeah, that's the SP 4449. I've been in love with that train ever since I was 9 years old! So, they're restoring it? Any time soon they'll take her out on a tour? Hmmmmmm, I wonder.

=WR=

 

[Michaelson]

I thought 4449 had been in fairly regular operation since she was the Freedom Train locomotive for the West Coast.[huh]

Man, I'm dating MYSELF there. I saw the Freedom Train in Columbus, Ohio in 1976, and the East Coast section was pulled by the Reading T-1 2101. I saw that T-1 in excursion operation on the Chessie just before it was destroyed in a roundhouse fire in Louisville, KY. I didn't much care for the T-1's, until I saw it start a standing train of 15 heavy weight passenger cars on wet rain on a grade in So. Portsmouth on the Kentucky side of the Ohio River. It slipped once, then started pulling that train like nobodies business, accelerating as she went....the stack talk echoing off the hills behind us. It sounded like artillery shells going off over our heads....twice! I had forgotten the T-1's were freight engines, so those passenger cars were childs play for that locomotive. It was sad to see her go in that fire.

Thank you for your kind remarks about my watches, Clyde. I carry them on a daily basis, and though I have several types in my collection, my railroad watches are the regular carry timepieces.

Regards! Michaelson