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Final disposition of Uniontown, PA trolley collection
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Author:  David H. Hamley [ Fri Aug 19, 2011 10:20 am ]
Post subject:  Final disposition of Uniontown, PA trolley collection
Everything trolley-related has now been disposed of. All the PCC cars have been scrapped. The body of West Penn 728 plus the set of PTC/Brill sweeper trucks it rested on have been sold for local preservation in the Uniontown area. The bodies of West Penn 836, West Penn 539, and PTC C126 were scrapped with some salvage by Pennsylvania Trolley Museum. PTC C127 was sold to Electric City Trolley Museum and moved out. The moving date for 728 is not yet established.

What remains to be auctioned off is a vast collection of old autos, many old bicycles and motorcycles, a fire engine, and GOK what else. The auction will supposedly be announced in Hemmings.
Author:  JimBoylan [ Fri Aug 19, 2011 3:20 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Final disposition of Uniontown, PA trolley collection
How many PCCs were there?
Author:  artschwartz [ Fri Aug 19, 2011 4:30 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Final disposition of Uniontown, PA trolley collection
There were 9 Pittsburgh PCC cars, 5 1600 series air-electric cars, 2 1700 series all electric cars and 2 4000 series rebuilt 1700's.

Repeating my previous comment: If anyone wants a Pittsburgh PCC car, please let me know.
Author:  kwolfe [ Sun Jan 15, 2012 10:49 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Final disposition of Uniontown, PA trolley collection
Were these the PCC cars that, i'm guessing, were Edward Mitchell's? Thats ashame because the Triple Treat Trolley was on that property!
Author:  David H. Hamley [ Mon Jan 16, 2012 9:49 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Final disposition of Uniontown, PA trolley collection
The equipment at Uniontown, PA was indeed that formerly owned by the late Ed Mitchell.

While the so-called "Triple Treat" PCC was part of his collection, it was in very poor condition and a mere shadow of its showy self while active on the PAT system. One of the truck kingpins had been torched off flush with the body bolster. Repairing that would have been quite a job. There was substantial damage to many of the under-floor equipment boxes and their contents. The body had extensive rust damage.

If someone is really in the market for a former Pittsburgh Railways air-electric PCC they should contact Pennsylvania Trolley Museum (www.pa-trolley.org) as they have the former PRCo 1613 (later PAT 1799 2nd) and may be willing to discuss disposition of the car by sale or trade. That car, while not pristine, is in vastly better condition than were any of the Uniontown cars, having undergone an extensive rebuild by PAT in the late 1970s/early 1980s.
Author:  o anderson [ Mon Jan 16, 2012 10:56 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Final disposition of Uniontown, PA trolley collection
I am wondering about another small trolley collection, of sorts, in the same area. These are electric coking "Larry Cars" which operated at Shoaf Coke Works.
Here are some photos from the Virtual Museum of Coal Mining in Western PA:
http://patheoldminer.rootsweb.ancestry.com/fayshoaf3.html
Image
Image
And an earlier era photo of a steam operation with the Larry Car,
perhaps at this or another local coking plant.
Image
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lionel682/6694742609

The operation of the Menallen Coke Co. was closed due to clean air regulations in March of 1972.
It is said they still own the site. Equipment was photographed abandoned in the 1980s and 1990s,
and it appears that at least until 6 years ago they remained. It would be nice if the very quirky
and interesting equipment could be preserved somewhere:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lionel682/6694742239
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lionel682/6694742441
And a whole series of photos can be seen at the website of Chris Dellamea, Coalcampusa.com
http://www.coalcampusa.com/westpa/connellsville/shoaf/shoaf.htm
Image

It was said that around 2005 there was interest in strip-mining the remaining coal out of the seams
underneath the coking plant. This equipment, if it is still located around 2.5 miles northwest of
Fairchance, may not be there much longer.

If anyone has more information, it would be great to hear it!
Author:  David H. Hamley [ Mon Jan 16, 2012 2:51 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Final disposition of Uniontown, PA trolley collection
The equipment at Shoaf, PA is pretty badly deteriorated. I was last there about 5 years ago to look at several ex-B&O and C&O 50 ton two pocket hopper cars and found those to be so badly rusted away as to not be worth preservation. There was at that time no evidence of strip mining in the immediate vicinity, but that practice still happens in nearby areas of Fayette County.
Author:  kwolfe [ Tue Jan 17, 2012 12:06 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Final disposition of Uniontown, PA trolley collection
David
I was there about five years ago, on the advice of Scott from PTM, to possibly purchase a pcc for my local neighborhood to display. It was bad then. Do we know if any parts of the Pcc's were saved at all, I am looking for just parts i.e. grills, light housing wings? I can't find the pictures i took of the visit either.
Author:  David H. Hamley [ Tue Jan 17, 2012 3:56 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Final disposition of Uniontown, PA trolley collection
Pennsylvania Trolley Museum did salvage a few parts from Ed Mitchell's PCCs, but most were electrical components from the control system. The bodies of the cars were for the most part beyond salvage. Car 1661 was the only exception to this, and even it was pretty bad. None of the 1600 series cars Mitchell had were products of the PAT rehab program of the 1970s-80s and it showed. The car that PTM may be willing to part with did go thru that program. Contact the museum if you want to see it.
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