Just for fun...

With the Baltimore fest coming up, I was thinking about an odd one... what common carrier, non-tourist stretch of railroad has seen the most steam locomotives operating on it in the preservation era?

My money is on the old Reading East Penn between Reading and Allentown, PA. (Stats follow).

Any other candidates?

Rob

East Penn under steam list:

Rail Tours CPR 4-6-0 #972

Reading 4-8-4's #2100, 2101 and 2102 (under various owners for the '01 and '02)

NKP 2-8-4 #765 (did #759 make it out the East Penn?)

BM&RDG (GM&N) 4-6-2 #425

Steamtown (CPR) #127

Strasburg (GW) 2-10-0 #90

Steamtown (CNR) 2-8-2 #3254


trains@robertjohndavis.com

I don't have numbers in front of me, but it's likely that SOME stretch of the old Southern Railway--actually many stretches, such as outside Birmingham or on the main south of Alexandria or around Charlottesville--easily top that. Just off the top of my head, there are possibilities for 630, 722, 4501, 611, 1218, T&P 610, CP 2839, C&O 2716, AFT 4449, LNER 4472, Best Friend of Charleston....... and if we look at some C&O trackage rights between Culpepper and Orange, we can add in Chessie 2101, 614, the Showalter CP Pacific duo..........

lner4472@bcpl.net

> My money is on the old Reading East Penn
> between Reading and Allentown, PA. (Stats
> follow).

> NKP 2-8-4 #765 (did #759 make it out the
> East Penn?)

759 took the High Iron deadhead move east from Hagerstown in August 1971 (Saturday the 7th or 8th sticks in my mind), handling the 7 HICO cars and a WM gon full of coal. Hagerstown-Lurgan-Rutherford-East Penn Jct.-Bethlehem Eng. Terminal on Saturday, and Beth.-Easton-Phillipsburg-Washington-Pt. Morris-Hoboken on Sunday.

The Hoboken-Binghamton trip was the following weekend-- Aug. 14-15.

hpincus@mindspring.com

> ....... and if we
> look at some C&O trackage rights between
> Culpepper and Orange, the Showalter CP Pacific
> duo..........

you don't have to go that far, CP 1238 operated as part of the southern program as a fillin for the 4501, some where between she hit 90 some odd miles an hour.....out side of the J, how many other excursion engines did that??



btrue@vt.edu

> you don't have to go that far, CP 1238
> operated as part of the southern program as
> a fillin for the 4501, some where between
> she hit 90 some odd miles an hour.....out
> side of the J, how many other excursion
> engines did that??
How about 2101 as AFT 1 with the AFT, after a delay to inspect a spring hanger, on the ex-NYC main, westbound in 1976, as paced (couldn't keep up with it) on paralleling I-90?

bruceman@stargate.net

Perhaps the SP feeder into CSRM before and after either RAILFAIR?

Dave

irondave@bellsouth.net

BC&G 2-8-0 #4 also ran on the R.Co. East Penn Br. in the 1960's as Quakertown and Eastern 4. Engine is now NCTM 604.

RDG link with 4/604 explains how RDG cars got to be at NCTM also.

Electric City Trolley Museum Association

Which link?

mas2102DELETE@ix.netcom.com

Cincy saw tons of steam over the years on a stretch of track that CSX and Southern might use near the Terminal. Visitors included.

Southern 4501 (Starting in 1967)
Nickel Plate 765 (1991)
Pere Marquette 1225 (doubleheaded Freight with 765 1991)
Nickel Plate 587 (1989 doubleheaded with 611)
N&W 611 (Last ran in Sept 1994)
N&W 1218 (last ran in 1991)
ex CPR 2839 (last ran in 1979)
ex T&P 610 (1977)
AFT #1/ ex Reading 2101 (1975,1977-78)
C&O 614 (1980-81)
L&N 152 (1988)
2716 (dead in tow a few years back) 2001(?)

I suspect that there are other places where more of the Southern Engines operated that might top this list. Places like Atlanta where 290, 722, 630,750, might have run. Also you can throw in 1522, and 4449. Or Alexandria as well.

Videos
sales@gregschollvideo.com

It's kind of a tie. The Southern Railway between Birmingham, AL, and Chattanooga, TN, saw

A&WP 290
C&O 2716
CPR 2839
N&W 1218
N&W 611
NKP 765
S&A 750
SLSF 1522
SOU 722
SOU 4501
SP 4449
T&P 610

and a whopping 138 days of steam (maybe more, not all non-rev moves have been accounted for).

Add "partial" moves (Birmingham - Irondale, Wauhatchie - Chattanooga) and you can count AFT 1 (RDG 2101), LNER 4472, and SOU 630.

That makes 12 or 15, depending on how strict you are.

The Birmingham - Atlanta line hosted

C&O 2716
CPR 2839
LNER 4472
N&W 1218
N&W 611
SLSF 1522
S&A 750
SOU 4501
SOU 630
SOU 722
SP 4449
T&P 610

on 114 days.

and USATC / TVRM 610 (Austell - Atlanta only) and A&WP 290 (Birmingham - Leeds only) if you're feeling generous.

Steamiest city? Chattanooga, with over 600 days of mainline activity 1964-1994. The count's still going up with TVRM's trips into north Georgia.

JAC

> Which link?

Sorry - a reality link, not a computer link. BC&G 4 ran first ran excursions on RDG in the 1960's; excursion operator bought the 1290-series cars (+ BAa Baggage Car 1715-II) from RDG at that time. Engine 4 and the train migrated South and ended up at NCTM which is why NCTM has RDG cars.



Electric City Trolley Museum Association

Thanks Phil.

I was curious because I'm compiling a list of surviving Reading equipment on the Reading Company Technical & Historical Society's website.

Any help, from all you RYPNers (descriptions, dispositions, photos, etc.) would be greatly appreciated.

Regards,

Mike Shirk
RCT&HS webmaster


http://www.readingrailroad.org/rdg_surv_equip.html
mas2102DELETE@ix.netcom.com

There is a wooden Reading passenger car at the Connecticut Electric Railway Museum at Warehouse Point CT. I don't know the car number or other data. But the car may be available to another home, this museum has sent other steam items to other homes in the last few years.

This car is not the same a s the group of cars that are in Connecticut by way of the CT DOT.

Ted Miles


ted_miles@nps.gov

> Did 759 run this line?
> 759 took the High Iron deadhead move east
> from Hagerstown in August 1971 (Saturday the
> 7th or 8th sticks in my mind), handling the
> 7 HICO cars and a WM gon full of coal.
> Hagerstown-Lurgan-Rutherford-East Penn Jct.-
> Bethlehem Eng. Terminal on Saturday,
> and Beth.-Easton-Phillipsburg-Washington-
> Pt. Morris-Hoboken on Sunday.

1969:

I have a faded color polaroid of 759 in blue "Golden Spike" dress, eastbound near Robesonia, which is between Harrisburg and Reading. She was under her own power.

I'm guessing that she was deadheading to HICO's Lebanon, NJ HQ, after handing the train off to the GG-1, May ____, 1969.

Chances are, she ran the East Penn from Reading, to Allentown-Easton-etc.

> 1969:

> I have a faded color polaroid of 759 in blue
> "Golden Spike" dress, eastbound
> near Robesonia, which is between Harrisburg
> and Reading. She was under her own power.

> I'm guessing that she was deadheading to
> HICO's Lebanon, NJ HQ, after handing the
> train off to the GG-1, May ____, 1969.

> Chances are, she ran the East Penn from
> Reading, to Allentown-Easton-etc.

I can't recall the date, but on that same day Quakertown & Eastern #4 (BC&G #4) ran from Paoli to Harrisburg on the PRR Main Line. While the train was in the Harrisburg station, 759 rolled by on the RDG, just a few hundred yards down the track. Surprised the heck out of many fans, I think.

K4s1361@hotmail.com