The "original" Quakertown & Eastern was an independent short line that ran a distance of 15 miles between Quakertown, Bucks County, Pa., and Riegelsville, Bucks County. It was incorporated on July 6, 1896. Its primary function was to serve local farming interests and the Durham Iron Furnace near the Delaware River. The Q&E opened two years later to Springtown. A year later it was extended to Durham and completed to Riegelsville in 1901. In 1906 it became the Pennsylvania Eastern RR; in 1911 it was renamed the Quakertown & Delaware River RR and finally it operated as the Quakertown & Bethlehem from 1916 until cessation of operations in 1936. Three years later the tracks were abandoned. Power variously (but not all at the same time) consisted of leased Reading camelbacks, some ex-iron furnace switchers, an ex-Ironton 2-6-0, two ex-Union RR Brooks-built 0-6-0's, and at least one new Baldwin-built engine later sold to the Ocean Shore RR in California (a earlier sister was ordered new in 1903 but was sent back to Baldwin due to some mechanical ills). I have assembled a MASSIVE amount of research material on the Q&E over the years and hope to publish a book on the line's history after the several other tourist railroad books I have already in progress are put to bed.

The SECOND Q&E was an excursion concern founded in 1966 by Francis H.S. Ede, Jr., a Quakertown car dealer, and Paul Hersh, a Hellertown resident. Their original intent was to relay track over part of the Q&E right-of-way and start their own tourist line. When this plan did not materialize, they acquired "Old Sobberface" No. 4 from the Buffalo Creek & Gauley, a CNJ combine, a RDG baggage car and six steel suburban coaches from the Reading Company, in order to run day-long mainline excursions in the Philadelphia area. They relaid track in part of the old Q&E's Quakertown Yard to store their equipment along the Reading's Bethlehem branch, though at times some of the cars were stored at various other sidings along the route. Boiler washing and repairs of No. 4 were performed at the RDG's Saucon Yard enginehouse. Trips ran mostly with a Reading engine crew with some Q&E folks pitching in for the portage. They ran a total of eight trips between May 1968-August 1970:
5-11-1968 Philadelphia-Bethlehem-Reading (RDG)
10-2-1968 Bethlehem-Wawick (NY) (RDG, L&HR)
6-29-1969 Bethlehem-Coxton (RDG, LV)
8-9-1969 Bethlehem-Warwick (RDG, L&HR)
10-19-1969 Bethlehem-Hazelton (RDG, LV)
5-3-1970 Bethlehem-Wilkes-Barre (RDG, LV)
6-21-1970 Bethlehem-Maybrook (NY) (RDG, L&HR)
8-2-1970 Paoli-Harrisburg (PC)
My incomplete equipment roster of the "2nd" Q&E:
#4, 2-8-0 Baldwin ex-BC&G
RDG Coach No. 1293
RDG Coach No. 1294
RDG Coach No. 1298?
RDG Baggage Car No. 1716
RDG Coach No._____ (sold to PP&L in 1970)
RDG Coach No. ____ (sold to PP&L in 1970)
RDG Coach No. ____ (sold to PP&L in 1970)
CNJ Combine No. 300 (later sold to Kettle Moraine Ry in Wisconsin at unknown date)
None of the ex-Q&E Reading coaches were ever used on the "Preamble Express" or on the Johnson & Johnson Permacil Express.
Francis Ede now lives in Florida. Later, Paul Hersh (now deceased) bought sister engine No. 14, an Alco 2-8-0 from the BC&G. After storage in Quakertown for many years, No. 14 left in 1980 for the Wilmington & Western and is now on display in Gaithersburg, MD. Sometime before Ede went to Florida he sold BC&G No. 4's whistle to Bill Frederickson, the contractor working on the PRR K4s at Steamtown. Others have elaborated on the travels.
(Thanks to Jim Wrinn and Jim Robinson for supplying some of the foregoing information.)

K.R. Bell

> Now that I think about it, didn't the
> converted passenger cars used by Pennsylania
> Power & Light for their traveling atomic
> energy exhibit train (c. about 1971-72) come
> off the Q&E roster?

> Regards,
> Jim Robinson

Jim,

Yes indeed. The "Glen Onoko" open air car at Jim Thorpe (identified today by the chicken wire covering the wide open windows) was rebuilt by Strasburg RR in 1975 into an open-air observation car from an ex-RDG baggage car owned by Rail Tours that was brought over from York, where they ran before JT. Contact me offline and I can send you my all-time detailed Rail Tours equipment roster; part of it has been posted by John Eline at the Rail Tours website. George Hart loaned me all of his equipment records two years ago and I painstakingly constructed his roster from this data.

K.R. Bell

> Phil,

> Is this the open car that George is/was
> running (currently) at Jim Thorpe (haven't
> been to Mauch Chunk since CPR 1098 last ran
> in '94!)? That open car clearly showed its
> ex-baggage car heritage. IIRC it had been
> one of the RDG combines-turned-baggage cars.
> I think someone (Kurt?) said Strasburg
> converted it into an open car for George.

> Regards,
> Jim Robinson


Kurtrbell@hotmail.com

The "Permacil Express" was the brainchild of New Hope & Ivyland RR founder Lawrence Myers. After dropping out of the NH&I project in early 1966, Myers purchased one ex-RDG Combine No. 592, and three Reading steel suburban passenger coaches (Nos. 1327, 1329 and 1332; these cars were later used on the "Preamble Express" and on the "American Freedom Train"). With funding support provided by the Permacil division of Johnson & Johnson, New Brusnwick, NJ, the car interiors were "backdated" to a garish 1890s Victorian theme; work was done by Myers' contractor at the Chester (Pa.) Tidewater Terminal and by J&J contractors. The train toured the country in 1967 as a traveling classroom to train J&J pharmacuticals salesmen in the marketing of the product "Permacil," hence the name of the train. Each of the cars were given showy names, such as "The Endeavor," "The Educator," "The Motivator," and "The Innovator." Equipped with a bar, player piano, closed-circuit television system, lounge, observation deck, plush carpeting and Rococo-style woodwork, the air-conditioned train was unveiled during a visit to the Black River & Western RR in Flemington, NJ in summer 1966; a publicity run for the "Permacil Express" over the BR&W was pulled behind No. 60. The full-equipped mobile training center train toured around the USA begining in January 1967. Shortly thereafter Myers formed his own tourist line, the Wawa and Concordville, which shut down at the end of the 1967 season.

K.R. Bell

> A long ago issue of William S. Young's STEAM
> RAILROADING magazine had an extensive photo
> article about the Q&E operations (IIRC
> right after the last of the trips ran. No, I
> don't what issue it was off the top of my
> head, but I'll check tonight). These
> excellent series of magazines turn up a lot
> at model train and railroadiana shows. The
> article lists all of the trips that Howard
> mentioned.

> One of Ede's partners in the Q&E
> operation was a fellow by the name of Paul
> Hersch. Mr. Hersch acquired 2-8-0 14 from
> the BC&G roughly about the same time Ede
> acquired the 4, but IIRC this engine didn't
> make it to Quakertown until after the
> Q&E operations had ended. 14 did go to
> Quakertown eventually and stayed there until
> after Mr. Hersch passed away. His widow gave
> the engine to the Wilmington & Western
> RR in 1980. While enroute to DE, 14 derailed
> and received some damage, including to the
> front of the tender. 14 remained in storage
> on the W&W until going to Gaithersburg,
> MD where it's on display today.

> In 1972 Ede sold 2-8-0 4, the RDG baggage
> car (IIRC the car used on the Reading
> Rambles excursions of the early 60's) and
> many of the RDG coaches to Carter-Cash
> Enterprises (Yes, the late great Johnny Cash
> and family) for a possible tourist
> attraction in southwest VA near the home of
> the Carter family of country music fame.
> That didn't happen, but Gail Belamy (sp??)
> brought the equipment to Hiltons, VA on the
> Southern Ry's Bristol Line c.1974. Begining
> in the fall of 1974, the 4 and train ran
> east (south??) from Hiltons on about 10
> miles of the Bristol Line as the Southwest
> Virginia Scenic RR. The SVSR operated again
> with 4 in 1975 and quietly folded after
> that. Hiltons was/is pretty much in the
> middle of nowhere (beautiful country, but
> well off the major highways) and ridership
> wasn't exactly at "Strasburg
> levels". The owner tried again a few
> years later with an abrevated ride using
> Jerry Jacobson's ex-Kelley Island Lime
> 0-4-0T 11 (now in SD) for power. Of course
> the 4 and, yes, the ex-Q&E nee-RDG
> passenger cars did go on to Spencer, NC. The
> SVSR also had a Baldwin diesel switcher
> which came from Tennessee Eastman (IIRC,
> nee-WM Ry), which I think also went to
> Spencer (right or wrong, Jim Wrinn??).

> Now about the Johnson & Johnson
> "Permacel Express" Howard was
> mentioning. Those ex-RDG cars used on that
> train did go on to be used on the
> "Preamble Express" trip, which
> checked the route of the American Freedom
> Train. IIRC, those same cars brought up the
> hind end of the AFT itself. Now my question
> about the J&J's Permacel Express. I
> seemed to recall at the time seeing a photo
> of it being pulled by none other than the
> Black River & Western's 2-8-0 60.

> Hey, Howard, am I crazy or is that correct??
> 60 rarely has left the BR&W (a late 60's
> fan trip on the LIRR and a c.1994 visit to
> Whippany come to mind), so this would be
> noteworthy!! Where did this J&J train
> run and why??

> Regards,
> Jim Robinson

Errata: the W&C shut down at the end of the 1968 season. My apologies.

K.R. Bell

> The "Permacil Express" was the
> brainchild of New Hope & Ivyland RR
> founder Lawrence Myers. After dropping out
> of the NH&I project in early 1966, Myers
> purchased one ex-RDG Combine No. 592, and
> three Reading steel suburban passenger
> coaches (Nos. 1327, 1329 and 1332; these
> cars were later used on the "Preamble
> Express" and on the "American
> Freedom Train"). With funding support
> provided by the Permacil division of Johnson
> & Johnson, New Brusnwick, NJ, the car
> interiors were "backdated" to a
> garish 1890s Victorian theme; work was done
> by Myers' contractor at the Chester (Pa.)
> Tidewater Terminal and by J&J
> contractors. The train toured the country in
> 1967 as a traveling classroom to train
> J&J pharmacuticals salesmen in the
> marketing of the product
> "Permacil," hence the name of the
> train. Each of the cars were given showy
> names, such as "The Endeavor,"
> "The Educator," "The
> Motivator," and "The
> Innovator." Equipped with a bar, player
> piano, closed-circuit television system,
> lounge, observation deck, plush carpeting
> and Rococo-style woodwork, the
> air-conditioned train was unveiled during a
> visit to the Black River & Western RR in
> Flemington, NJ in summer 1966; a publicity
> run for the "Permacil Express"
> over the BR&W was pulled behind No. 60.
> The full-equipped mobile training center
> train toured around the USA begining in
> January 1967. Shortly thereafter Myers
> formed his own tourist line, the Wawa and
> Concordville, which shut down at the end of
> the 1967 season.

> K.R. Bell

My dad took me on one of the trips to Warwick NY. I was only four, but I still remember bits and pieces. He snapped this at the Lehigh Valley's elevated Easton station. A few miles after this stop, the train swung on to L&HR trackage for the trip to Warwick. I know he took additional photos, I'll see if I can dig up some more.

http://www.readingrailroad.org

I believe the Permacel Express started out as a three car train, it was later sold to the Lancaster & Chester as their Springmaid Special. This train also traveled the country promoting Springmaid Fabrics. The forth car was added I believe then. In the spring of 1974 the train was brought back North to Lebanon, New Jersey to be refurbished as the Preamble Express. Leaving Lebanon in early July behind D&H U23B 2312 the Preamble started it's 4 1/2 month tour of the US. The 2312 was replaced by Union Pacific E9 #951 in Omaha (GM was a AFT sponsor). The Preamble then became part of the Freedom Train and then went to BC after being sold. Two cars are back in the States and were being used as part of a dinner train, the Combine is in a Rwy/Forestry Museum in BC and the other coach may be somewhere in BC. Note on the Combine, it was the only roller bearing car of the four and at one time had skirting.

kmuldowney@att.net

To all,

I checked out that issue of William S. Young's RAILROADING magazine (not "Steam Railroading" as I posted earlier) with the article about the Q&E. It's issue 38, March 1971. These magazines show up fairly often on old magazine dealer tables at model train and railroadiana shows. There are photos of the various excursions plus a history of the Q&E operation that is in line with what Kurt posted above. I also found in my collection of "stuff" a neat little souvenir guide booklet from the first Q&E excursion on May 11, 1968 (Phila-Bethlehem-Reading over the RDG Co). I'm not sure where this booklet came from--I never rode on any of the Q&E trips! It seemed from this booklet that at least the first trip had some kind of "promotional support" from Oldsmobile--Ede was a Olds dealer in Quakertown.

The Young article mentioned that the Q&E rostered 8 ex-RDG coaches, in addition to the ex-RDG baggage car and ex-CNJ combine. As Kurt mentioned, Francis Ede's original intent was to rebuild a portion of the original Q&E ROW as a tourist railroad. A cost of $300,000 to embark on that project sidelined those thoughts and set in place the idea to operate mainline excursions instead.

Ede adopted the image of a Quaker-garbed gettleman as the Q&E logo, which adorned the cabsides of the 4. That image and Q&E name lives/lived on a (ex-) company truck of the East Penn Railway--see below link for a photo by Jim Evans.

BTW, the Young article did in fact mention that 3 of the Q&E's ex-RDG coaches had been sold to PP&L for use on its "atomic energy exhibit train". Is this accurate or not?

As a side question, anyone (Kurt, Phil, etc) know the history of the PP&L atomic energy exhibit train ("The Energy of Man" train)? What locations did it visit? What time frame did it operate? What was exhibited inside? What happened to the 3 ex-RDG coaches? Thanks for any info.

Regards,
Jim Robinson


the Q&E lives on

Diss iss (PD slang) a bit off topic but is Watt & Shand's still in business? Their magnificent Lionel Christmas in the upper floor exhibit area, with numerous operating accessories of the 40's display fired my imagination and no doubt later contributed to my interest in trains. My "W&S Christmas Special" Lionel tinplate with diecast streamlined 2-4-2, now all deceased, on its own Pennsylvania Dutch area Christmas Garden platform, was also a contributor. And riding the heavyweight combination trolleys on the Ephrata Line through the countryside as papers were thrown to waiting Amish kids from the open door, chickens squawked, and the mad dash to make it across the two-lane highway at a forty-five, the sudden jolting turn, the clackety clack over the Conestogas River to make it up the grade to Lancaster slowing slowing (didn't work if the screeching whistle didn't prevent that car racing us to the crossing, then had to back down and try again), finally the busy multitrack loop in the square probably near Watt and Shand's branching off to Rocky Springs Park - who would trade that in those crazy WWII years?
Ted Anderson, gieser

That is correct--George Hart's Rail Tours
> coaches 1341 and 1158 (both of which are now
> at Stewartstown RR) were leased during the
> Summer 1968 season when SRC was short on
> coaches account of several of the B&M
> cars were off-line in Garrison, NY during
> the filming of "Hello, Dolly."
> They were also used with two other of Hart's
> coaches in December 1968 when #1223 ran a
> four-car "Santa Claus Special" to
> Watt & Shand Department Store in
> Lancaster; the Penn Central refused to loan
> ex-PRR P70's to SRC so they simply leased
> Hart's. I have slides to prove it!

> K.R. Bell


tedander@core.com

> was a common
> carrier called the Quakertown & Eastern
> which was both a steam and
> electric operation at various times the grade even shows on some
> topo maps. It pretty much followed the
> valley of Cooks Creek.<
I can find it in the Pleasant Valley area,
NorthEast of Richlandtown, but I'm not sure how
it got out of Quakertown.

TyburnRR@cs.com

It is my recollection that the junction was on the northside of Quakertown a couple of blocks above the Reading depot.

If you click the link below, you find a recent aerial photo. I believe the Q&E comes in at the upper right, cuts diagonally acorss forest land and into a ball field before curving south a junction with the RDG.

Rob


Quakertown map link
rdavis@rypn.org

Kurt R. Bell,

Is the car that they used in the Hello Dolly film; a sort of giant open trolley, still about?

I have post cards of it in my Strasburg RR collection. So I guess that the RR used it some times after it came back from the movie shoot.

Does it still exist?


ted_miles@nps.gov

> Kurt R. Bell,

> Is the car that they used in the Hello Dolly
> film; a sort of giant open trolley, still
> about?

Do you mean the "Hello Dolly" mostly-open-side observation car? If so, Strasburg built it themselves, and it ran proudly on the end of their consists for decades after.


eledbetter@rypn.org

I should also note a couple of SRC's regular fleet are ex-P&R or ACRR wood coaches from R.Co. M of W or Relief Train service.

Electric City Trolley Museum Association

I guess that I moved to the Quakertown area thirty years too late. Heck, I wasn't even born when they started running in early 1968. Thanks for all of the great info.

> Ede adopted the image of a Quaker-garbed
> gettleman as the Q&E logo, which adorned
> the cabsides of the 4. That image and
> Q&E name lives/lived on a (ex-) company
> truck of the East Penn Railway--see below
> link for a photo by Jim Evans.

I was wondering if that was a real logo. That is on the side of John Nolan's company Penn Eastern Rail Lines truck.

I have another picture where Mr. Nolan told me that the Q&E split off to the right (looking North) from the Bethlehem Branch. If can be seen here:



My EPRY cab ride from Sellersville to Quakertown

jrevans@accusort.com

> The "original" Quakertown &
> Eastern was an independent short line that
> ran a distance of 15 miles between
> Quakertown, Bucks County, Pa., and
> Riegelsville, Bucks County. It was
> incorporated on July 6, 1896. Its primary
> function was to serve local farming
> interests and the Durham Iron Furnace near
> the Delaware River. The Q&E opened two
> years later to Springtown. A year later it
> was extended to Durham and completed to
> Riegelsville in 1901. In 1906 it became the
> Pennsylvania Eastern RR; in 1911 it was
> renamed the Quakertown & Delaware River
> RR and finally it operated as the Quakertown
> & Bethlehem from 1916 until cessation of
> operations in 1936. Three years later the
> tracks were abandoned. Power variously (but
> not all at the same time) consisted of
> leased Reading camelbacks, some ex-iron
> furnace switchers, an ex-Ironton 2-6-0, two
> ex-Union RR Brooks-built 0-6-0's, and at
> least one new Baldwin-built engine later
> sold to the Ocean Shore RR in California (a
> earlier sister was ordered new in 1903 but
> was sent back to Baldwin due to some
> mechanical ills). I have assembled a MASSIVE
> amount of research material on the Q&E
> over the years and hope to publish a book on
> the line's history after the several other
> tourist railroad books I have already in
> progress are put to bed.

> The SECOND Q&E was an excursion concern
> founded in 1966 by Francis H.S. Ede, Jr., a
> Quakertown car dealer, and Paul Hersh, a
> Hellertown resident. Their original intent
> was to relay track over part of the Q&E
> right-of-way and start their own tourist
> line. When this plan did not materialize,
> they acquired "Old Sobberface" No.
> 4 from the Buffalo Creek & Gauley, a CNJ
> combine, a RDG baggage car and six steel
> suburban coaches from the Reading Company,
> in order to run day-long mainline excursions
> in the Philadelphia area. They relaid track
> in part of the old Q&E's Quakertown Yard
> to store their equipment along the Reading's
> Bethlehem branch, though at times some of
> the cars were stored at various other
> sidings along the route. Boiler washing and
> repairs of No. 4 were performed at the RDG's
> Saucon Yard enginehouse. Trips ran mostly
> with a Reading engine crew with some Q&E
> folks pitching in for the portage. They ran
> a total of eight trips between May
> 1968-August 1970:
> 5-11-1968 Philadelphia-Bethlehem-Reading
> (RDG)
> 10-2-1968 Bethlehem-Wawick (NY) (RDG,
> L&HR)
> 6-29-1969 Bethlehem-Coxton (RDG, LV)
> 8-9-1969 Bethlehem-Warwick (RDG, L&HR)
> 10-19-1969 Bethlehem-Hazelton (RDG, LV)
> 5-3-1970 Bethlehem-Wilkes-Barre (RDG, LV)
> 6-21-1970 Bethlehem-Maybrook (NY) (RDG,
> L&HR)
> 8-2-1970 Paoli-Harrisburg (PC)
> My incomplete equipment roster of the
> "2nd" Q&E:
> #4, 2-8-0 Baldwin ex-BC&G
> RDG Coach No. 1293
> RDG Coach No. 1294
> RDG Coach No. 1298?
> RDG Baggage Car No. 1716
> RDG Coach No._____ (sold to PP&L in
> 1970)
> RDG Coach No. ____ (sold to PP&L in
> 1970)
> RDG Coach No. ____ (sold to PP&L in
> 1970)
> CNJ Combine No. 300 (later sold to Kettle
> Moraine Ry in Wisconsin at unknown date)
> None of the ex-Q&E Reading coaches were
> ever used on the "Preamble
> Express" or on the Johnson &
> Johnson Permacil Express.
> Francis Ede now lives in Florida. Later,
> Paul Hersh (now deceased) bought sister
> engine No. 14, an Alco 2-8-0 from the
> BC&G. After storage in Quakertown for
> many years, No. 14 left in 1980 for the
> Wilmington & Western and is now on
> display in Gaithersburg, MD. Sometime before
> Ede went to Florida he sold BC&G No. 4's
> whistle to Bill Frederickson, the contractor
> working on the PRR K4s at Steamtown. Others
> have elaborated on the travels.
> (Thanks to Jim Wrinn and Jim Robinson for
> supplying some of the foregoing
> information.)

> K.R. Bell

I was alerted to this discusion of the Q&E by a friend and as a Q&E researcher and fireman on the Q&E ecursion operations I had to reply.Kurt Bell is right on the money on both the original railroads history and his accounting of Ede's excursion operation. The 3 three coaches sold were to PP&L! Kurt failed to mention that a PRR P-70 coach was also used, borrowed from David York of Telford, PA.
Mike Shirk's photo of #4 at Easton station sure brought back a flood of memories. It is from that very platform that Francis Ede took a tumble and broke his arm.I could relate a dozen fascinating stories regarding that operation. We had a lot of fun.
Speaking of Francis Ede, I will be seeing him next Sunday and will be spending several days with him
at Steamtown. I will have to tell him of all the publicity he's been receiving, I know he'll be amused.

steamerdon@comcast.net