THE TRANSFER TABLE
The Wilmington Chapter NRHS Official Newsletter
Internet Edition
| VOLUME 20 NO. 2 | FEBRUARY 1998 |
Back To Wilmington Chapter Web Site
MEETING NOTES
At the January 15th meeting, there was a lengthy discussion of the rules for this year's
annual Doug Weaver Memorial Photo Contest. A motion was made, seconded, voted upon, and
passed to change the "Vintage" category from "25 or more years old" to
"15 or more years old". The "Vintage" category was added in order to
provide a forum for classic images of years past that many of our older members may have
stored away. The regular categories remain limited to the last five years to "level
the playing field" between the "veteran" photographers and newcomers to the
hobby; it was understood that some members are no longer taking photos. The
"special" category remains designed to encourage folks to get out, take a new
photo, and to get others interested in our hobby. See details for the contest later in
this issue. A reminder that 1998 Chapter/National dues are due. The 1998 rate remains
unchanged. However, in order to cover our main expense, The Transfer Table, we plan to
raise the Chapter portion of the dues for 1999 from $8 to $9 per year.
Pete Cramer was unable to give the program which was originally scheduled for January. Bruce Barry "volunteered" to grab some slides and was able to provide us with a wonderful show. His "Images of the 1980's" included GG-1s on the Northeast Corridor, red N&W diesels, Clinchfield SD-45s, and images of L&N, Soo, Milwaukee, and even Chesapeake Western power. We saw Reading Terminal (with train shed), Lackawanna V34CH units, the Central Jersey on the Phillipsburg Bridge, the Rohr Turbo Trains along the Hudson River, Mance (PA), and even some views of Tehachepi Loop.
A LOOK BACK by
Historian Ron Cleaves
February 1977: Wilmington Chapter's slate of officers were President = Walt Robbins, Vice
President = Russ Fox, Treasurer = William "Reds" Stees, Secretary = Al Siebel,
and National Director = Tom Smith. At the meeting which was attended by 16 members, a
presentation of recent slides was presented by William "Reds" Stees. Also during
the meeting, $25 was agreed upon by the Chapter to donate to the Friends of the GG-1, an
organization hoping to restore GG-1 #4935 to its original Brunswick green and pin stripes.
(On May 17, 1977, #4935 passed thru Wilmington in its restored paint scheme.) Also seen
around Wilmington on the corridor line was GG-1 #4800 "old Rivets", recently
repainted into Conrail's blue paint with "wheels" logo. #4800 previously was
painted in a scheme some considered outlandish for the bicentennial in 1976.
NOTICE: IN CASE OF BAD WEATHER
If our normal "THIRD THURSDAY" NRHS meeting is canceled due to inclement
weather, it will be postponed and held on the FOURTH THURSDAY. If it must again be
canceled, it will NOT be rescheduled. We will simply wait for the next month's normal
"third Thursday" meeting. If the weather looks bad or is predicted to be bad,
you may telephone the Claymont Community Center to see if it will be open that evening for
our meeting.
REMINDER:
1998 Dues are due! * Don't miss an issue of The Transfer Table * See or send to: Ralph E. Stevens, Jr. 18 Colony Blvd., Wilmington, DE 19802-1402
The National Railway Historical Society's
Wilmington Chapter's
Annual Doug Weaver Memorial Photo Contest
will be held at the regular Chapter meeting on Thursday, May 21st.
Here are the guidelines for entering images in this year's contest:
CATEGORIES
A Small Boy's Odessy - Part II by Roy Meinzer
Well, not so small anymore. At age eleven, I found I was going to circumnavigate the continent - at least make a pretty big loop. My grandfather had passed away in the spring, so annual rail trips to the little town of Hopkinton, Iowa as described in Part I [The Transfer Table, Volume 18, No. 4, April 1996] would be no more. So I was surprised and thrilled to learn that further exploration of far-away places by rail was in store. The itinerary was partly determined by my dad's required travel for Uncle Sam and also by the remarkable distribution of relatives from both sides of the family over a vast area of the western half of the nation. My mother was an inveterate correspondent, so invitations to visit were received from many points with corresponding benefit to hotel costs. Request was received to escort two little girl cousins from their grandparents in Seattle to their parents near Minneapolis which fit well with the plan to use the through Pullman from Vancouver to Chicago. This would be the last year (1929) that I could travel at half-fare which emphasized that this window of opportunity would be lost with any postponement.
The itinerary was Washington-Chicago-Atlantic (Iowa)-Council-Bluffs, Sioux City, Sioux Falls (SD)-Omaha-Denver-Salt Lake City-Los Angeles-Fresno-Berkeley-San Francisco-Portland-Seattle-Victoria-Vancouver-Lake Louise-Minneapolis-Chicago-Washington! This totals 16 states, 1 district, 5 provinces, and the Pacific Ocean on 9 railroads, plus several tourist lines, 4 ships and many trolleys.
Our accommodations varied, of course, with the length of the leg of the trip. The first and last-the Liberty Limited on the Pennsy was the best. All Pullman, all newest models, but no air-conditioning yet. Being a connoisseur of Pullman detail by this time, I enjoyed the variations we experienced. Older cars had simulated mahogany finish rather than the later dark green and a harsher finish upholstery. Some had permanent section partitions, some half partitions, some entirely portable, requiring storage along with everything else in the closed upper berth. I suppose this open design was required by the dependence on natural ventilation. It certainly would have been easier to build and operate with fixed partitions. One window in each section was operable and fitted with a finer-than-house-mesh screen. Vertical baffles extended out between the windows. These and the screens reduced, but did not eliminate the soot and cinders that managed to filter in. Lighting fixture designs, both overhead, and in the berth, varied but were always 32 volts, powered by batteries, and charged by belt-driven generators from an axle.
Bathroom fixtures were Monel or porcelain and varied little in layout: Four washbowls, one dental bowl with huck towels in overhead racks. There was a long leather-upholstered seat across one end of the room for the use of smokers by day and the porter's cat-nap at night. The toilet was in the adjacent little room and discharged onto the track below, with a shield to protect the nearby steps. The ladies' room at the other end of the car had a full door, but the men made do with a curtain.
The standard car layout was 12 open sections and one compartment. That room had a conventional section, an extra settee and a private bath. Other cars would have 8 or 10 open sections with more bedrooms. All-bedroo cars were rare. The observation car normally contained some private bedrooms, lounge area, and sometimes a buffet. Locations for the water-cooler, two fans, and the thermometer never varied.
The lack of air-conditioning was most noticeable in the diner. While waiting in the minimum width passage adjacent to the galley for seating, one could feel the heat radiating from the wall, and we wondered how the chefs could stand it.
After a cousinly visit in Chicago, we headed west by coach on the Rock Island to Atlantic in southwest Iowa. Here, we were picked up by my Uncle John and Aunt Ella in their new Durant for the short trip to Cumberland, their home town. This was another typical small Iowa town with railroad depot, providing a center for the surrounding farms. Uncle John had just retired from the family farm and moved to town. We spent some time with his son, my cousin, who had taken over. Electric power was still 19 years away so modern conveniences such as lights and plumbing were not available. Very educational. After meeting swarms of cousins, we continued west to Council Bluffs and north on the Chicago-Northwestern to Sioux City to visit-you guessed it-more cousins. We were there on the day the new smaller size paper money was issued. One member of the family worked in a bank and brought home a dollar bill for us to see. We continued north along the Missouri River to Sioux Falls, So. Dak. adding a new state and numerous cousins to my list. We then returned to Omaha to continue westward by Pullman on the Union Pacific to Denver. In Denver, sightseeing memory seems to be limited to visiting the Capitol where I observed the mile-high plaque on the entrance steps. No relatives here.
I believe the Moffatt Tunnel was built in 1928, but our train travelled the Royal Gorge route of the Denver & Rio Grande Western. This was one of the highlight sections of the trip in those imposing mountains and canyons. The train stopped briefly at the hanging bridge, but long enough to allow us to get off and be impressed. If we took pictures, I do not have them. We continued through the Rocky Mountains to Salt Lake City. We rode the Saltair Line doodlebug to the lake, where we had our "swim" (float is a better word). The Saltair Line was still running in 1957 when I repeated this trip via Moffatt Tunnel with my family.
For reasons not recorded or remembered, we travelled to Los Angeles on Union Pacific's stop-at-every-depot train. The consist beside the head-end cars was one coach and one elderly, wood-sheathed Pullman and no diner, so that meal stops had to suffice. In the afternoon, in the southern Nevada desert, we stopped suddenly in the middle of nowhere. Our porter determined that the locomotive had a serious breakdown, but he never gave us details. He was properly concerned about the heat and his passenger's welfare. He required that all windows be closed and the shades tightly drawn. The thermometer in the car stood at an even 1000! I actually considered getting off the car and walking forward to see what was going on. I stepped into the vestibule and was hit by the heat as if the interior of the car was air-conditioned. Then, I took one look at the ground far below the lowest step, and decided that retreat was in order back into the cool 1000! After several hours, a rescue locomotive arrived, and we were moving again. Our evening meal-stop was correspondingly delayed so it was well into the night before we reached what was then the little, one-horse town of Las Vegas. We sat at a counter that was so hot it burned my arms. The food was probably poor, the air was stifling, but at that point any ration looked good. Being marooned in the desert is no fun, even inside a wood Pullman, but I look back on it as a real adventure. It was nice to see L.A. in the morning where we were met by a local cousin with her, even then, ancient Model T Ford. This was Henry's first closed body car with the door located in the center of the side to provide equally poor access to front and rear seats. My Uncle Will also lived in Long Beach. His home was in the then new Signal Hill oil field surrounded by a forest of oil wells, pumping stations, and gusher soaked ground. What a sight! Fortunately, moving out was financially advantageous.
I believe most of our travel in the L.A. area was by Pacific Electric, and this is one area for which I have printed material to supplement my memory. We went to Catalina Island, taking the P.E. from 6th & Main to San Pedro where we boarded ship for the island. Total round trip cost including rail, ship, luncheon, swim, and glass bottom boat ride was $4.95 each. Another expedition was to Mt. Lowe near Pasadena. Again, we started with P.E. going through Pasadena and Altadena to the base of an incline railway. Here we ascended to the top of Echo Mountain, whence another 3- mile trolley ride including 127 curves, a circular bridge, and 9% grades brought us to the hotel and many trails. We boarded the O.M.&M. RR. This stands for One-Man-and Mule! Indeed, a one-mule powered car took us on a further scenic jaunt. The mule walked behind, made possible by the rails guiding the car, and improving the view of the San Gabriel Mountains.
We left L.A. on the Southern Pacific heading north on the inside route through the San Joaquin Valley to Fresno. Hot, hot. Here, my mother's Uncle Fred met us and took us to his ranch near Reedley and here, I learned to dislike goat's milk. We didn't care much for the heat, either. We continued north. The coach had every window open, the soot collected on our sweat, and then we hit the pass into Berkeley with a sudden temperature drop; I'd guess 300. Then, slam, bang, bang. Every window in the car closed within a minute, and that was the last of the heat until we returned to good old Washington, DC. In Berkeley, we stayed with Fred's daughter (our cousin) and her family including a daughter about my age. We have visited and corresponded with each other ever since.
There being no bridges, we rode a lot of ferries, rode the San Francisco cable cars, and went to Sausilito. Here we rode another wondrous trolley around circular bridges up Mt. Tamalpais. We did not return on this trolley, but boarded cars that looked like they had escaped from a roller-coaster. These were equipped with brakes, a cooling-water tank, and a brakeman. We coasted down the mountain into the Muir Woods!
When planning the trip, a break in rail travel seemed like a good idea, so we were booked on a coastal steamer to Portland, Ore. Well, this was the roughest passage in years, they said, so it was not very enjoyable. I stayed up, but didn't want to eat. My poor mother was in her berth most of the time. I ventured to the dining room once and there was almost no one there. It was sure nice to get on solid ground in Astoria and feel the appetite coming back. We continued up the smooth Columbia to Portland. After the Portland cousin visit, we continued by train to Seattle.
Here, we picked up the two little girls (Betty-9, Lou-6) and took the smooth trip up Puget Sound to beautiful Victoria, B.C. A sightseeing tour here and a ferry trip to Vancouver brought us to the great return trip across Canada on the Canadian Pacific. No dome cars then, but we had a gondola car attached to the rear, so that there was unobstructed view of the mountains and room for all. We broke the trip with a stop in beautiful Lake Louise. Revisiting Lake Louise in 1989 found it just as beautiful and little changed. Not many childhood memories survive so well. Even the Chateau was about the same.Continuing eastward revealed the incredible open immensity of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. In Minneapolis, we discharged our little cousins to their parents and had a pleasant half-hour visit before the train moved on, (now Soo Line). I do not recall that the two kids were any real problem, but I know my mother was glad to be relieved of the responsibility.
Returning to the Liberty Limited in Chicago almost seemed like home. One more night in the upper and we were home. There had been frost when we were in Lake Louise. Now, we were in Washington in the August heat dreaming of cool Canadian air.
I am ever grateful for this fantastic and educational trip at an age when it was perhaps most effective. Of course, it was a train-lover's dream, both fulfilling and promising the pleasure of more trips to come.
NEWS BITS
Founded in 1995, the American Railway Caboose Historical Educational Society, Inc.
(A.R.C.H.E.S.) now has over 200 members and was nice enough to share their newsletter with
us. You can check out their newsletter, along with the rest of the material we get in the
mail, at our next Chapter meeting. If you are interested in joining them, please write to
Rich Eichhorst, President, at P.O.Box 2772, St. Louis, MO 63116 or call 314-752-3148.
Philadelphia-based Railway Service Corp. has proposed to take over commuter service on the Keystone Line between Lancaster-Harrisburg and Philadelphia. Just a proposal at this stage, RSC wants to expand service to hourly trains (5AM-11PM), seven days a week, increasing speeds from 90 to 105 mph, adding other station stops, and using electric instead of diesel motive power. [from Lancaster New Era, Friday, January 16 via Ed Thornton]
New Talgo train coach car shells arrived at Long Beach, CA on Oct. 2, 1997. They will be joined by bistro, dining, baggage, and service car shells through the spring of 1998. Purchased by Washington State Dept. of Transportation, they are to run Seattle-Vancouver, BC and Seattle-Portland-Eugene. Talgo Inc., a Washington-based subsidiary of Patentes Talgo SA of Madrid, Spain awarded a train manufacturing subcontract to Pacifica, a Seattle-based International Association of Machinists & Aerospace Workers' company. [from AMTRAK INK via Ed Thornton]
For the new high-speed, "Fast Track" Amtrak Northeast Corridor service, the upgrades will include 140 miles of continuous welded rail, 127 realigned (straightened) curves, 57 rebuilt bridges (including two draw bridges in Connecticut), and 335,000 new concrete ties. New electric power between New Haven and Boston will include 14,000 underground foundations, 1500 miles of wire, and 24 electrical supply and management facilities including four substations. [from Amtak's High Speed Rail]
In 1990, the rail miles per person of state population were reportedly:
| North Dakota | Rank #1 | 0.00577 railroad miles/cap |
| Pennsylvania | 38 | 0.00045 |
| Delaware | 39 | 0.00042 |
| New York | 44 | 0.00023 |
| Maryland | 45 | 0.00019 |
| New Jersey | 47 | 0.00016 |
| Connecticut | 47 | 0.00016 |
[from High Iron via Old Dominion's Highball]
Philadelphia's SEPTA took delivery on 12 Adtranz Rapid Transit cars in 1997 according to an article in the January issue of Railway Age. The article also said there were 208 cars on backorder, orders for 10-12 commuter cars and 12-15 light rail cars likely to develop in 1998 and 0-50 light rail cars to be ordered in the five years 1999-2003. [from Railway Age]
The Delaware Valley Railway was acquired by RailAmerica in July 1994. It operates 45 miles of rail line in Pennsylvania and 10 miles in Delaware. In 1996 it carried 1,818 carloads of iron and steel products, chemicals, agricultural products, lumber, and processed foods. [from the RailAmerica website which you can find at http://www.railamerica.com/subs.html ]
The manned, non-maglev train speed record of 319 mph held by the French TGV fell to the Japanese superconducting magnetically levitated train (MLX01) in December 1997. The three-car train first set records of 329 mph unmanned and then manned. Later in the month, they upped the unmanned record to 341 mph. [Associated Press]
SCHEDULE NOTES
Notices, announcements, schedules, etc. are provided here as a service to the members. The
Chapter has no affiliation with any commercial operation, museum, or tourist line.
Through March, 1998 Mt. Clare Express weekend excursions 12:30 & 2:30 only due to construction, B&O Museum, Baltimore, info 410-752-2490 beginning April 1998, return to normal schedule of 11:30 AM, 12:30, 2:30, and 3:30 PM=diesel+2 coaches
Saturday, Feb. 7, 1998 Model Train/Toy Show & Sale 9 AM - 4 PM, Newark High School, 750 East Delaware Ave, Newark, DE (snow date Feb. 14)
Feb. 12 through May 1, 1998 Art for the Chessies 12 works commissioned by the C&O in the 1940's, B&O Railroad Museum, Baltimore, info 410-752-2490
Saturday, Feb. 21, 1998 Train &Toy Show 9 AM - 3 PM, Seaford Volunteer Fire Department Station, $3 admission, Seaford, DE, info 302-629-3142
Sunday, Feb. 22, 1998 Prime-Mover Train "Scale Only" Show 9 AM - 2 PM, Memorial Hall, Rt. 41, Hockessin, DE for info call Tom @ 610-255-4785
Sunday, Feb. 28, 1998 EastRAIL '98 10 AM-6 PM, Bergen County Tech. Inst., Hackensack, NJ, $10 advance, $12 door, 908-671-9644 evenings
Sunday, March 8, 1998 Prime-Mover Train Show 9 AM - 2 PM, Aetna Hall, Rt. 273, Newark, DE for info call Tom @ 610-255-4785
Saturday, March 14, 1998 Hillendale Train Meet 9-2 Saturday, Hillendale Rd. (1.5 miles north of Mendenhall Inn) Elementary School, Chadds Ford, PA
Sunday, March 22, 1998 NORDEL Spring Train Show 10 AM - 3 PM, Cranston Heights Fire Co., Route 2, $4.00, Wilmington, DE info = 302-454-8972 Keith
Sunday, April 26, 1998 Lancaster/ Strasburg Train and Toy Sale Sunday, April 26, 1998 Bethel Township Hose Co. #1 Train Meet 9 AM-3 PM, Rt. 261 (Foulk Rd) near Naamans Rd., Bethel Fire Co, Boothwyn PA info=610-494-0899 Ext. 8
Saturday, May 16, 1998 Annual Transportation Day 10 AM to 4 PM at the Wilmington Amtrak Station, locomotive and rolling stock displays, SEPTA rides
July 8-12, 1998 NRHS National Convention, Syracuse, NY
Saturday, July 23, 1998 Annual Rail to the Fair Departs Phila 9 AM, Claymont 9:21, Wilmington 9:45, Newark 10:01; Harrington 12:37, returns Claymont 8:30 PM, prices $22.50-67.50 includes admission to the fair.
CHAPTER EVENTS
Thursday Feb. 19, 1998 7 PM Chapter Meeting Program by Frank Ferguson Slide presentation on "Fallen Flags"
Thursday Mar. 19, 1998 7 PM Chapter Meeting Program by Ken Berg program unknown at this time
Thursday April 16, 1998 7 PM Chapter Meeting Program by Paul Fortin program unknown at this time
Saturday May 16, 1998 ? AM Chapter Event Annual Transportation Day Wilmington Train Station
Thursday May 21, 1998 7 PM Chapter Meeting Annual Photo Contest Thursday June 18, 1998 7 PM Chapter Meeting Program by ? program unknown at this time
Thursday July 16, 1998 7 PM Chapter Meeting Program by ?
Saturday August 15, 1998 Chapter Outing Annual Picnic @ Strasburg RR The Wilmington
Chapter Officers
President Phil Snyder
Vice President & Historian Ron Cleaves
Treasurer Ralph Stevens, Jr.
Secretary Walt Robbins
National Director Ed Thornton
Editor Greg Ajamian
Public Relations Ken Berg
Event Photographer Bruce Barry
Back To Wilmington Chapter Web Site
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Mail: Wilmington Chapter - NRHS, P.O. Box 1261, Wilmington, DE 19899-1261, USA
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