THE TRANSFER TABLE
The Wilmington Chapter NRHS Official Newsletter
Internet Edition
| VOLUME 20 NO. 10 | NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 1998 |
Back To Wilmington Chapter Web Site
MEETING NOTES
The twenty members at the October meeting heard the
Treasurer's report and the minutes approved as read. National Director Ed Thornton
announced that he would not be able to attend the Director's meeting in Kansas City. He
also announced that Bill Mathews had taken over the website, that certain book discounts
for NRHS members, and that you will need to pre-register for the 1999 convention in
California before January 1. President Phil Snyder reported on area renovations for the
Wilmington Riverfront. It was reported that former Chapter Member Andy Edwards had passed
away recently. Due to his devotion and service, Steamtown ran "black flags" on
its trains for the entire week. Eastern Regional Vice President Bill Mathews gave us a
report on the great success of RailCamp during this past summer. The 19 participants this
year did such a tremendous job, the program is to be repeated next year and may even be
offered in a standard and an "advanced" version.
Bill Russell reported on a PRR T&HS trip using former a B&O GP-9 in Pennsy colors and two SEPTA (Reading) coaches and one baggage car lettered "Pete Small" (who was one of the original members of our Chapter). John Iwasyk reported that the Wilmington & Western is looking for B&O memorabilia for the former B&O Yorklyn Station now at Greenbank. The visitor's center will be used for the W&W, Greenbank Mill, and Brandywine Springs. Jack Rathburn report having an excellent trip from Cumberland to Frostburg, MD rising 1600 feet in the 17-mile run. Pete Cramer reported on behalf of the Nominating
Committee that they proposed the same slate of Chapter Officers for next year. The slide presentation was by your Editor, Greg Ajamian. In less than 1.5 hrs., the over 450 slides covered Silver Creek (NY) plus Conneaut, Attica Jct., Ashtabula, and Cleveland (OH). There was the now expected variety of unusual rolling stock and a tour of a steel rolling mill. Many members were most complimentary after the show. Thank you.
It is with great sorrow that we must report the passing of Eastern Region Vice President Bill Mathews. He attended our March meeting as the first of "at least two visits to each Chapter" that he had promised during his campaign. He was present at our October meeting completing that promise. At our September 1997 meeting, National Director Ed Thornton introduced us to Bill who was then historian for the Pottstown & Reading Chapter.
Chapter Member Dick Hall is seeking research information
(drawings & text) on the following:
[ corrected phone # = (302) 994-3911 ]
A LOOK BACK: November 1982 by Historian Ron Cleaves
Highlight for the Wilmington Chapter for November '82 was "Doodlebug Days" on
the Octararo. On November 6, 7, 13, and 14 - Saturdays and Sundays, the Chapter sponsored
four full days of riding over trackage of the Octararo Railway. On Saturday 6 and 13,
Wilmington and Western's #4662 operated from Greenville, DE to Oxford, PA, and 7,14
Greenville to Modena,PA. Mostly fair weather prevailed on these excursions which was the
second series of trips our Chapter ran in '82 and was a sell-out. (The Chapter's first '82
trip was a very successful trip in April covering trackage of the Maryland and Delaware's
Clayton, DE to Eaton, MD Line).
• Upgrades to the north end of the Northeast Corridor to handle 150 mph trains have included 140 miles of new continuous welded rail on over 300,000 new concrete ties, realignment of 127 curves, and the conversion of 43 of 57 open deck bridges to solid decks with ballast. To date, 95% of the catenary pole foundations are complete, 70% of the poles, and 25% of the electric wire. The entire project is scheduled for completion in October 1999. [fromAmtrak High Speed Rail]
• A local resident has filed a lawsuit against the Wilmington & Western Railroad for its use of explosive devices and firearms during Civil War re-enactments. He wrote a letter of complaint to the railroad more than a year ago after "putting up with the annoyance since 1986". [from Wilmington'sNews Journal]
• On September 29, New York Governor and AMTRAK announced they will split a 5-year, $185 million Empire Corridor capital investment plan. The program will spend $45 million to upgrade seven Turboliner train sets for 125 mph service at Super Steel in Schenectady. That should make NY-Albany less than a 2-hour trip. The train sets will also have amenities like larger seats, laptop hookups at each seat, and improved accessibility for persons with disabilities. Each train set will have a capacity of 285 passengers. [from News from the National Association of Railroad Passengers]
• On July 31, a heavily loaded sand truck collided with a southbound Maryland & Delaware Railroad train just north of Snow Hill, MD. at the highway crossing for U.S. Route 113. There were no serious injuries to the truck driver (charged with various driving irregularities) or the train crew. Locomotive #2630 was derailed, capsized, and seriously damaged. [from Delmarva Chapter's The Delmarva Limited]
• On September 30, the Union Pacific Railroad loaded its 75,000th coal train in Wyoming's southern Powder River Basin. Averaging 26 loaded coal trains per day, the UP will haul nearly 120 million tons of coal out of the area this year. The 25,000th train was April 1992 and the 50,000th was in December 1997. [from various Internet sources and press releases]
The rail cruise package includes round trip travel including meals and refreshments aboard the Dover Harbor, one night at the Southgate Tower Hotel and a Champagne reception aboard the railcar at Penn Station to ring in the New Year. The Dover Harbor will depart Washington's Union Station behind an early morning Amtrak Northeast Direct train on Thursday morning, December 31, 1998. Passengers will experience the travel in Pullman style as it was in the 1930's as they glide northward with arrival in New York City scheduled for just before lunchtime. The return trip is set for Friday evening, January 1, 1999.
The fares range from $329.00 per person, double occupancy. For more information, please write to Henry Bielstein, Ticket Agent, Washington D.C. Chapter, National Railway Historical Society, 13425 Reid Circle, Ft. Washington, Maryland 20744-6522; telephone 301-292-9592, e-mail to <dcnrhs@us.net> or visit the Chapter's web site at http://www.dcnrhs.org.
You know you're an idiot railfan if:
1. On your railfan outings, the four food groups become: McDonalds, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, and Mr. Donut.
2. Your car has a bumper sticker that says "This vehicle stops at all railroad crossings. "
3. Despite common sense and the instructions that came with the camcorder, you still shoot videos into the sun.
4. Your railfan territorial dominance is enough to scare away The Black Panthers.
5. You carry a saw and a BB gun in your camera case to remove ALL obstacles from your shot.
6. You have a denim vest or jacket that has more patches than the earth has hydrogen molecules.
7. You've considered contacting the police to obtain permission for using flashing red lights and siren during a train chase.
8. The sound of a K5LA off in the distance does more for you than a double- shot of prozac and cocaine.
9. Your definition of the best type of railroad photograph: the "Three- quarter, no-thought roster shot".
10. Your definition of the best night shot: the "Three-quarter, no-thought roster shot", lit up like the Space Shuttle on launchpad 39B.
11. Your car's license plate is customized with a locomotive designation, railroad initials, or both.
12. You've been known to stand on the roof of your car to get that shot over the fence.
13. Your scanner is on 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
14. You still live with your parents because you spend too much money on Kodachrome.
15. You don't realize how stupid or suspicious you look to passing motorists as you stand out in the middle of nowhere with a camera around your neck.
16. Summer weekends for most men: Beer, Babes, Boats, and Barbecue; Summer weekends for you: refer to #15.
17. The number 614 gets you more excited than the number 69.
18. Great moments in your personal history: Learning to ride a bike, graduating from high school, and your first photograph of foreign motive power.
19. Your cat's name is "Chessie".
20. Your dog's name is "Conrail".
21. Your wife threatened to divorce you because you wanted to dye Conrail's fur blue.
22. Its hot as hell out, the lead unit doesn't have AC, and you still don't understand why the crew has to leave the front door open.
23. Class I railroads: Alco's suck. Railfans: Alco's Rule!!!
24. You can tell the difference between a U23B and a B23-7.
25. If the dispatcher loses track of a locomotive consist, he usually calls you at home for help.
26. People want to know if you have supernatural powers, because the sun is always shining in your photographs.
27. You sit in a high school auditorium for hours on a cold winter day, watching thousands of slides and attempting to out-BS the railfan next to you.
28. You've ever bargained for a cab ride with a warm pizza and a six-pack of Coke.
29. You refuse to go to Horseshoe Curve any more since they started charging admission.
30. You hike up the side of the mountain and along dirtbike paths to gain access to Horseshoe Curve now.
31. That railfan rumor you just heard is too good to be true, but you continue to spread it anyway.
32. You consider Conrail's "Speak-n-spell" defect detectors to be a warm, caring, and familiar voice.
33. You go around imitating Conrail's defect detectors.
34. You believe that your status as a railfan is proportional to the number of cameras around your neck.
35. You speak softly, but carry a BIG TRIPOD!
36. You have faithfully written down the shutter speed and f-stop of every shot you've taken for the past zillion years, yet you've really never used that data afterwards.
37. You scream and chant like a possessed, frothing sports fan for the train to hit the car that just went around the gate.
38. You're the first to notice the incorrect number boards and lift rings on a recently restored locomotive.
39. Conrail SD80MAC's make you feel tingly all over.
40. You have a web site set up on railfanning.
41. You're too damn good to stand in a photo line, so you stand in front of it.
42. You have slipped or fallen in mud or snow and have successfully saved the camera from the fall (disregard the thirty stitches in your arm to save it).
43. You've established a large enough network of connections to know every move of the "Office Car Special" and Ringling Brothers' Circus Train throughout the system.
44. Real men don't need to ask for directions. Real railfans don't need maps.
45. You feel "one with nature" as you stand on a wooded mountainside overlooking a trestle spanning a river valley as you wait for the train. You then twist your ankle on a rock and drop your camera.
46. You refer to an F40PH as a "Screaming Thunderbox".
47. You refer to a Genesis unit as a "Mud Missile".
48. You and your railfan buddies get into EMD vs. GE arguments the way rednecks get into Ford vs. Chevy brawls.
49. You've ever looked under the hood of your pickup to see if you could mount a Leslie 3-chime airhorn, only to realize that you'd have to remove the engine block, battery, and master cylinder for it to fit.
50. You've considered mounting the same horn on the rollbar, only to realize that your pickup would look like an Iraqi mobile missile launcher.
51. You call Conrail's business train the "Green Weenie".
52. You refer to the horns on Amtrak locomotives as "Big Hooters".
53. You were sued for sexual harassment for accidentally making the above comment at work.
54. You always make a perverted remark every time someone mentions something about "action in the humpyard".
55. You've ever railfanned drunk.
56. You've specifically chosen to work the night shift so that you can spend all day chasing trains.
57. You've ever sat on the passenger side door of a car with your video camera and shot over the roof while one of your buddies drove at speeds in excess of 60 m. p. h. trying to keep up with UP #844 on an excursion.
58. You have ever caused a 20 car pile-up while trying to get to the shoulder to shoot something that you did not expect to find.
59. You have ever caused traffic to back up for a half mile while pacing a 15 m. p. h. shortline freight.
60. You were treated for depression when you heard that Norfolk Southern dropped the fires on 611.
61. You successfully got your wife involved in railfanning.
62. She can now "out-railfan" your sorry ass any day of the year.
63. Difficult decisions at the vending machine - The Milky Way at selection F7 or the Pay Day at E8. . .
64. Your little black book has numerous phone numbers - railroad automated tracing services, and one woman - Mother.
65. Your fiancee left you at the alter when she saw the scanner attached to your cummerbund.
66. You own at least three Morning Sun books, five Pentrex video tapes, and have least two subscriptions to railroad magazines.
67. Your refrigerator has barely enough food to feed a rat for half a day, but enough Kodachrome to roster shoot each BNSF locomotive twice.
68. You're photographing Conrail like there's no tomorrow, just like everyone else, and twenty years from now a Conrail slide still won't be worth the acetate its printed on.
69. You apply 8th grade algebra when chasing trains ("if train A leaves Allentown at 50mph, and railfan B leaves twenty minutes later at 90mph. . .").
70. Lumedyne - the first, the last, THE ONLY name in low-angle-light night photography!!! (and don't you forget it!)
71. You like Fujichrome Velvia. Then again, you like purple skies and trees on cocaine.
72. You kept your citation for trespassing on railroad property as an authentic railroad souvenir.
73. Your railroad data notebooks were more utilized in high school than your class notebooks.
74. You realize that neither Nikon nor EMD ever made an F6.
75. You refuse to disembark the train for a photo run-by because the sun isn't shining.
76. To add to the railroad experience, you sleep in a caboose the night before a railfan excursion.
77. No matter where a railfan goes and who he/she talks to, your name and bad stories about you are always brought up in conversation.
78. You know what WGRF stands for (and it ain't no damn radio station!).
79. You judge other fellow railfans by the quality and quantity of photos and rumors they publish.
National touring exhibit of O. Winston Link prints (70-75 B&W and 10 color) October 20 - December 20, 1998 Huntington West Virginia Museum of Art - CALL TO CONFIRM DATES !!
April 13 - June 13, 1999 Cincinnati Ohio Art Museum - CALL TO CONFIRM DATES !!
Saturday & Sunday, November 7-8, 1998 Motorcar Days on the Wilmington & Western our National Director Ed Thornton plans to be there on Sunday and may be able to give Chapter members a ride!
Tuesday, November 10, 1998 through 1999 "Miniature Marvels" 10 AM - 5 PM, B&O Railroad Museum exhibit featuring builders, patent & prototype models, toy trains, and live steam and scale models featuring unique, rare, and historic models from the museum's collection.
Saturday, November 14, 1998 Baltimore Chapter Annual Banquet 7 PM, Snyders Willow Grove Inn, Linthicum, MD, $20, speaker = NRHS President Greg Molloy send check to Balt. Chapt. NRHS, c/o H. Hess, 8600 Midi Ave., Baltimore, MD 21234-4011
Saturday, November 21, 1998 Model Train & Toy Show & Sale 9 AM - 3 PM, Hartly DE Fire Hall, Rt. 13 south to Rt. 300 west to Rt. 11 west, info 302-492-3755
Sunday, November 22, 1998 Prime-Mover Train Show 9 AM - 2 PM, Aetna Hall, Newark, DE for info call Tom @ 610-255-4785
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 1998 - Turkey Trot Trolley Trip II covering portions of Routes15 & 23 in Philadelphia using the Red Arrow PCC. Trip departs Elmwood car barn 10:00am, returns approximately 3:00 PM. Like all of Steve Barry's trips, this one features numerous quality photo stops. Ticket prices are $25 (per trip) for Wilmington Chapter members and guests, $30 for general public. Seating is limited. Tickets can be ordered from Wilmington Chapter NRHS, c/o Steve Barry, 117 High Street, Newton, NJ 07860. Information call 973/383-3355 between 9 AM and 6 PM.
Saturday, December 12, 1998 Lancaster County "Trains Are Us" Christmas Train Meet 9 AM- 3 PM, Paradise Fire Co., Rt. 30 & Leacock Road, Paradise, PA, info 717-295-4584
Sunday, December 13, 1998 Nordel's X-mas Train Show 10 AM - 3 PM, Cranston Heights Fire Co., Kirkwood Highway, Prices Corner, DE, info 302-234-6901
1999 Sunday, January 10, 1999 Prime-Mover Train Show 9 AM - 2 PM, Hockessin Memorial Hall, Hockessin, DE for info call Tom @ 610-255-4785Saturday & Sunday, Jauary 30-31, 1999 Great Scale Model Train Show, Timonium, MD. 9-4 Saturday, 10-4 Sunday, Maryland State Fairgrounds
SATURDAY, JANUARY 30, 1999 - Super Saturday Streetcar Special VI over Philadelphia streetcar routes. Trip departs Germantown car barn at 10:00 am, returns approximately 3:00 PM. A PCC will be used, exactly which one and the route to be determined. Like all of Steve Barry's trips, this one features numerous quality photo stops. Ticket prices are $25 (per trip) for Wilmington Chapter members and guests, $30 for general public. Seating is limited, although if demand warrants we may add a second streetcar. Tickets can be ordered from Wilmington Chapter NRHS, c/o Steve Barry, 117 High Street,Newton, NJ 07860. Information call 973/383-3355 between 9 AM and 6 PM.
Saturday, February 6, 1999 Model Train/ Toy Show & Sale 9 AM - 3 PM (snow date Feb. 13), Newark High School, Newark, DE
Saturday & Sunday, February 20-21, 1999 Brass Expo, Eisenhower Tower, Gettysburg, PA
Saturday, March 13, 1999 Hillendale Train Meet 9-2 Saturday, Hillendale Rd. (0.5 miles north of Mendenhall Inn) Elementary School, Chadds Ford, PA
MARCH 20, 1999 - West Chester Railroad Photographers' Train. Ride the entire West Chester Railroad with photo stops at all the stations, plus some non- station stops as well. Train will feature an Alco S2 on one end, and CPR 1803 (RS18) on the other. This may be 1803's final trip in CPR paint as it will be repainted in the spring. Trip departs West Chester 12:30 pm, returns approximately 4:00 PM for dinner break, then a night photo session will be held in the West Chester RR yard. Like all of Steve Barry's trips, this one features numerous quality photo stops. Ticket prices are $25 (per trip) for Wilmington Chapter members and guests, $30 for general public. Seating is limited, although if demand warrants we may add a second coach to the West Chester trip. Tickets can be ordered from Wilmington Chapter NRHS, c/o Steve Barry, 117 High Street, Newton, NJ 07860. Information call 973/383-3355 between 9 AM and 6 PM.
Saturday & Sunday, April 17-18, 1999 Great Scale Model Train Show 9-4 Saturday, 10-4 Sunday, Maryland State Fairgrounds, Timonium, MD.
Sunday, April 18, 1999 Nordel's X-mas Train Show 10 AM - 3 PM, Cranston Heights Fire Co., Kirkwood Highway, Prices Corner, DE, info 302-234-6901
Sunday, May 16, 1998 Model Train Show 9 AM - 2 PM, Historic Strasburg Inn, Strasburg, PA, $3 admission, info 717-392-5515
June 18-27, 1999 Central Coast Chapter's Railfair '99 w/ California State Railroad Museum, Sacramento
Saturday & Sunday, June 19-20, 1999 Great Scale Model Train Show, Timonium, MD.
June 19-27, 1999 NRHS National Convention hosted by the Central Coast Chapter and the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society in Sacramento, CA
Saturday & Sunday, August 7-8, 1999 Great Scale Model Train Show,Eisenhower Tower,Gettysburg,PA
Saturday & Sunday, October 3-4, 1999 Great Scale Model Train Show, Timonium, MD.
August 2-6, 2000 NRHS National Convention hosted by the Lancaster Chapter in and around Pittsburgh, PA
Sunday Nov. 22, 1998 10 AM Chapter Trip Turkey Trot Trolley Trip II
Sunday Dec. 13, 1998 5 PM Holiday Dinner in lieu of normal meeting Program by Steve Barry
Thursday Jan. 21, 1999 7 PM Chapter Meeting Program by Frank Ferguson, Jr. "Steam in the 70's & 80's"
Saturday Jan. 30, 1999 10 AM Chapter Trip Super Saturday Streetcar Special VI
Thursday Feb. 18, 1999 7 PM Chapter Meeting Program by Dave Watterson "Conrail Changeover from a CSX Viewpoint"
Thursday March 18, 1999 7 PM Chapter Meeting Program by Ed Thornton
Thursday April 15, 1999 7 PM Chapter Meeting Program by Bill Russell
Thursday May 20, 1999 7 PM Chapter Meeting Doug Weaver Memorial Photo Contest
The Transfer Table is published six to ten times per year as the newsletter of the Wilmington Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society. Items in this publication do not represent the official position of either Officers or Members of the Wilmington Chapter or the Editor of this publication. Permission to reprint articles and news items appearing herein is granted to NRHS Chapters and other newsletters provided appropriate credit is given. Contributions are always welcome and should be sent to the editor at P.O. Box 1136, Hockessin, DE 19707-5136. Deadline for entries is the 25th of the month.
The Wilmington Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society (NRHS) meets at 7:00 PM on the third Thursday of each month [except December] in the Darley Room at the Claymont Community Center, on Green Street in Claymont, Delaware. Visitors are always welcome, admission to regular meetings is free.
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 Dave Watterson
Event Photographer Bruce Barry
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