12 Steamtown Sept. 6 - Segment 1 - NJ-ARP

12 - Summer 2015 – Steamtown on September 6 – Segment 1
Nickel Plate 2-8-4 Berkshire locomotive 765 was scheduled to pull a
passenger excursion train from Steamtown in Scranton over the route of
the "Phoebe Snow" to the Stroudsburg/Delaware Water Gap area on Labor
Day weekend, with two trips, on the Saturday and the Monday. Marc
Glucksman and I decided to visit the site and chase the train for photos on
the day of the first trip, Saturday, September 6. Parts 12 and 13 feature
slides of what we able to see in Steamtown itself, while part 14 will get to
the chase.
Called Railfest 2015, the National Historic Park planned a gala weekend,
with its major attraction being the visit of the attractive 2-8-4 locomotive.
Additional visiting equipment was also on hand, and this "celebration of
railroading," with speeches and ceremonies, offered an excellent overview
of the museum, including its plans for the future (particularly to acquire at
least one operating steam locomotive), for railfans and the general public
alike.
Marc picked me up at about 7 in the morning and we encountered no traffic
problems as we followed routes 80 and 380 to Scranton, but did get
nervous when we came across some thick fog in the valleys along the
way. Fortunately the sky cleared as we arrived and we had beautiful
weather all day. With the steam train scheduled to leave at 10:30 a.m. we
had over an hour to look at the exhibits. There was a long line at the ticket
office, but we eventually were able to pay our $7.00 entrance fees and put
on our wristbands. Needless to say the grounds were crowded with
throngs of happy people inspecting and photographing the equipment.
I've been to the Steamtown area before, mostly for riding and
photographing streetcars at the adjacent Electric City Trolley Museum, but
I skipped electric traction on this sojourn, as there were so many other
things to accomplish. Both attractions are worth visiting even on days
when there are no special events.
Here are views of some of the photos I took, concentrating first on the
diesel power scattered along the tracks. I should point out that most of the
technical detail about the subjects of these views are the result of research
in various publications; I'm hardly a walking encyclopedia of motive power.
But first, welcome to Scranton – The Electric City. This mural is at the end of
the Scranton Expressway, the main approach road from I-81 to the city center
and the rail museums. The Radisson hotel, formerly the Scranton station of the
Lackawanna Railroad, is in the background. The Scranton Suburban Railway's
horsecar line was the first to be electrified in the city – in 1886; by the end of the
century it had been absorbed into Scranton Railway Co., later Scranton Transit.
Next page, top and bottom: Two scenes very evocative of commuter rail
operations on the Jersey side of the Hudson River that lasted into the 1970s.
Steamtown generally uses former Jersey Central Alco RS-3 locomotive 1554 to
pull matching CNJ coaches for short public rides. The engine is owned by the
Delaware-Lackawanna Railroad, which operates freight service over the former
Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad between Scranton and the
Delaware Water Gap (Slateford Junction), connecting on both ends with the
Norfolk Southern. A DL&W MU trailer and a Boonton Line "Wyatt Earp" openvestibule car are on the right side of the top photo. I can't tell you how often I
rode in such cars, especially after moving to Montclair in 1970 and commuting
to New York City via Hoboken. The retirement of these well-maintained
passenger cars in favor of new equipment was a godsend to many museum s
and heritage rail lines, which gobbled them up like free Bruce Springsteen
concert tickets.
I've always been especially fond of the Lackawanna Railroad, and while this
freight locomotive is not painted in the more elaborate passenger colors that
graced the likes of the "Phoebe Snow," I still consider it a treat to see this
equipment. No. 663 is an EMD F3A that has been in several liveries since it
was built in 1948 for the Bangor & Aroostook Railroad. It was purchased by the
Tri-State Railway Historical Society in 1986 and was first painted in Jersey
Central colors. I rode behind it on an excursion out of Jim Thorpe in the 1990s.
It eventually found its way to Steamtown and was beautifully renovated in 2009
to its DL&W maroon and grey paint scheme.
Next page top and bottom: RDG 902 (paired with 903) in the great two-tone
green Reading Railway System diamond color scheme. I associate these
1950 La Grange-built FP7s with the "Crusader" and the "Wall Street," two trains
that carried long-distance commuters to their homes upon the arrival of the
4:30 and 5:30 p.m. ferries from Liberty Street in lower Manhattan to Jersey City
on weekday afternoons. They flew down the CNJ's four-track speedway as far
as Bound Brook, where they joined Reading Company trackage for the
remainder of the run to Philadelphia. Originally saved by the Philadelphia and
Lancaster chapters of the NRHS, these locomotives are now owned by the
Reading Technical & Historical Society and reside at Steamtown. I tried to take
an "artsy" photo, as shown below, but I don't think it really came off.
Above and next page: Canadian Pacific 2279 and Norfolk Southern 9-1-1
added a great deal of color to the display of locomotives at the roundhouse.
The CP unit, shown only in the top photo, is an EMD GP20C-ECO, rebuilt in
2013 for efficient fuel usage from an older Geep, probably a GP9. The NS
locomotive, an SD60E, commemorates First Responders, as shown by its
lettering and application of our nationwide emergency telephone number. The
unit rolled out of the old Pennsy Juniata shops in Altoona in May of this year.
One of Amtrak's new generation of electric locomotives, No. 642 was built by
Siemens early this year for operation on the Northeast Corridor. Painted red,
white and blue on its nose, it "Salutes our Veterans" with that sobriquet on its
sides, along with images of all the branches of our armed forces saluting. The
ACS-64 is one of 70 such "Amtrak Cities Sprinter" locomotives being built to
pull up to 18-car consists of Amfleet equipment at speeds of up to 125 mph,
and are in the process of replacing all of the AEM-7s and HHP-8s that have
operated in regional service along the east coast. Amtrak provided tours of its
cab, with access provided by the portable stairway at the locomotive's side, a
treat that was especially enjoyed by children – and adults like me too. Behind
the new power is Amtrak "cabbage" locomotive 406, an F40PH with its traction
motors removed, but its controls intact for use in push-pull service. After having
been equipped with an HEP generator for additional electricity and a large
space for baggage, the 1975-built unit had been at one end of Amtrak's 40th
anniversary exhibit train in 2011 and 2012.
I couldn't help adding a photo of the first southbound revenue run of an Amtrak
ACS-64, taken at the Newark Airport station of the Northeast Corridor on a crisp,
clear February day in 2014.