Joseph A. Smith Collection: January 2018

Tuesday, January 30, 2018

Inside View of Trolley built by J M Jones Son's Company of Troy, New York

ID # 1,283

World's Columbian Exposition held at Chicago, Ill May 1 to Oct 21-1893

This car was built by J M Jones Son's Co of West Troy (now Watervliet) in 1893 and was awarded a prize at the conclusion of the Exposition the Troy City Railway bought it and numbered it 222. When the United Traction Co absorbed the Troy City Railway - it retained No 222

On June 30-1917 it was found with the former Cohoes City Ry #52 and became UT Center Entrance Car #922

ID # 1,105

GRAND TRUNK AND WESTERN NO. 6328

In this photograph No. 6328, a mighty 1-8-4 on the Grand Trunk Western, is stopping to take water at Pontiac, Michigan, early one evening in 1958. At that time, most of America's railroad mileage was already operated by diesel-electric locomotives, but the G.T.W., the American subsidiary of Canadian National Railways, continued to wheel tonnage with steam engines. The G.T.W. was even pulling smoke-plumed commuter trains daily in and out of Detroit, right past the headquarters of General Motors, builder of most diesel engines. In fact, the "Trunk" seemed to be so firmly committed to steam in those Days that it occas-ionally borrowed coalburners from the Illinois Central and Burlington roads to keep its freight and passenger trains rolling. In 1960 it finally joined the diesel parade.

DON WOOD, TRAINS MAGAZINE

ID # 1,104

NORFOLK & WESTERN NO. 117

In 1919, when the Norfolk & Western railroad found that it needed longer and heavier passenger trains, it ordered ten mighty 4-8-2, or Mountain, type engines to haul them at high speed in the mountain Districts. One 4.8-2 was No. 117 shown here with the Winston Salem local at the Roanoke, Virginia, station. All ten Mountains were equipped with streamlined shrouds as much for appearance as to combat wind resistance. Although Brooks Locomotive Works built all this lot. Nos. 116-125, the Norfolk & Western had its own locomotive-building shops, as did a few other railroads. These turned out modern coalburning iron horses until 1952. For several years after the American railroad industry as a whole had dieselized, the Norfolk & Western, located in one of the nations richest coal fields, was known as the last big stronghold of steam power in the United States. Eventually even the N. & W. followed the national trend by scrapping its "steamers"' in favor of diesels.

PHOTO BY O. WINSTON LINK