Use Your Imagination and What do You See?

Suppose that someone asked you describe what you see in this image. Most people would see the railroad tracks, snow and the bare trees.

A few railfans, though, might see something else. See that falling tree that appears to be propped up by a utility pole? Do the branches at the end look sort of like a Y-shaped train order fork?

At one time, train crews might have picked up train orders here. Behind me is Brady Lake Tower, which controlled the switches and signals for the Pittsburgh & Lake Erie line that diverged here and ran to Marcy in Cleveland.

That was during the days of the Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central. At one time there used to be a signal bridge just beyond this fallen tree that held the home signal for eastbound trains at Brady Lake Tower.

There is a photo of it that appears on Page 101 of Volume 12 of the Pennsylvania Railroad Facilities in Color series published by Morning Sun Books.

That signal bridge and the LE&P are long gone, abandoned by Penn Central years ago. A few traces of the LE&P are left if you know where to look.

And if you use your imagination, you can see a train order hoop hanging out toward Track No. 1 of the Cleveland Line.

Article and Photograph by Craig Sanders

Tags: Brady Lake Ohio, Norfolk Southern, NS Cleveland Line