An EL Monday in Kent

Once the home of a major Erie railroad yard, Kent was a good place to also photograph Erie Lackawanna operations.

During the EL era, though, operations in Kent were significantly curtailed over the years, particularly in the yard.

But there was still a great deal of EL traffic to be seen including the variety that defined the EL.

In the top photograph, Alco RS3 No. 1056 is rolling eastbound and passing  Boston & Maine GP9 No. 1746, which is sitting on the track closest to the yard office in this 1968 image.

The photographer writes that he doesn’t know why the 1746 was there, but it might have been run-through power that developed a mechanical problem and was set out in Kent.

The EL Alco originally was built for the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western.

In the bottom image, EL F7A No. 7134 heads a westbound morning freight through downtown Kent in the late 1960s.

This unit was built for the Erie in March 1951 and likely would have been through Kent numerous times over the years.

Other units in the motive power lashup included an Alco FB-1, EMD GP7 and an Alco RS3.

Note the Main Street bridge over the Cuyahoga River in the background.

Photographs by Robert Farkas

Far From Boston or Maine

Boston & Maine GP9 No. 1746 sits in the Erie Lackawanna yard in Kent, Ohio yard in the late 1960’s/early 1970’s. B&M units sometimes came through in sets with no EL power. Perhaps there was a problem with 1746 and it had to be set aside.

Photograph by Robert Farkas

Railroading as it Once Was: Another Form of Type of Blue Locomotive in the 1970s Northeast

You’re looking at an October 1978 view of the sanding facility at Mechanicville, New York. Boston & Maine No. 1734 rests under this wooden structure that had to make the workers nervous to climb on. This would be a great modelling project for someone into that aspect of the hobby. Details abound including that MU hose hung on the side of the building and the coating of sand dust on the perch above the unit.

Article and Photograph by Roger Durfee