NYC Heritage Unit Passes Through

Well, it seems that Murphy’s railfan law worked in my (and everybody else’s) favor on Sunday. The two Norfolk Southern heritage locomotives that I got in Ft. Wayne, Ind., took all night just to get to Toledo. They finally went through Berea just after noon.

I got a few roll by shots and headed for Brady Lake. Not liking the angles there, I went to Ravenna at milepost 86.

After about a 20 minute wait, the train slowly pulled up and stopped with the New York Central and the Savannah & Atlanta units right in front of me.

Of course, the railfan chase crew immediately showed up. Akron Railroad Club member Richard Thompson was among them.

The train was stopped for a signal and after a half hour it got under way again. This ended my chase for the day.

Article and Photographs by Todd Dillon

Breaking Even or Better in New Haven

Knowing that the New York Central and Savannah & Atlanta heritage locomotives had been released Friday and that Saturday morning they had been moved to Ft. Wayne, Ind.,  had to try and catch them. Upon getting word that they were likely sitting in Ft. Wayne still, I made a mad dash over there.

The old Nickel Plate Road yard in New Haven, Ind., is very accessible as opposed to say, Conway or even Bellevue. A public street runs right beside the south side of the New Haven yard, including engine facilities and car shops. I felt that I would have a good chance of getting photos.

Well, Murphy’s railfan law applied as Norfolk Southern had parked the heritage units behind a building with no chance of getting any pictures while they were sitting there.

I did find a freshly painted NS caboose in a new paint scheme, but after driving three hours straight from Berea I really wanted those units. I was so near, yet so far.

So, I waited at the local railfan park and watched a steady stream of trains. New Haven is the junction of the Nickel Plate and Wabash mainlines so a lot of trains go through.

Finally, at about 5 p.m., an NS crew moved the units into the open. The light wasn’t great by this time but it was a reasonably clear photo.

The entire railfan park emptied to take pictures much like a pack of wolves with a wounded animal. I waited until dusk, hoping they would be put on an eastbound train, which would have given a much better sun angle. But Murphy’s railfan law struck again and I had no such luck.

To put it in gambling terms, I didn’t hit the big jackpot I wanted but I didn’t go home broke, either. I’d say I was even or slightly ahead.

Article and Photographs by Todd Dillon

Chasing Down the PRR Heritage Unit

Rounding the curve at CP 281 (Milbury, Ohio).

I had a very impromptu chase on Sunday of Norfolk Southern No. 8102, the Pennsylvania Railroad heritage unit, on its first revenue run.

It was looking like an all night run for it on a coal train between Conway Yard near Pittsburgh and Toledo. But some delays had the coal train departing Cleveland around 8 a.m.

I caught wind of that and took off to intercept it. Due to the cloudy weather I elected to just go to Toledo and make sure I got ahead of it.

After about an hour wait due to several other westbound trains ahead, the 8102 showed up. Luck was with us as they were going to yard the train in Toledo, so a slow trip down the controlled siding allowed for some side by side shots with other trains.

The clouds had hung on all morning, but just as the train got the OK to proceed west the sun starting breaking through a bit. A backup move is required to yard these trains on the old Stanley Secondary.

When they pulled west we headed for the Miami Street bridge and were rewarded with some sun on this shiny new unit.

Once the train was parked, I headed back to the CP 285 area to photograph other trains until the sun moved around a little more on the nose. It was a tight angle where it was parked, which by the way is on former Chesapeake & Ohio track. But I tried a few different views anyway.

To enlarge the photographs, click on the image.

Article and Photographs by Roger Durfee

Passing under the ex-New York Central style signal bridge at CP 281.

A "cornfield meet" with another NS train near CP 285.

Two trains stopped at CP 285 for the TT to cross.

The sun finally came out! NS 8102 passing under the Miami Street bridge in Toledo.

The view from the other side of the bridge as the 8102 enters the Maumee bridge.

The next three views are of the parked train on what was once C&O track in Toledo.

NS Conrail Heritage Unit Hits the Road

The old and the new are on display at Massilon on the Fort Wayne Line of Norfolk Southern. (Photograph by Roger Durfee)

The first known operation of a Norfolk Southern 30th anniversary heritage locomotive occurred Tuesday afternoon in Northeast Ohio. Akron Railroad Club  member Roger Durfee managed to get off of work and school respectively to travel to Massillon to photograph the maiden operation of Conrail, oops, NS, No. 8098.

For its first revenue service assignment, No. 8098 helped pull a coal train.

In the first two images, the train is shown passing under the position light signals at MP PC 103 on the Fort Wayne Line in Canton. Roger then chased it to Massillon and caught it passing through the ex-Pennsylvania Railroad truss bridge. The super elevation is very evident in that first shot at Massillon.

Photographs by Roger Durfee