It is July 1972 in Alliance where Penn Central GP35 No. 2381 is eastbound on the ex-Pennsylvania Fort Wayne Line. The train is about to pass the passenger station just behind me. The old bridge with its signals adds to the scene. The train is crossing over the original Cleveland & Pittsburgh route to Bayard and beyond.
Photograph by Robert Farkas
Penn Central GP35 No. 2353 is in Alliance in September 1972. The unit was built for the Pennsylvania Railroad so it is on home rails.
Photograph by Robert Farkas
It’s a collage of Penn Central locomotives and rolling stock in Motor Yard in Macedonia in suburban Cleveland in early 1973. In the center of the image is PC GP40 No. 3154, which had been built for the railroad in September 1968. Also on hand are a caboose and some boxcars.
Photograph by Robert Farkas
Penn Central U23B No. 2729 is eastbound in Akron in a winter scene captured on Feb. 24, 1973. The train is crossing Voris Street as Interstates 76 and 77 loom in the background.
Photograph by Robert Farkas
Penn Central SD40 No. 6272 leads a manifest freight at an unidentified location in the early 1970s. It was built for PC in January 1971 and would later serve on the Conrail motive power roster before having a second career as a leased power unit, eventually being rebuilt into an SD40-2 for First Union Rail.
Photograph by Robert Farkas
The wayback machine has taken us to Alliance in December 1974. Conrail is still two years away and Norfolk Southern is still the name of a regional railroad in Virginia and North Carolina. This is a Penn Central town and we see U25B No. 2743 on an assignment.
Photograph by Robert Farkas
Former Penn Central SD35 No. 6022 is northbound in Akron on May 26, 1977. Very likely, this train is heading to Hudson and then on to Motor Yard in Macedonia.
Photograph by Robert Farkas
A trio of Penn Central locomotives, Nos. 2552, 2649, and 6337, lead a train through Collinwood Yard in Cleveland during the period of 1969 to 1972.
Photograph by Robert Farkas
How strange, especially at this time of year, to think that the mail once moved by train. For a long while special cars had postal agents picking up the mail, sorting the mail and getting it ready to drop off at other cities.
When manned mail cars were no longer used, mail trains that just carried already-sorted mail from city to city could still be found.
This is Penn Central’s Mail 9. The PC found a good use for some of their E-units that were no longer needed after Amtrak took over the nation’s passenger trains.
Leading the Mail 9 is PC E8A No. 4246 westbound past Fairhope Tower in Canton around July) 1973.
The motive power consist includes an E8A, E8A, E7A, E7B, E8A, and another E7A.
Article and Photograph by Robert Farkas
We know many of you enjoy seeing Alco locomotives so here are two of them for Tuesday.
In the top image former Pennsylvania Railroad Alco RS11 No. 7621 has a Penn Central roster number as it sits mostly backlighted by the sun in the Conway Yard engine facility near Pittsburgh in September 1968.
In the bottom image, Alco RS3 No. 5550 is in Conway the same month. To the left are two Alcos and to the right are two Baldwins.
Photographs by Robert Farkas
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