| Symbols of Renewal and Restoration - Bill McClure |
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Norfolk Southern is in the process of rebuilding its fleet of 125 Dash 9-40C locomotives into AC44C6Ms. I see them as symbols of renewal and restoration. The restored VGN station had just opened and the “DC to AC” unit was fresh from Roanoke Shops after years of service as a Dash 9-40C. Moreover, it was Veteran’s Day, November 11, 2016, fitting for two veterans of many years. I was told the unit from Roanoke Shops wears N&W Tuscan Red on the mane, while the comparable unit from Juniata wears Conrail blue. |
| THE VIRGINIAN RAILWAY WEEKENDS AT TWIN FALLS - Frank Bongiovanni; Tom Marshall |
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Those attending the first Virginian Weekend pose with Virginian caboose No. 307 at Mullens on April 9, 2005. (photo by Tom Marshall) |
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Bob Moore explains the history behind Virginian caboose No. 308 on display at Princeton. The caboose has since been moved to the Princeton Railroad Museum and restored. (photo by Tom Marshall) |
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Gerry Albers (left) talks with retired conductor Donnie Bailey at Twin Falls on May 3, 2008. Mr. Bailey started with the Virginian in 1948. (photo by Tom Marshall) |
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NS 7662 and the Interstate heritage unit were at Elmore on October 20, 2012, with a coal train. (photo by Tom Marshall) |
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Skip Salmon (left) and Jack Feller discussing the trip at Alloy/DB Tower, the west end of the Virginian main line. Jack was one of the original organizers of the Virginian weekends. (photo by Tom Marshall) |
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Steve Summers and Lloyd Lewis look over notes concerning the Winding Gulf Branch while at Pemberton. The Virginian and C&O crossed at grade in Pemberton. (photo by Tom Marshall) |
| The N&W Virginian Modeler / Modeling the Buchanan County - Rick Stone |
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The bedroom side of the Buchanan County represents one of three new sleepers bought by the N&W from Pullman Standard in 1949. (photo by Rick Stone) |
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This aisle-side view of the Buchanan County shows the end details and marker lamp location on this end of the car. (photo by Rick Stone) |
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Passengers are boarding brand new Pullman Standard S-2 sleeping car McDowell County on April 15, 1949. This was one of the three that were ordered in Lot 6792. (N&WHS Archives collection) |
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This view shows the interior layout and colors used in the various sections of the sleeper. (photo by Rick Stone) |
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The completed interior has been placed in the car structure, and the sides are ready to apply. (photo by Rick Stone) |
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Replacement trucks yield a more accurate model. These trucks include the addition of Decelostats to one side of each truck. (photo by Rick Stone) |
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This interior of the McDowell County shows the inside of a sleeper once it was changed to the later blue paint scheme. It was in Cincinnati on March 1, 1969. (Willie J. Davis collection) |
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The Buchanan County was in Cincinnati, Ohio, on June 28, 1970, wearing the later blue passenger scheme. The Sussex County was the third car of the series. (Willie J. Davis collection) |
| N&W Signaling, 1930-1959 / Part 3 - Glenn Fisher |
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On March 27, 1940, K-1 107 flies past the position light signals east of Waverly, Virginia. This was one of two K-1s (the 108 was the other) converted to oil in December 1946 because of a coal strike — the conversion program ended when the strike ended. The position light signals were N&W’s main signal of choice in this era of expansion, and the war years would put tremendous pressure on America’s railroads, the N&W included, to move more tonnage and passengers than ever before. (N&WHS Archives collection) |
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The summer before America was hurled into World War II, the N&W posed five locomotives and dubbed in steam plumes. The result is this spectacular display of N&W might and power, strength that would be pushed to the limit in the near future when this photograph was taken on June 21, 1940. N&W’s signal system saw expansion during the war years, as the N&W tried to keep up with wartime demands. (N&WHS Archives collection) |
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System map showing sections with Automatic Block Signals, Position Light Signals, Semaphore Signals, and Manual Block. |
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Full-page advertisements like this one touted the advantages of CTC reverse-direction signaling over lines signaled in only one direction. This ad ran in 1939.
(Larry Evans collection) |
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The Portsmouth-to-Columbus, Ohio, main line was double-track ABS territory in 1945. This view at Dugan, Ohio, shows standard position light signals protecting the switches at the center siding located there. (N&WHS Archives collection) |
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Signal aspect book from 1945. (Larry Evans collection) |
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This Union Switch & Signal Company advertisement appeared in 1943 and featured the N&W’s CTC installation on the predominantly single-track Shenandoah Valley Line. It used a plethora of statistics, including the fact that N&W’s tonnage over this route had increased dramatically in three years, from 91 million ton-miles to 559 million ton-miles per month. A sixtimes increase in traffic would certainly tax any route, and increased capacity with advanced signal systems was part of the solution. Union Switch & Signal was busy upgrading signal systems with new installations across the country. Some of the same verbiage appeared in the N&W Magazine article from the January 1944 issue that appears on the preceding pages. (Larry Evans collection) |
| Improvements Speed War Traffic / Over the Shenandoah Line - reprint Norfolk & Western Magazine |
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A partial view of the machine which controls the operation of the CTC system between Roanoke and Stuarts Draft. Seated at the control table is N. R. Draper, first trick train dispatcher. (N&W Magazine, January 1944) |
| Wreck of the Virginian 702 - Mark Musser; Tom Marshall; Jim Musser |
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This photograph by an Elmore Yard clerk shows Virginian Class US-D No. 702 lying on its side along the Guyandotte River while Elmore wreck crane B-14 works the east end of the site and an N&W crane works to the west. (Pete Andrews photo, Jim Musser collection) |
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Retired conductors Jack Frank (left) and Sam Farley are shown standing on restored Virginian caboose No. 307 at Mullens. Both men were brakemen on Virginian Extra 702 East the day of the accident. (Jim Musser photo) |
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This diagram of Virginian Railway class US-D 2-8-8-2 Mallet from November 30, 1948, shows the details and configuration of the five Mallets of this class. (N&WHS Archives collection) |
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The Third Subdivision timetable showing the Guyandot River Branch from August 5, 1945. The wreck was near Mada, the fourth station from the top. (Tom Marshall collection) |
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This map shows the Guyandot River Branch with Mada located between Aliff and Pineville. The wreck of the 702 occurred 2.4 miles east of Mada. (Tom Marshall collection) |
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This newspaper article from the Beckley, West Virginia, Sunday Register dated May 18, 1952, covered the Virginian accident that occurred the day before. (Tom Marshall collection) |
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The ICC Investigation Report. |
| A Man And His Machine - Kevin EuDaly |
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Lost across the pages of time is the name of the crewman posing next to Class K2a 130 on his train at Shenandoah Junction, West Virginia. Lost is the exact date of the photo, but we can estimate it was taken in the vicinity of 1949 or 1950 (the automobile at left is a 1948 Ford sedan and the freshly rebuilt locomotive is in pristine condition). Lost are the names of the young boy and two men at the left edge of the scene, and even the name of the train, which is on the route headed geographically south to Front Royal — the freight cars at the left edge of the photo are on the route west to Martinsburg. Not lost, fortunately, is this wonderfully thoughtful portrait of an N&W crewman and his beautiful locomotive — a man and his machine. (N&WHS Archives collection) |
