Kodak To Ivy City: Day 2 of 3(Photos and text by R. Craig) |
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 Southern Railway #2924 at Ivy City on 29 April 1972 | |
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Here is a link to Day 1, if you missed it.
DAY 2 - April 29th With the Sabo-mobile packed and ready, our four-man crew left Scranton, PA with the goal of maybe catching some Amtrak E-Units at Ivy City (Washington, DC) as well as the relatively new Auto-Train operation in near-by Lorton, Virginia. However, those worthwhile objectives meant lot of good railroading in-between would have to be skipped until some later date. The decision was influenced also by a forecast of an approaching weather system. None-the-less, a quick stop at Pittston was made to peruse a trio Alco C420s that included LV #404 and Lehigh & Hudson River #26 and 29. The pair of L&HR four-axle Alco centuries were on lease. |
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By the time, we reached Rutherford Yard in Reading, the clouds were already making their
presence known. However, the sight of several Reading GP30/35s and C424 in the railroad's
"Bee Line" yellow and green livery were not to be ignored under any conditions, nor for that
matter was an old Alco RS3 wearing more somber attire. Speaking of Alcos, Steelton & Highspire
S4 #63 was parked next to what appeared to be bad order cars.
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A brief stop was made in York, PA in hopes of catching one of the oldest operating EMD's in
North America, Maryland & Pennsylvania model NC #83 (EMD 654, 1937). A Ma&Pa mechanic said,
"You're late by 10 or 12 years." The four-axle switcher actually had been upgraded to a SW900m
in 1957. Although it was in the shop, we took our shots and continued south. Perhaps the only
good news, the overcast skies were dissipating. |
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Someplace outside Baltimore a moderate-size Penn Central facility was encountered, and there
were no intention of stopping because PC power was abundant in Detroit and surroundings. However,
the sight of an ex-Pennsylvania GP7 still sporting a train antenna promptly changed our
attitude. Amtrak's Northeast Corridor was next up, and we stayed long enough to watch a set of
PC electric m/u cars race pass. It was an impressive experience, given that Amtrak trains in
our area do not make a "swooshing" sound as they rush passed. |
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Washington Terminal RS1 #46 was one 17 similar Alco's that served the seven railroads (B&O, PRR, Sou, ACL, SCL and RF&P) which used Washington Union Station prior to the establishment of Amtrak. The #46 was recorded working the coach yard that paralleled New York Avenue in Ivy City. | |
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Finally at the Ivy City engine facilities, the first order of business was to watch a B&O freight possibly southbound for RF&P's Potomac Yard across the river in Alexandria, VA. The lead SD40 appeared to have a lightly oversized Capitol Dome logo on the nose. The second order of business for us was to safely cross the busy tracks before the sun swung completely to the opposite side of the tracks. Out loud, we commented that this scene of four different banner carrying E-units was going to be harder and harder to repeat in the future. | |
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Our next stop that afternoon was nestled in an upscale residential community 20 miles southwest of D.C. in Lorton, Virgina. An eye-catching pair of Auto Train U36Bs adorned in the company's white, red and purples stood at the ready. AT's u-boats had been built to the specifications of host railroad, Seaboard Coast Line. Meanwhile, an AT attendant seemed to be reassuring a lady that her car would arrive in Sanford, Florida at the same time she would. We were so engrossed in watching family-owned vehicles being loaded into autoracks that a Richmond Fredericksburg & Potomac freight whisked by and nearly caught us flat-footed. |
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As the Sun drifted further in the western sky, the Sabo-mobile headed towards Richmond and SCL's ACCA Yard. Midway en-route, a panic stop was made north of Richmond to catch a pair of "tuxedo-wearing" second generation EMDs with a southbound merchandiser. It was nearly dark and slightly foggy when we reached the ACCA facilties. Consequently, our 675-mile trip back to Michigan would start the next morning from ACCA Yard. |
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