NYC Duel With Darren

Professor "Commodore Vanderbilt" has returned and the discussion will return to Hudsons, which really were NYC's bread and butter Passenger locos. Here is the first one, the only J-1a, 5200. This is the builders photo at Schenectady, Alco, 1927, but it too is from Mr. Vollrath's collection. Look at the tiny tender and original Walschaerts valve gear. Very clean lines.

 

More Hudsons

Hmmmm, I thought the Hudsons were numbered from 5200 through 5474? Why do you suppose this one has the number 6611? It's a J-1d at St. Louis in 1933 from Mr. Vollrath's collection.


And what about this one, a J-1b at Chicago in 1933, Mr. Vollrath. 8204? Where did THAT come from? I know LEW knows the answer to all of this, do you?



[ 30. January 2005, 02:24: Message edited by: fitz ]

 

Ken, I think he had the locomotive in the consist of train no. 79, which at the time was probably pulled by a mike or GP-9. LEW, have you been reading this? Anyway, here is one of my favorite shots from Mr. Vollrath, of J-3 Hudson 5407 at Englewood, Ill in 1948 pulling the 20th Century Limited. The ultimate Hudsons.

 

And here is another one of those pesky misnumbered guys, J-1d 6616, at St. Louis in 1932. What's with this? Another from Mr. Vollrath's collection.

 

Here is one of my least favorite configurations. This Hudson, No. 5344, a J-1e, was probably the most often modified of all of them. Must have been a good runner. This "Inverted Bathtub" has never been a favorite. Commodore Vanderbilt. I think the engine was used to pull the 20th Century Ltd then relegated to the Mercury when the Dreyfus streamliners took over. From Mr. Vollrath's collection, Chicago, 1936.



Alan, actually the odd numbers had to do with the different branches or divisions. I thought someone would catch it, but no.

 

Fitz, I am a Johnny-come-lately to the TB and this topic, but I thought I recognized J-2b 5461, ex-B&A 606, in your initial post. During 5461's last years on the Central she was assigned out of North White Plains, NY on the Harlem Division. 5461 would normally run trains to Chatham, NY, but occasionally she would run trains through to North Adams, MA on the B&A. There are a few photos of 5461 in Louis Grogan's book "The Coming Of The New York And Harlem Railroad".

Thanks for your excellent topic, it has made for very interesting reading, Hank

 

Hank, you are absolutely right. It's good to have someone on board again who remembers that stuff back then. We need to keep it going and I have a lot more photos to rescan.
Alan, I believe you are right about leaving streamlining to you Brits, though Dreyfus and the N&W did pretty well here.
Russell, those N scale Hudsons look good. As you said, SP never had any. That one is an NYC for sure. Some are marketed as NYC but are actually ATSF characteristics, not NYC.

 

For today's entertainment, I have a couple more photos from Mr. Vollrath's collection, One of J-1d 5370, renumbered from 8225, and one of J-1e 5400, renumbered from 6625. I guess at this point it would be appropriate to tell you that the 6600 series were numbered that way for the "Big Four", CCC&StL as originally delivered, and the 8200 series were numbered for the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern, where they had those short tenders with no water scoops.

Now having said "short tenders with no scoops, obviously 5370 has been fitted with a new tender, as she is scooping water on the fly at Waterford, Ontario, in 1940.

Here is 5400 at St. Louis in 1940. The entire fleet was renumbered by the Central in 1936.

 

I am guessing that the scoop has just been raised and that the spray is residual water from the recently raised scoop. I assume this because the spray shows only at the rear of the tender behind where the scoop is located, and there is no water showing at any of the overflow (pressure relief) pipes visible along the bottom outside edges of the tank.

Thanks Fitz, these are great photos,
Hank

 

Can't tell who's passenger cars are on it but it looks to be possible from two different roads. Maybe some D&H...

 

The back ones look a bit like the one below that are former Erie Lackawanna cars that the D&H purchased.

 

Wow, lots of questions, and as Martha would say, "that's a good thing." I got the date wrong on the photo of 5370. It was actually 1950. Looking carefully at the original, and I'm not sure that the resolution on your screens will show this, but there is a white post between the last two heavyweight coaches, which would mark the end of the track pan. Now, either this crew has blown out the end of the pan, or that is just residual. As fast as these trains travelled, I'll bet on residual. You can see wet along the side of the main up to the white post. The cars: The first two are some special purpose ones which purpose escapes me at the moment, then two baggage/mail/REA cars, two heavyweight Pullman green coaches, then six matched coaches. I really can't tell if those are steel Budd cars which the Central had, or if in fact they belong to another road. This place, Waterford, Ontario, is along the Canada Southern branch of the system. My knowledge of that is slim. My memories of the Central along the Mohawk Valley in NY was mixed bags like this, in the fifties.

Here is today's Hudson, a J-3a, 5446 Chicago 1947, again from Mr. Vollrath's collection. He's an amazing man, has photographed all kinds of RR's and has 40,000 prints for sale. Still going strong running his live steamer.