Paolia, PA: 1896 Pennsy "Paoli" Tower

(Satellite)

This 1896 tower was built during Pennys' transition between wood and brick towers. That is why brick was used for the first story and wood was used for the second story.

Street View, Jul 2022

In the east coast, if you don't have to deal with trees, then you probably have to deal with fences. The tower is near the upper-right corner, and I included a Pennsy positional signal on the left side.

Street View, Jul 2022

Diagram via RedOverYellow

1965:

rrpicturearchive, Photo by Thomas C. Ayers
WIL-ALT-65. Here is an original photo that I took while riding in a Pennsylvania Railroad passenger train from North Philadelphia to Harrisburg during August of 1965. Shown here is the PRR's PAOLI Tower, as well as a yard full of commuter trains of various makes and models.

Another example of the positional signals.

ThePositionLight_1, 1 of many photos of the signaling equipment controlled by the tower.
The tower was built in 1896 on a 4-track mainline, and it was designed to be the terminal for commuter service. "Later, in 1915, the busy line was chosen to be host to an experimental 11kv, 25Hz overhead electrification scheme." It was built as a mechanical interlocking and upgraded to a "state of the art US&S Model 14 Electro-Pneumatic machine" in 1929. The fourth track was removed in the 1960s.

ThePositionLight_2, 1 of many photos of the interior of the tower

Darren Reynold posted nine photos with the comment: "PRRs 'Paoli' tower    Philadelphia, Pennsylvania."

1

2
The SEPTA yard behind "Paoli" tower is now gone

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

Cambridge, OH: Office/(B&O+Pennsy) Union Station and Freight House

Depot: (Satellite)

Freight House: (Satellite)

Pennsy went north/south and B&O went east/west, but they shared tracks through town along the river.

Depot:

Street View, Oct 2013

Freight House:

Street View, Sep 2015

Al Tillotson posted
Union Station, Cambridge Ohio, Monday morning April 22, 2024.  Originally served the Pennsylvania and Baltimore & Ohio railroads.  Now houses businesses; Columbus & Ohio River RR (Ohio Central) uses trackage in the foreground.
Kevin Capurso: You can see freight house in background.

1946 Cambridge Quad @ 62,500

Rockville, IN: 1884 Visitors Center/Pennsy Depot

(Satellite)

Street View, Jul 2022

Holly Hannum Photography posted two photos with the comment:

Oh, the evening was just amazing for these images of the Parke County Visitors Center. I am looking forward to making more soon!

Do you have a favorite view? If so, which one? 

Please feel free to share this post. Thanks!

Holly Hannum Photography shared

Alexander Mitchell shared with the comment: "Rockville, Indiana, ex-PRR, 1884"

1

2

Meadville, PA: Erie Backshops

Backshops+Roundhouse: (Satellite, between the tracks and the river. All of the land has been repurposed.)

Station: (Satellite, the land has been reused by a street.)

Tim Starr posted
The Erie Railroad shops in Meadville PA around 1970. (Library of Congress)
Dennis DeBruler: Three more photos: https://www.loc.gov/pictures/search/?q=Photograph:%20pa0370&fi=number&op=PHRASE&va=exact&co%20=hh&st=gallery&sg%20=%20true

HAER PA,20-MEDVI,4D--5
5. October 1972. GENERAL VIEW LOOKING FROM THE WEST. - Erie Railway, Meadville Roundhouse, West side of U.S. 6/19 opposite West end of North Street, Meadville, Crawford County, PA

HAER PA,20-MEDVI,4D--4
4. October 1972. GENERAL VIEW LOOKING FROM THE SOUTH.

 HAER PA,20-MEDVI,5--2
2. Photocopy taken by Jack E. Boucher, October 1972, from an original photograph belonging to Miss Bessie McCartney, Chief Clerk, Erie-Lackawanna Railroad, Meadville, PA. GENERAL VIEW OF MEADVILLE STATION, DEMOLISHED 7/72. - Erie Railway, Meadville Station, West side of McHenry Street at West end of Chestnut Street, Meadville, Crawford County, PA

1968 Meadville Quad @ 24,000

Tim Starr posted
Talk about a busy turntable! The Erie Railroad had one of the more colorful histories, with railroad barons, huge accidents, financial catastrophes, and design blunders that astound and amaze. Here is a prime example. Very few back shops would place so much responsibility on one turntable! This is Meadville, PA in 1922.

Howard James Holub: 41°38'28.89"N 80° 9'30.25"W original building that still exists.

Tim commented on his post
Attached Sanborn map. I combined 2 maps into 1 for the book I was writing. From 1922.

There are also HAER photos for some of the buildings: 1, 2 and 3.

Sussex, WI: Moved/C&NW Depot

Original: (Satellite)

Current: (Satellite)

Street View, Jul 2023

The depot has been moved twice. This is the second move.

Mel Virrueta posted

David Koehler: The original location was . what was then , the north /west end of Sussex, off of maple. On the old CNW mainline, they the moved it behind the ol sentry store near the old Milwaukee Road Bug line. At one time Sussex had a Soo Line, Milwaukee Road and CNW station , this was the only one left.

SOO was the north/south route, C&NW was the straight east/west route and Milwaukee was the windy east/west route.

1959 Sussex Quad @ 24,000

1937 Aerial Photo from WIHAP

Minier, IL: "Smash Gate" Junction: GM&O vs. Pennsy

(Satellite)

John Woodrow posted
Pennsylvania northbound crossing GM&0 jackline at Minier Illinois may 30 1967 (Edward Wayne Bridges photo)

Winston Dunbar: I wonder which line generally had the clear signal?

Springfield Model Railroad Club posted

Pennsylvania Railroad in central Illinois!? Yes! The PRR was a huge competitor for the IC right here in central IL. If you look at a system map of the IC and PRR for central IL in the 1950s you'll see an interlocking spiderweb of branch lines. Mostly it was the IC trying to keep the Pennsy from encroaching further into their territory. Here we see a PRR freight crossing the GM&O "Jack Line" (line to Jacksonville) at Minier, Illinois.

Roger Kujawa shared

David Jordan: PRR's market was more east-west, and jointly-owned with the Illinois Central Railroad the Hervey City-Decatur Junction portion of the Peoria District. Competition with ICRR was minimal.

Wes Birkey: I remember as a kid in living in Morton, Pennsylvania had some big freights going through town.

David Jordan: Wes Birkey PRR apparently reduced operations c. 1960, eliminating daily freights between East Peoria and Indianapolis, replacing them with Decatur-East Peoria locals operating six-days-a-week (which previously didn't operate west of Morton). Later, a Terre Haute-East Peoria turn handled through business, and performed local work north of Decatur. I imagine that despite half-ownership of the TP&W, which promoted the Effner routing, PRR still handled lots of Peoria-Pekin industrial traffic, and some Peoria Gateway business such as with the CB&Q. Penn Central's freight service brochure dated December 31, 1968 even shows restoration of East Peoria-Indianapolis through freights!

Dennis DeBruler: David Jordan I learned that Pennsy had trackage rights on the IC between Maroa and Decatur.

Harold J. Krewer answered Winston's question
Looks like the gate position was however it was last used....from Penn Central Southern Region Employee Timetable No. 7, effective May 1, 1975:

David Thompson answered Winston's question
The 1954 GM&O Western Division had the GM&O holding the Normal Position. Perhaps legacy from 9-10 still running.

Dennis DeBruler commented on John's post
Pennsylvania Ave. now occupies the RoW of the Pennsy route.
1952 Minier Quad @ 62,500

Dennis DeBruler commented on John's post
I wondered how Pennsy got here, so I accessed a larger scale map. I confirmed that what is labelled Illinois Terminal on this map used to be a Pennsy route. Pennsy had trackage rights on the IC between Maroa and Decatur. When I learned that the old grain elevator in Atlanta, https://maps.app.goo.gl/eyo9VuBzKuKHWJ4K7, was on a Pennsy branch, I wondered how the Pennsy got there. Now I Know. 1958 Peoria Quad @ 250,000

Stevenson, AL: 1872 NC&StL + Southern Depot and Lost Grain Elevator

(Satellite, 195 photos)

Andrew Waldo posted

This well-known NC&StL station at Stevenson, Alabama still stands today in all its glory. Built in 1872, it served both the Nashville, Chattanooga & St Louis Railroad and the Southern Railway. Of their joint use, the Engineering Field Notes say this: 

"Pilot [a member of the survey team] claims ownership for NC&StL acct. No contract. Used jointly. Both roads have tracks to bldg."

The team speeder waiting on the NC&StL track is just right of center, not far from some stray(?) livestock "grazing" on the platform. Waiting for the local?

Photo taken 19 June 1916.

Photo Credit: National Archives and Records Administration, ICC Engineering Field Notes, Nashville, Chattanooga & St Louis Railroad, Valuation Section 4 (Bass-Carpenter), Building Notes, Alabama.

Looking at my 1928 RR Atlas, CSX/NC&StL came into Stevenson, AL, from the north and NS/Southern came from the west. They share a route east to Chattanooga, TN. Near this town, NC&StL came in from the northwest while Southern came in from the southwest. They both left to the northeast.

1950 Stevenson Quad @ 24,000

The CSX/NC&StL side has an agent's bay window. 

Strick Yak, Oct 2018

Note that the hotel behind the depot is also extant.

A Douglas Weitzman photo, used with permission
1/3/16. The old NC&StL depot in Ala.. CSX track and other side is NS.
Depot & hotel south of it built in 1872.
[I think Doug has the tracks reversed because the NS side doesn't have an agent's bay window.]

 

Mike Stephens, Feb 2019, cropped

 

Jeff McCrary, Apr 2016, cropped

A Douglas Weitzman photo

The station has a static display of an industrial locomotive and a caboose.

Doug's comment: "#5 a 44 toner,  built 9, 1942, was Rio Grande 39, Mead Container board, # unknown."

I got this older street view because...

Street View, May 2014

...while looking for a decent street view of the depot, I noticed the grain elevator that I saw on the satellite image was torn down. It was torn down by Sep 2023, but they still haven't scrapped some of the bins.

Street View, Feb 2024