Crossing Signs from Pre-Crossbucks Days

dj_paige wrote:

RussNelson wrote:Don't know when Google StreetView took this photo, but that sure looks like the remains of a diamond-shaped crossing sign!

It's not there any more.

The mast has been cut off, yes, however, about 2.5' of the base remains in place.

While railfanning the Batten Kill Railroad, in the town of Shushan, NY, I came across this old diamond-style crossbuck. The lettering was all but gone, and probably has been for decades. It wasn't oriented how I expected it would be in relation to the road but off to the left. And unfortunately, when the engine was in the crossing I blurred not one but both attempts to photograph it. ARR!

The Batten Kill was originally a D&H branch line. I remember seeing quite a few of these old diamond-shaped crossing signs on various branches of the D&H when I was a kid, in the '50s and '60s. I'm sure most have disappeared. This was quite a find!

How common was the triangle crossing sign shown here?

http://tinyurl.com/tmny6801

n2xjk wrote:How common was the triangle crossing sign shown here?
http://tinyurl.com/tmny6801

That triangle one is pretty unique, if not a bit ugly. Perhaps there was a height ordinance in effect? When I heard "triangle crossing" I immediately thought of this example from the Batten Kill, even though the triangle is below a standard set of cross bucks.

An old riddle using the wording from the diamond shaped signs: "RAILROAD CROSSING LOOK OUT FOR THE CARS can you spell that without any R's?"

I got a kick out of this.

"YIELD". I should hope so!!

Yes: T-H-A-T.

This one is not at a crossing but is about 50 feet from one. It is located at an outdoor power equipment store on Maple Ave in Victor, NY.

Such a "lower triangle" crossing sign apparently once existed on the West Shore in Savannah, NY as documented in a photo from JR Stewart's flickr page, http://www.flickr.com/photos/jnos363/41 ... 903069435/. Note how the letters "FOR" are squeezed into the width of the post.

This photo raises a side question: The passenger station to the left in the above photo and also in http://www.flickr.com/photos/jnos363/41 ... 903069435/ is clearly of West Shore origin and style, yet it is facing the NYC mainline and not the West Shore. This arrangement is corroborated by the 1904 Century Co. map of Savannah: http://www.historicmapworks.com/Map/US/ ... h+Village/ Was the West Shore station moved at some point?

- WestShore

RussNelson wrote:Yes: T-H-A-T.

We have a winner!

Benjamin Maggi wrote:While railfanning the Batten Kill Railroad, in the town of Shushan, NY, I came across this old diamond-style crossbuck. The lettering was all but gone, and probably has been for decades. It wasn't oriented how I expected it would be in relation to the road but off to the left. And unfortunately, when the engine was in the crossing I blurred not one but both attempts to photograph it. ARR!

Up until about 7 years or so ago there was another one just a few hundred feet away, until a snowplow took it out one winter.

The one pictured was originally track-circuited to trigger a crossing bell (which still exists but is obviously not on the crossing anymore--an old Hall Signal Company bell, if you're interested.)