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  • All about the Arcade & Attica Railroad
All about the Arcade & Attica Railroad

Moderator: Benjamin Maggi

 #630271  by Mountcastle
 
It goes without saying that the name "R. I. CARTWRIGHT" was painted on the cab of No. 14 to honor Richard Cartwright (and rightly so), but does anyone know why it was decided to honor him in this particular way?

I'm just wondering if Mr. Cartwright had a particular fondness for No. 14. He did, after all, acquire both 18 and 14 (18 first) and his name might just as well have been painted on the cab of No. 18, rather than 14. But for some reason, 14 was chosen over 18.

Is a dedication of that sort considered permanent or could it be transferred to another locomotive, if deemed desirable (I'm not too familiar with railroad tradition with respect to this sort of thing), without incurring the wrath of the gods of the rails ?

Also, was the name painted on posthumously or during his lifetime?

Finally, are there any plans to similarly honor anyone on the cab of No. 18? Edward Lewis, for example, or Richard Reisdorf? I know that in the 1990s, Manley's name was painted beneath the engineer's window on the cab of No. 18, but it was just a gimmicky sort of thing (that looked awful) painted in a freehand script and was placed, inexplicably, in quotation marks (which made no sense at all): "Manley Hakes, Engineer".

No offense to Manley, but I'm glad that's gone. Quotation marks have no place outside of a quotation.
 #630313  by jgallaway81
 
Cartwright had a singular distinction... he worked for the Buffalo, Attica & Arcade prior to the modern A&A.

AND, he was responsible for initiating the steam program. Perhaps 14 was his personal favorite engine and that's why it was chosen.

If you notice, 14 always seems to have more care & love shown to her through the ages... the number plate has some polish to it where as #18 doesn't in any picture I've ever seen.

Personally, I'd say lets name #14 "Frank" and #18 "Eric" and use names from important names from the railroad's history to name the cars.
 #630341  by Benjamin Maggi
 
I think naming the coaches after important historical figures is a fantastic idea. In my mind Ed Lewis did more to ensure the railroad than anyone else (but I am biased because I only remember his era).
 #630530  by jgallaway81
 
Ben, in all honesty, I'm glad you said that.

I had included Ed in my list originally, then removed it.

If you add one GM, how do you decided which ones don't go on? And, because of the... animosity and loyalty to different modern GM's among this group, I figure its only fair to not include any.

Any thoughts? I guess we technically need seven names now... 6 originals and 1 update... what about John T. Thomas for the new K&K car?
 #630635  by Mountcastle
 
ALL of the coaches should be named and NOBODY should have his name on a coach without him (or his wealthy survivors) PAYING THROUGH THE NOSE for the honor.

Institutions tend to name things after people as an income diversification tool, not merely as a quaint little tradition.

Ever walk through a church and admire the gorgeous stained glass windows, then see the names of people you've never heard of before at the bottom of them? Guess who paid for them. If St. John the Divine is standing over the name "John X. Smith", that means John X. Smith was loaded, had a devotion to St. John the Divine, and donated an elaborate window to his church in his patron saint's honor.

Well, same thing should be done with the coaches. "Sure, Mrs. Knox, we'll name a car after Seymour, that's fine. The honor may be secured for the lifetime of the coach for a one time donation of $5000."

As far as the locomotives go, I prefer "Terrence" and "Philip" to "Frank" and "Eric".
 #631102  by Benjamin Maggi
 
I don't think the engines should be named. Personally, I think that they should not have any personal designations to them (except putting my name on #14!), but coaches with names on them would be classy. Requiring payment for that? Um... I think that it would be to recall tradition and history and not as a revenue generator. Otherwise, I am not convinced that the estates of all of the GMs would care to pay... resulting in some coaches named and others not... giving the impression that some were more important than others. When different railroads (Like the NYC) named coaches after people or places, they didn't require that the cities pony up some money to have a car named after them. Think of the B&Os President series, as an example. AND, if there aren't enough coaches to go around then paint a DIFFERENT name on each side! That way, 12 different names (assuming that all six coaches/combines are done) can be used.

Anyways, just my two cents.
 #631263  by Mountcastle
 
Great big railroads, perhaps, once had the luxury of naming things for nothing. I can't speak to that; I have no idea what they did.

The Arcade & Attica, however, is a small, financially-strapped short line that really needs to start recognizing income opportunities, taking full advantage of them if it hopes to survive. This idea represents a marvelous opportunity to diversify income, and if the Joint Chiefs at the Orangegon are reading this, I strongly encourage them to at least consider the idea.

In this day and age when compulsive internet spendthrifts will pay top dollar for a burnt piece of toast that looks like Liberace, I wonder how much the honor of having a railroad car named after one would sell for on Ebay. I don't think that's necessarily the best way to go but if there were no interest in chasing after local millionaires (and their widows), that would at least be a possibility.

Start the bidding at $2000 and see where it goes.
 #631834  by BR&P
 
Or, they could name the steamers "Gordon" and "Henry", and the coaches "Annie" and Clarabelle" :wink:
 #632646  by ctclark1
 
I don't think the locos should be named after a stuck-up predecessor... Gordon turns into Edward ;)
Though, I also don't think the size of the locos even compares either, Henry becomes James.


:P
(No, I didn't watch that ALL THE TIME when I was growing up....)

If we're gonna go that far, then comes the argument that the locos have to be blue and red, then too... Don't think that'd fly.