L&HR Abandonment, G-Tower, etc...

[JJMDiMunno]

Hi everyone,
David (moderator) and I were up in the L&HR area last month checking out remains, and I have a few questions...

1. When was the L&HR abandoned from Belvidere to Sparta Jnct.?

2. When was G-tower demolished?

3. When was that little segment of the L&HR, last called the "Belvidere Ind. Track" by Conrail last used? I'm talking of the segment still in place up to AmeriGas...that splits off the PRR Bel-Del at G-Tower...

4. When and why was welded rail installed for the first few hundred feet of the L&HR up there by G-tower?

And that's all I can think of now, I may have more later. Thanks in advance guys.

Mike DiMunno

[rushhour]

4. When and why was welded rail installed for the first few hundred feet of the L&HR up there by G-tower?

NS actually did that a few months ago back. I dont know why they did that but it sure beats the stick rail.

Take care

[David]

Was there at "G" Tower three years ago and the welded rail was present then with quite a lot of growth over the northern end of that segment. Several of my older pictures of the area (1960's) show stick rail on that portion of the L&HR. Looks like it might have been placed during the beginning of the Conrail years.

[JJMDiMunno]

Was there at "G" Tower three years ago and the welded rail was present then with quite a lot of growth over the northern end of that segment. Several of my older pictures of the area (1960's) show stick rail on that portion of the L&HR. Looks like it might have been placed during the beginning of the Conrail years.

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that...there is significant plant-life growing on this segment...this rail wasn't installed any time recently. I have a photo from 1986 here also, showing what I'm 90% sure is welded rail in place...

Mike DiMunno

[L&HR C&S]

The west end of the L&H from Sparta to Belvidere was taken out of service in early 1985. If memory serves me right, the rail was pulled up in the late summer of 1986.
The 155lb welded rail in the area of g tower and the curve that lead up to the L&H was installed by the PRR in the late '60s. Page #111 of the Jim Boyd / Tracy Antz L&HR book has two photos of the G tower curve. The bottom photo of the L&H 24 showes that the 100lb jointed rail was there in 1966, while the top photo of the 21 in 1972 showes the 155lb welded. Even in the shadows, you can't miss that very tall 155lb rail. My guess is that the 100lb rail just reache its usable limits in that curve and the Prr installed the welded as in the late '60's there was still alot of traffic thru there.
I'm not really sure how far around the cure that the PRR / PC owened and where L&H property actually strarted.
WN

[ChiefTroll]

Interesting story about the welded rail on the PRR near G Tower, related to me by the gentleman who was Penn Central Track Supervisor at Phillipsburg at the time. Seems the Penn Central yardmaster in Trenton found a rail train in his yard one night, destined for the "River Line." That was the common PRR name for the Belvidere-Delaware Branch, as well as for the former NYC River Division, by then part of the Penn Central New Jersey Division.

Yardmaster calls our friend in P'Burg, "I have a rail train for the River Line. Do you want me to order a work train for tomorrow?" "Sure." So they unloaded the rail on the Bel Del, and laid it with the local forces over a period of several months.

There was almost blood on the moon when Philadelphia finally learned of the mix-up, but it was too much like an honest mistake for anyone to be fired over it. I suspect that 155 PS (Pennsylvania Standard) rail is part of that episode. It had been programmed for somewhere above Weehawken, where it was also badly needed.

[pdman]

Sometime between the 1985 (out of service) and rail pull up in 1986 we saw a business car train go westbound past my sister's house north of Andover. It was going so slow we followed along on foot talking to the CR officials who were on the back end open obs car. They were doing an inspection with several industrial developers who were interested in building industries west of Andover. A lot of local newspaper excitement took place around then, but nothing ever became of it. Shame.