LV Customers on Naples Branch during last years

lvrr325 wrote:It sounds more to me like they went the crew to verify the track could be used, after the railroad decided to stop operating it. I'm not sure what you had to contend with then as far as like you would today with FRA inspections and track standards.

It could be they wanted all affected player's in this move to sign off on paper they felt the move was safe at minimum conditions. This way there would be no finger pointing. Just do the best you can with what you have.

After some digging, I found an interesting source with car counts and customers for the Naples Branch (and LV in general) from 1969 to 1972: http://www.anthraciterailroads.org/lvrr ... ranch.html

It looks like the branch was only getting about 250-300 carloads per year in the early '70s, so I'm not surprised that the tracks are gone.

RE: Freight cars

Pictures I have seen of train consists on this branch c/a 1970's indicate a lot of SP Hydra Cushion 50' and some new 60' cars going to Seneca foods at Rushville.

I personally observed an green LV 50' boxcar on spot at Gorham. Another trip to Rushville a white LV 40' box with tall LV lettering was observed on a siding back in the weeds and brush near the depot. On a visit to Stanley ca. 1967 there were some liquid nitrogen tank cars on one of the interchange tracks. Grain mill at Gorham (still there) once had some BCK 40' cars on spot. Imagine a lot of LV 40' cars made this spot as well.

The ARHS had an article on this branch several years ago. There were several diesel era photos in which there were a pair of two compartment LV covered hopper cars. Another photo was an earlier diesel powered mixed train with a tank car and combine.

There is a slide floating around the internet which shows a switcher with two tank cars and a caboose just north of Naples. Both tank cars appear to be wine cars, one of which was a rare two dome car.

There were several coal yards on this branch so we can assume that hopper cars were regular visitors through the early 60's. The were also cattle pens with a ramp at Middlesex still there after abandonment.

Only mistake I made on this branch was not following a Rushville bound local we encountered at Stanley.

Hope this is of interest

VTM

VTM wrote:Hope this is of interest

It sure is!

A friend of mine, brother of the present owners of Rushco, remembers unloading grain in Rushville. Other friends and I talked to an old farmer at an auction between Potter and Middlesex last year, who remembered transloading sheep on the train at Naples, that were bound to (and received from) some destination in Kansas. He claimed that much of what is now the High Tor and related wildlife management areas was pasturage for sheep. (Very believeable, on account of all the pagewire fences I've tripped over while hunting out there!) He said they brought in lambs and shipped the adults west, and that these operations died out in the late 60's, early seventies. How late rail service played its role, I am not sure.