The Freehold Secondary Mystery

Many people think Rte. 79 starts at main St and runs NE to Matawan. If you explore the area, follow the FIT SE from South St. and you will discover at the corner of Mechanic and Jackson Streets the original CNJ Freehold Station. where the CNJ interchanged with the PRR (FIT). CNJ had a wye and several sidings for passenger and freight. The Freehold NJT bus station (behind Rita's on Main St,) dates to before 1900 and is the old PRR station.

Rte 79 actually starts at rte 9 across from Schank Rd. That area is very tight, no sharp curves but buildings right up against the ROW.

My Dr's office had a picture of a K4 (could have been an E I suppose, couldn't see the drivers just the keystone plate. Dang wish I had remembered the plate number) sitting in the middle of Main St, taken around 1955 (there was a '55 chevy waiting for it to move). There have been incidents of accidents there in the not too distant past.

@CharlieL

My Dr's office had a picture of a K4 (could have been an E I suppose, couldn't see the drivers just the keystone plate. Dang wish I had remembered the plate number) sitting in the middle of Main St, taken around 1955 (there was a '55 chevy waiting for it to move).

Who has the right-of -way?
1 - Ships
2 - Trains
3 - Cars
In that order. Deal with it! LOL

Indeed they do. And they should. The least stoppable and the largest.

Doesn't mean drivers will pay attention (much to their detriment).

You should see what happens when the train goes through Lakewood. It’s sheer chaos! There’s people walking down the tracks towards the train expecting the train to stop for them, there’s people that park too close to the tracks, people who put stuff on the tracks, and then there’s the crossings. People walk right out in front and run the lights when the train is INCHES away sometimes.

CharlieL wrote: ↑Wed Mar 10, 2021 3:57 pm My Dr's office had a picture of a K4 (could have been an E I suppose, couldn't see the drivers just the keystone plate. Dang wish I had remembered the plate number) sitting in the middle of Main St, taken around 1955 (there was a '55 chevy waiting for it to move). ...

I learned to drive on a '57 Chevy . But I stayed away from any trains!
Jim S

CharlieL wrote: ↑Wed Mar 10, 2021 3:57 pm Rte 79 actually starts at rte 9 across from Schank Rd. That area is very tight, no sharp curves but buildings right up against the ROW.

My Dr's office had a picture of a K4 (could have been an E I suppose, couldn't see the drivers just the keystone plate. Dang wish I had remembered the plate number) sitting in the middle of Main St, taken around 1955 (there was a '55 chevy waiting for it to move). There have been incidents of accidents there in the not too distant past.

With your description, I'm thinking the pic might be of K4 #612 on the Farewell To Steam fantrip in Oct 1957.

Just saw what looked like a survey crew, half way up the rail service road between rte 524 and Southard rd. Too far up to see what they were doing. There are also fresh survey stakes on Southard right by the end of track buffer for the old Gold's siding. Did not see any other activity except for a couple of fresh electric marker flags along railroad ave.

CharlieL wrote: ↑Wed Mar 10, 2021 3:57 pm Rte 79 actually starts at rte 9 across from Schank Rd. That area is very tight, no sharp curves but buildings right up against the ROW.

My Dr's office had a picture of a K4 (could have been an E I suppose, couldn't see the drivers just the keystone plate. Dang wish I had remembered the plate number) sitting in the middle of Main St, taken around 1955 (there was a '55 chevy waiting for it to move). There have been incidents of accidents there in the not too distant past.

That pic is in this collage. Really great shots here of Freehold area. (The car is a '56 Chevy, btw)

https://images.search.yahoo.com/yhs/sea ... tion=close

Yes, it was - a '56, and a K4S, and #612. Office pic was more head on, in color and included the Chevy taillights (a dead giveaway). It was teal blue and white. From that shot you can see how tight the buildings are where it crosses rte 79 (at the rear of the train).

CharlieL wrote: ↑Thu Mar 18, 2021 3:34 pm Yes, it was - a '56, and a K4S, and #612. Office pic was more head on, in color and included the Chevy taillights (a dead giveaway). It was teal blue and white. From that shot you can see how tight the buildings are where it crosses rte 79 (at the rear of the train).

Tight for sure. A couple years ago, an SUV driver decided to turn right from Throckmorton St. to Main St. and was met by a tank car being shoved to Prestone at the same time. The SUV wound up in the front of the first building to the right of the crossing. Same spot as in the pic.

I vaguely remembered that incident, but was afraid my memory might be wrong so didn't mention it.

The chebby by the way (my memory of the pic might be wrong) was a convertible.

#1566299 by GSC
Thu Mar 18, 2021 5:15 pm

I thought they shoved back from Prestone due to the way Prestone's stub siding is configured.

R&DB wrote:

#1566299 by GSC
Thu Mar 18, 2021 5:15 pm

I thought they shoved back from Prestone due to the way Prestone's stub siding is configured.

NS GP38 #2946 hit the SUV, going to Prestone. She was tagged with graffiti before this and her front end looked like a skunk. After damage repair she was repainted into full Conrail Quality paint at Altoona two years after the Split, In my opinion she was the first Conrail Heritage unit.

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPi ... ?id=119177 - The date is wrong, before
http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPi ... ?id=875343 - after

GSC wrote: ↑Thu Mar 18, 2021 3:09 pm That pic is in this collage. Really great shots here of Freehold area. (The car is a '56 Chevy, btw)

I looked through that collage - I think i found the pic with a fabric shop on the left and Ben Alpern(...) insurance on the right. That pick just shows the front 1/3 of the car, but I'm with you on the 1956

Speaking of teal blue and white, here's my mom driving our 54 Chevy before we had the 57 which I posted earlier. The color is a bit off, but that's almost a 70-year old slide. Notice how the hood is rounded, a bit of the 1940's look. 55 still had a bit of that look , but 56 was very different. Cars changed every year back then. ( Mom is still going strong, and driving )

Jim S
To help stay on a NJ RR-related topic, the 57 was mostly my Dad's "station car" - to drive to the Lackawanna station to get the train to Hoboken.