Remembering the "good old days" at Colonie Shop

You paid $5, signed the release and you could walk all over Colonie and take all the pics you wanted as long as you didn't go in any buildings or climb on equipment.

Those were the days.

Not much left now...



There is some reminders South of town...

Hard to believe this is where the PA's and Sharks were maintained only a generation ago...

I still have my original signed release form when I was there in '77 .... it only cost me $1.00 in those days !!!

Mark.

I have been there a couple of times in the past few years. They recently chained it up and closed it for good. Before that you could get some shots from the road and in the fall get some good shots through the trees.

I am planning a model railroad set on the D&H line from Kenwood Yard through Colonie and up to Mechanicville. I have ordered a bunch of D&H books from the local library (helpful because the railroad is considered local history here in Albany... I doubt I could get the books if I lived somewhere else) but was wondering if Trains magazine or some other publication ever did an article specifically about Colonie or the many industries between Colonie and Mechanicville. Looking at old maps is helpful, but I would love other information.

I haven't seen any articles specifically addressing the Colonie Main, but I'd suggest getting to a good academic library and looking through the on-line version of the Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps. They're a treasure trove of info on who had sidings, how they were laid out, and what building did what. Typically, you'll have a choice of maps, spaced maybe 10-20 years apart, ranging from the mid 1950s back to the 1880s.

You can access individual sheets as .pdf files, then email them to yourself and print them out to your heart's content.

Perhaps these folks can point out Colonie resources?

http://bridge-line.org/

-=otto-

1. Is Colonie Shops completely torn down?

2. I notice Classic Trains had a great article about Colonie. It mention there was a deadhead move required to get power into the shops, and I don't understand this - from the aerial pic, the shops looks close to the yard and main. I figured for a deadhead shops move, a distance was required such as Indy Union Station to Beech Grove shops or similar.