Private Commuter Club Cars

[jhdeasy]

2001 SYOSSET
2002 OYSTER BAY
2003 SOUTH SHORE
2004 LOCUST VALLEY (renamed SYOSSET in 1973 after 2001 SYOSSET was wrecked/retired)

I've given the four heavyweight private commuter club cars of the 1960s and 1970s a page of their own at my LIRR parlor Cars website, because LIRR did not consider them parlor cars and they were not listed on the roster of cars for parlor service.

http://www.dominionrailvoyages.com/jhd/lirr/page7.html

I'm looking for some info pertaining to these four cars:
a. The year 2001 was wrecked.
b. The years 2002, 2003 and 2004 were retired.
c. The runs these cars were usually assigned ... I believe one was Port Jefferson, one was Oyster Bay and one was Speonk.
d. Any good anecdotal information.

After these heavyweight commuter club cars were retired, were any of the lightweight cars from the parlor car fleet reassigned to replace them in private commuter club service for some period of time? For example, 2073 TUCKAHOE (x-UP club lounge) and x-DL&W/EL tavern lounge observation cars 2081 AQUEBOGUE and 2082 ASHAROKEN were on the roster until 1979. I have a note that 2081 AQUEBOGUE was used for South Shore commuter club service from June 1976 to November 1977, without being renumbered/renamed. 2000 AMAGANSETT (renamed MORRIS PARK in 1976) was another potential candidate for reassignment to commuter club service.

Here are two of my photos of 2081 AQUEBOGUE on the rear of a late afternoon eastbound train loading at Hunterspoint Avenue and departing from that station. My records say I took the photos in 1978, but don't note a train number or departure time. Are these photos of the car serving the South Shore commuter club on a train to Speonk?

http://www.dominionrailvoyages.com/jhd/lirr/2081_3.jpg
http://www.dominionrailvoyages.com/jhd/lirr/2081_5.jpg

[BobLI]

Dont forget the lightweight MU commuter car "Rockaway".

[LIengineerBob]

These club cars always interested me. I believe that they might have been the only heavyweight cars that were painted in MTA grey and blue colors.

I have one photo of the MU car "Rockaway" rotting away in Yard A long after it was removed from service and marked up by the local artists.

[jhdeasy]

These club cars always interested me. I believe that they might have been the only heavyweight cars that were painted in MTA grey and blue colors.

At least two of the heavyweight cars from "The Blue Ribbon Fleet" of parlor car service survived long enough to receive MTA colors.

LIRR 99 JAMAICA (the former 2038 SETAUKET) was repainted in MTA colors:
http://www.dominionrailvoyages.com/jhd/ ... aica_1.jpg
http://www.dominionrailvoyages.com/jhd/ ... aica_2.gif

LIRR 2037 TUSCARORA CLUB (later 2037 ONTEORA) was repainted in MTA colors:
http://www.dominionrailvoyages.com/jhd/ ... lub_06.jpg
http://www.dominionrailvoyages.com/jhd/ ... ora_01.jpg

Both of these cars are "alive" and well in 2009!

[lala]

I can recall working trains where all these cars were part of the consist at one time. Early in my career I worked out of Oyster Bay and that would have been 1971. It was probably a year later that I was working as pick brakeman in Oyster Bay that one of the private cars was wrecked in a switching accident. It was either the Oyster Bay or the Locust Valley. The train in question had to pull all the way down in Oyster Bay to clear the switch on the west end to make the run around move. When the engine was turned on the turntable the brakeman never religned the switch on the run around and the engine after being turnig ran back into their own train wrecking the private car. We had to switch it out when we got done later that evening. I can recall that the attendants in these cars were all former pullman employees. We had just gone from the 16 hour day to the 14 hour day and these attendants had their shifs split. They would work one way in morning and get their rest on the west end and then go east in the evening and stay in rooming houses etc on the east end.

[Dave Keller]

The "South Shore" could always be seen laying up at Speonk.

I have photos of both the "Locust Valley" and the "Oyster Bay" shot at Oyster Bay at various times.

The "Syosset" ran on the Port Jeff branch. I have a couple of shots of her laying up at Port Jeff.

One morning I was assigned to be the attendant on the car leaving Port Jeff to sell coffee to the commuters. That was the one and only time I ever overslept for work up until that time and I missed my run. I never caught any grief from it, surprisingly, but I'm sure there were a lot of annoyed riders that morning.

I was, however, never assigned a private car afterwards . . . . . maybe THAT was my punishment . . . who knows? I made more tips on the parlors and bar cars anyway! Not much tips selling coffee in the morning . . . . .

The "Rockaway" (car #1677) mentioned by another poster above, was different from the other club cars in that it was an MU club car. It was run to and from Rockaway Park in the early 1950s via Valley Stream and Far Rockaway after the Jamaica Bay trestle was placed out of service after the 1950 fire.

Not sure if it continued to run to Far Rockaway after Rockaway Beach service was discontinued and the line terminated at Far Rockaway, Mott Ave. and later Nameoke Ave.

Dave

[BobLI]

Dave,
If memory serves me correct, I believe the club car ran until the M-1's took over Far Rock service. i think the Mu even ran with the MP72 cars as the lead car going to Penn Station. I have that pic in my mind but not sure if it exists on paper!

[Dave Keller]

Bob, I believe you're correct. I just wan't positive so I didn't wish to make a statement to that effect . . . .

Thanx for the confirmation.

Dave

[LongIslandTool]

Dave, are you certain that the Rockaway Club ran out of Rockaway Park before the fire? The reason I ask is that it was leased by the Rockaway Hunt Club of Cedarhurst; its passengers boarded mostly in Cedarhurst, Lawrence and Hewlett. The Hunt Club owned the interior fixtures; some wicker chairs and the baggage racks. They still have some of the chairs in their clubhouse.

It was a unique car in that it had no air compressor so the noise wouldn't bother the patrons.

In its final years it would lay up in Penn Station's C Yard all day. When the M-1's finally came, the Club was given the choice of leasing an M-1, but I'm told the railroad set the price very high to discourage it.

The car was eventually given to the Long Island Sunrise Trail Chapter of the NRHA, where it spent its last years, unfortunately, rotting. If I recall correctly, it was quite older than most of the MP-54's.

[Dave Keller]

Tool:

No . . . I mentioned in my post that it ran to Rockaway Park via Valley Stream and Far Rockaway AFTER the 1950 trestle fire.

I have a couple of shots of it laying up at Rockaway Park in 1953. It would have had to have gotten there via the "land route."

Any idea of the time frame it was leased by the Hunt Club?

Dave

[LongIslandTool]

I wonder why it was laid up in Rockaway Park rather than Far Rockaway. Didn't some trains terminate at Far Rockaway? Or perhaps the one that this car was on went through to Rockaway Park, or maybe that's where the cleaners were?

I don't know the time frame, though I was told that it went way back, probably to the 1920's or before, but I couldn't confirm that. If you find any other information, let me know -- please. Very interesting car.

The Hunt Club is the oldest in the country, beginning in Far Rockaway's Bayswater in the 1870's but moving to Cedarhurst when development started to encroach in the 1880's. You may recall that the present site was served by the Cedarhurst Village Railway, a horsecar line that operated from the Woodmere Station to the Club. That's such an obscure operation that even Art hasn't found anything on it.

[BobLI]

LI,
I knew about the horsecar line but never knew the name of it. I'm sure the ROW still has part of it exisiting as a road. If you look at the intersection of Cedar Lane and North Wood road in Woodmere and follow that road, it has a beautiful RR curve heading to the Hunt club.

[Dave Keller]

I'll have to check my Emery hand-drawn maps, but I believe Bob Emery mapped that horsecar line in relationship to the Cedahoist station.

Beginning in 1950 (after the fire) LIRR timetable Form E was titled: Gibson to Rockaway Park / Rego Park to Hamilton Beach.

As the Rockaway beach branch was cut back further, Form E was titled: Gibson to Rockaway Park / Rego Park to Aqueduct.

Then, when Rockaway Park was closed and the line truncated on the west side of the Far Rockaway station (Mott Ave.) and the Rockaway beach branch terminated at Ozone Park, Form E was titled: Gibson to Far Rockaway / Rego Park to Ozone Park.

I don't know if some trains terminated at Far Rock when the line continued on to Rockaway Park. Perhaps they didn't. That could be why my shot of the "Rockaway" was taken at Rockaway Park.

Dave

[BobLI]

Dave,
The horse car line started from woomere station aka woodsburg station, Cedarhurst is too far from the hunt club. Woodmere is much closer.
I live in the area.
Bob
Ps we are getting off topic , sorry to moderator!

[Dave Keller]

I'm sure you're right.

I haven't looked at the map in a couple of years . . . .

Dave