Hello folks, welcome to this new little thread.
If you peruse the USA Pics thread often you'll note I've been throwing lots of photos of my Silverlines railroad in there, all with captions about either the wires or West Virginia or similar. I thought I might as well make a little thread to dump those photos and others, like work-in-progress or more scenery oriented photos. I figure other things like ideas, lore, reskins, all fit in here as well. If by chance I give a copy of the route to anyone else they're free to post pictures as well.
So a question those who haven't seen any of the aforementioned photos & posts might have - or even those who do know what I'm talking about already - would be, what the hell is this whole thing?
Let's go over a little backstory, and then we'll look at other route things.
In the late 1800s, the Pennsylvania Railroad's ever-expanding rail empire brought them into West Virginia. Deep coal riches were found throughout much of the state, and the PRR was highly interested in hooking into them. The problem was that by this time, nearly all of the decent routes through the mountains had been taken by competitors. After much deliberation and argumentation, the railroad brute-forced its way through the state. It would take extraordinarily steep grades, tight curves, long tunnels, and some of the most unusual construction projects - all in order to get into the now famous West Virginian coal pockets.
In all, the route encompassed approximately 230 miles. Beginning at Parkersburg, the line ran south via a number of towns, including Gauley Bridge, St. Marys, Ellenboro, Harrisville, Smithville, Clay, and more, until it reached a pair of tiny towns known as Boomer & Alloy. Here, the line split into two pieces - one westward towards Charleston, approximately 30 miles, and one southbound towards Beckley, approximately 45 miles. The route is thus divided into three corridors - the "Northern line," which covers all of Parkersburg to Boomer, the "Charleston line," which covers exactly what you'd expect (Boomer to Charleston), and finally, the "Southern extension," from Boomer to Beckley. The southern extension is regarded as one of the most ridiculous routes ever built by the PRR, and indeed may be #1.
While the PRR enjoyed success for a number of years with this route, and indeed had recouped the massive construction costs thanks to the plethora of coal mines, the railroad soon saw the line begin to fall apart. Once the Great Depression hit, mines began to close and fewer trains moved over the rails. Passenger traffic dwindled and general freight, already a more rarely seen thing, dropped even further. One of the larger mines at Carbon also closed down at this time, a huge blow to traffic. A nasty passenger accident also further reduced the PRR's good standing in the region.
A pair of PRR's venerable I1sa's depart from the depot at Chloe, where they had stopped for a brief crew change and updated orders.
Screaming up the steep St. Marys Grade
Wartime traffic helped, as did the post-war boom, but these were only temporary. By the mid 1950s, there was little traffic on the line and even less attention paid towards its maintenance. Seeing as competitors had routes, and easier ones at that, between the major cities, the PRR sought to abandon the line but was promptly denied. Communities along the route would be left completely isolated, with hardly even a dirt road to connect them in some cases. A handful of industries were also in operation here, and it wouldn't do for them to be cut off. Instead, the PRR put the line up for sale.
Nobody wanted it. The B&O was only interested in a few snippets of the most northern lines along the Ohio, and the C&O was well-set with their own route alongside the Kanawha. Any other potential buyers looked at the gradients and just flat out said no.
With desperation setting in, the PRR made a case to the Silver Lines Railroad.
Initial examinations didn't look good - the general disrepair combined with the steep grades, long tunnels, and curvy nature of the route made the railroad apprehensive. However, some friends in the mining industry let it be known that they had big plans in an area down by the Southern Extension, which got the railroad more interested. In addition, the company had been considering electrification as a way to regain high power in fewer locomotives and a long-term money-saver. With grades as steep as these, it would be a prime candidate for the wires.
Countless hours, studies, and research was put into the idea, and in 1967, the Silver Lines made the Pennsy an offer. All 230 miles for hardly more than scrap value. After the initial near offensiveness of the lowball washed away, the PRR asked for a higher price. After some shrewd negotiations, the companies landed right smack dab in the middle - at hardly more than scrap value.
Mere weeks after the Pennsylvania merged with the New York Central to form the dreaded Penn Central, the contract was finalized and the Silver Lines had gained ownership of the entire route.
SD38 #3006 is brand new to the railroad, a PRR GP9 has yet to get its PC markings, and a large number of old PRR hoppers have been temporarily returned to service. Dozens of these cars have sat dormant in yards throughout the route for years now, but with traffic on the rise, old hoppers have been pressed back into service. These cars would quickly begin to disappear from the roster as new 100-ton coal hoppers arrived to replace them, but for the first few years, they could be spotted across the route. By the time the Little Joes arrived, all but 6 were gone. June, 1968.
Until 1970, the Penn Central had trackage rights as it closed out its pre-existing contracts with a few industries along the West Virginia line, and motors could be seen tackling the route from time to time. As well, they would occasionally join SLRR units, as the monochrome railroad had been continually short on power for a while now, a problem this new addition only further added on to. Even after 1970, Penn Central motors found their way onto the line.
As the new owner of the line quickly found out, the heavy grades and cargo required an absurd amount of power to move over the mountains. Almost immediately, the plans to electrify and replace the half-a-dozen diesel consists were sketched out, and in a few short years, the face of the route would change completely.
Coming up next, the history behind the electrification and its motors...
If you peruse the USA Pics thread often you'll note I've been throwing lots of photos of my Silverlines railroad in there, all with captions about either the wires or West Virginia or similar. I thought I might as well make a little thread to dump those photos and others, like work-in-progress or more scenery oriented photos. I figure other things like ideas, lore, reskins, all fit in here as well. If by chance I give a copy of the route to anyone else they're free to post pictures as well.
So a question those who haven't seen any of the aforementioned photos & posts might have - or even those who do know what I'm talking about already - would be, what the hell is this whole thing?
Let's go over a little backstory, and then we'll look at other route things.
The Silver Lines Electrified Division - History, Part 1: The Tracks & Their Owners
In the late 1800s, the Pennsylvania Railroad's ever-expanding rail empire brought them into West Virginia. Deep coal riches were found throughout much of the state, and the PRR was highly interested in hooking into them. The problem was that by this time, nearly all of the decent routes through the mountains had been taken by competitors. After much deliberation and argumentation, the railroad brute-forced its way through the state. It would take extraordinarily steep grades, tight curves, long tunnels, and some of the most unusual construction projects - all in order to get into the now famous West Virginian coal pockets.
In all, the route encompassed approximately 230 miles. Beginning at Parkersburg, the line ran south via a number of towns, including Gauley Bridge, St. Marys, Ellenboro, Harrisville, Smithville, Clay, and more, until it reached a pair of tiny towns known as Boomer & Alloy. Here, the line split into two pieces - one westward towards Charleston, approximately 30 miles, and one southbound towards Beckley, approximately 45 miles. The route is thus divided into three corridors - the "Northern line," which covers all of Parkersburg to Boomer, the "Charleston line," which covers exactly what you'd expect (Boomer to Charleston), and finally, the "Southern extension," from Boomer to Beckley. The southern extension is regarded as one of the most ridiculous routes ever built by the PRR, and indeed may be #1.
While the PRR enjoyed success for a number of years with this route, and indeed had recouped the massive construction costs thanks to the plethora of coal mines, the railroad soon saw the line begin to fall apart. Once the Great Depression hit, mines began to close and fewer trains moved over the rails. Passenger traffic dwindled and general freight, already a more rarely seen thing, dropped even further. One of the larger mines at Carbon also closed down at this time, a huge blow to traffic. A nasty passenger accident also further reduced the PRR's good standing in the region.
A pair of PRR's venerable I1sa's depart from the depot at Chloe, where they had stopped for a brief crew change and updated orders.
Screaming up the steep St. Marys Grade
Wartime traffic helped, as did the post-war boom, but these were only temporary. By the mid 1950s, there was little traffic on the line and even less attention paid towards its maintenance. Seeing as competitors had routes, and easier ones at that, between the major cities, the PRR sought to abandon the line but was promptly denied. Communities along the route would be left completely isolated, with hardly even a dirt road to connect them in some cases. A handful of industries were also in operation here, and it wouldn't do for them to be cut off. Instead, the PRR put the line up for sale.
Nobody wanted it. The B&O was only interested in a few snippets of the most northern lines along the Ohio, and the C&O was well-set with their own route alongside the Kanawha. Any other potential buyers looked at the gradients and just flat out said no.
With desperation setting in, the PRR made a case to the Silver Lines Railroad.
Initial examinations didn't look good - the general disrepair combined with the steep grades, long tunnels, and curvy nature of the route made the railroad apprehensive. However, some friends in the mining industry let it be known that they had big plans in an area down by the Southern Extension, which got the railroad more interested. In addition, the company had been considering electrification as a way to regain high power in fewer locomotives and a long-term money-saver. With grades as steep as these, it would be a prime candidate for the wires.
Countless hours, studies, and research was put into the idea, and in 1967, the Silver Lines made the Pennsy an offer. All 230 miles for hardly more than scrap value. After the initial near offensiveness of the lowball washed away, the PRR asked for a higher price. After some shrewd negotiations, the companies landed right smack dab in the middle - at hardly more than scrap value.
Mere weeks after the Pennsylvania merged with the New York Central to form the dreaded Penn Central, the contract was finalized and the Silver Lines had gained ownership of the entire route.
SD38 #3006 is brand new to the railroad, a PRR GP9 has yet to get its PC markings, and a large number of old PRR hoppers have been temporarily returned to service. Dozens of these cars have sat dormant in yards throughout the route for years now, but with traffic on the rise, old hoppers have been pressed back into service. These cars would quickly begin to disappear from the roster as new 100-ton coal hoppers arrived to replace them, but for the first few years, they could be spotted across the route. By the time the Little Joes arrived, all but 6 were gone. June, 1968.
Until 1970, the Penn Central had trackage rights as it closed out its pre-existing contracts with a few industries along the West Virginia line, and motors could be seen tackling the route from time to time. As well, they would occasionally join SLRR units, as the monochrome railroad had been continually short on power for a while now, a problem this new addition only further added on to. Even after 1970, Penn Central motors found their way onto the line.
As the new owner of the line quickly found out, the heavy grades and cargo required an absurd amount of power to move over the mountains. Almost immediately, the plans to electrify and replace the half-a-dozen diesel consists were sketched out, and in a few short years, the face of the route would change completely.
Coming up next, the history behind the electrification and its motors...
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