While not directly related to the Piedmont Sub, these
photos may be of interest to C&O fans.
Excursions
In August of 2005 the C&O Historical Society held their annual convention in Cumberland, Maryland.
The highlight of the convention for some of us was an excursion along the South Branch Valley Railroad on a train
made up of C&OHS and Potomac Eagle equipment. These photos were taken on that trip.
Locomotives
GP9 6255 was in poor shape at the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad museum
when I saw it in 1990. I’ve not been back since then; I hope it’s
been restored by now. GP9’s were a large part of the C&O’s
diesel fleet beginning in the late 1950’s through the Chessie era.
The class L1 Hudsons were constructed by the C&O from the boilers
and fireboxes of F19 Pacifics. They were intended to handle connecting
sections of the Chessie, the C&O’s hope for the future of passenger
business. The Chessie was quietly cancelled in 1948 and the L1’s were
used to haul regular passenger trains. They were often seen along the
Piedmont Sub. This photo of the 490 was taken at the Baltimore & Ohio
Railroad Museum in 1990.
Originally built by ALCO in Richmond for the Hocking Valley
Railroad, number 701 became a C&O engine when the Hocking Valley was
acquired. It was assigned to the Clifton Forge-Hot Springs Branch. For
12 years, the “Merry Widow” (so called because she was all alone)
moved all the traffic on the 38 mile branch. She was retired in
December of 1952 and was donated to the city of Covington in
November of 1954. That’s where I found her in 1996.
C&O 4-6-0 377 was one of 13 locomotives built by Baldwin for the CC&L in 1902-1904. She was retained by the C&O as an exhibit
locomotive when the rest of the F-11 class was scrapped in 1952. This shot shows the 377 in Richmond in 1956. (Photographer unknown. From a
slide in the collection of Larry Z. Daily)
The 2732 was built by ALCO for the C&O in 1943. The C&O called their 2-8-4’s Kanawhas after
the West Virginia river. The Kanawhas first saw service between Cincinnati and Hinton and in the Clifton
Forge-Richmond-Newport News regions, but proved themselves so versatile that they were soon found in any
service across the system. In this photo 2732 is seen at the information center of a park on Robin Hood Road
near her birthplace in Richmond, Virginia. Since the photo was taken she has been moved to the Science Museum of
Virginia in Richmond’s old Broad Street Station. (2001 photo by Charles Southworth. Used with permission).
The second photo shows 2732 in her new home in the summer of 2004. (Photo by McPherson Gaines. Used with permission).
In this photo C&O 614 is westbound at Fort Lee (the southwest corner of Richmond International Airport) on
the Peninsula Sub, about 4 miles east of Fulton Yard. In its prime #614 would have often been in charge of the George
Washington. (1981 photo by McPherson Gaines. Used with permission).
In this photo C&O 2738 on a coal train at Williamsburg, Virginia in November of 1947. (1947 photo from a postcard in the
collection of Larry Z. Daily).
C&O 485 is in charge of the Sportsman at Williamsburg, VA in November of 1947. (1947 photo from a postcard in the
collection of Larry Z. Daily).
Number 601 was one of 5 class J-3 4-8-4 Greenbriars built by Lima in 1935. The J-3’s were built to handle the
increasing large passenger trains on the C&O and each was named after a Virginia statesman. Number 601 was named for
Patrick Henry. According to the caption on the back of the postcard, the photo was taken in Charlottesville in September of
1949 and was from the collection of Carl H. Sturner. (From a postcard in the collection of Larry Z. Daily).
Cabooses
The C&O’s wooden cabooses were all built in the 1920’s and many
lasted in service until the 1970’s. This former C&O cab is now
owned by the Cass Scenic Railroad in West Virginia. (1997 photo)
This cab is used as part of a restaurant in Ashland, Virginia. It is clearly a C&O car,
but the stnciling is a bit off in terms of size. (McPherson Gaines photo, date unknown. Used with permission.)
Buckingham Branch 223 was built as 90251 for the C&O in July, 1949. (2008 photo)
This former C&O Cab is currently located outside of Keyser, West
Virginia. The 3143 was built in 9/68 and was delivered in the C&O’s
attractive blue and yellow paint. These Chessie Safety
Caboose colors were applied late 1976 and the 3143 was assigned to
Grand Rapids, Michigan. The 3143 was unique in being the only safety
cab with yellow ends. (1999 photo by Larry Z. Daily, Sr. Used with
permission.)
In recent years the 3143 has been repainted. One side and end have received
a version of its original blue paint (note the non-standard “For Progress”
monogram). The other side and end kept the Chessie Safety colors. (2002 photo)
Caboose 903324 was built as C&O 3324 in June of 1971 and was
delivered in blue paint. She was painted into Chessie colors in May
of 1982. As of 1998, she was at the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore.
The boy in the photo is my son Benjamin, who also loves trains.
(1998 photo)
Caboose 904135 was part of a group of 66 built by Fruit Growers Express in 1980. It was built to a standard B&O design. I
found 904135 sitting in front of the former B&O freight house in Martinsburg, WV. (2000 photo)
This is obviously a former C&O wooden caboose. It is currently located in
McHattie Park in South Lyon, Michigan. When J. C. Paschal first saw it a few years
ago, it had plywood sheathing over the siding. It has since been restored a bit.
According to Roger Kirkpatrick, this is C&O 90631, first built by the Hocking Valley in 1926.
(2002 photos by J. C. Paschal. Used with permission.)
Passenger Cars
Combine 409 was built in 1900. According to C&O records, it was
scrapped in 1953. As can be seen, 409 escaped the scrappers and is now
living at the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore. It’s painted in the
pre-1923 passenger colors. The main color was described in 1896 as
Cadmium Yellow. This color didn’t hold up as well as Tuscan Red or
Pullman Green, but it sure stood out in a line of Pennsy or Pullman
cars. (1991 photo)
Gadsby’s Tavern now owned by the Chesapeake and Ohio Historical
Society. The car is shown here in service on the South Branch Valley Railroads
Potomac Eagle. (2002 photo)
C&O combine 458 is now owned by the Chesapeake and Ohio Historical
Society. This photo was taken during a March, 1996 trip to Clifton
Forge.
Chessie 29 was the business car of the C&O’s president. It was
rebuilt from a 5DBR/lounge car in 1952. In late 1969 it was sold to
a Pittsburgh businessman. When I found it, Chessie 29 was at the Station
Square Mall in Pittsburgh. Shortly after I took this photo, it was moved.
According to Matt Cesare the car wasdmoved to Myoma, PA where it sat
next to a bronze factory along the Buffalo & Pittsburgh. In 2019,
Chessie 29 was acquired by the C&O Historical Society and moved to
the Society’s property in Clifton Forge, VA.(1999 photo)
The Chessie Club, number 1903, was built in the late 1940’s
and delivered to the C&O in 1950. As built, the car had corrugations on the
lower portion of each side, but these were removed due to corrosion problems. A
lunch counter-buffet-lounge car, the Chessie Club could serve 8
passengers at the lunch counter while another 38 could relax in the lounge. The
car is shown here in service on the Potomac Eagle on a special run during
Moorefield, WV's Heritage Days. (September, 2002 photo)
Maintenance of Way
These photos show a Chessie System Jordan Spreader in Ellerson on track 820.
They were taken by John Perkins’ father in the early 1980's. In the top photo the Ellerson depot can be
seen to the right, while the Perkins home is visible in the distance on the left. (Photos provided by John “J.T.” Perkins.
Used with permission.)
Please note that, due to a huge volume of spam coming in on my email account, I’ve had to change my email address.
The new address is lzdaily@nospam.piedmontsub.com (but remove the nospam and the dot before piedmontsub.com).
All materials on this Web site are protected by United States
copyright law. This includes, but is not limited to, articles and graphics. Unless
otherwise indicated, these materials are the property of Larry Z. Daily and may not
be used without prior written permission of Larry Z. Daily
