Join the discussion on the following article:
CSX donates land for Sept. 11 trail
Nice, but what former railroad ROW was this?
Believe it was part of the Berlin Branch, which ran from Garrett to Berlin and was primarily, if not exclusively,for coal loading. Total distance was 8.1 miles. Two smaller branches diverged from the Berlin Branch. .
Mr. Carleton raises the question that stems from a very poorly written sentence. " CSX has owned the properties for 145 years or more" is just impossble. CSX has not been around anywhere near that long. The correct sentence would be: “CSX and its predecessors have owened …”
Even though CSX took away my railroad (L&N), this is a nice gesture. And you are correct Mr. Bates. CSX was not even heard of until the 70’s I believe. They could not have been around for 145 years!
Old B&O.
Thank you all. This newspiece is basically a reworded CSX press release which is fine for a general public that doesn’t know the difference between B&O and C&O. Trains Magazine, a treasure trove of information and history, can do better with a piece like this adding the minor details that really aren’t minor.
A great project! When completed, the entire connecting trail would be about 16 air miles long, longer in rail miles. Besides using a former B&O right-of-way, it’s also worth noting this part of the Great Allegheny Passage occupies the former Western Maryland r-o-w, becoming the former P&LE at Connelsville, PA, into Pittsburgh. (A small correction: the trail’s name is spelled “Allegheny,” as in the mountain range and the western PA county with Pittsburgh as is its seat. Cumberland, MD, however, is the seat of Allegany County. A bit confusing.)
I hope you’ll step back and take a look at the tone and the content of the comments to this point. CSX made a generous donation to the people of Pennsylvania and the citizens of the United States. These are not people who know (or give a lick about) the number of handrail stations on a GP35 or the make of valve gear on a particular steam locomotive. It was meant as a general news story (not a concise history of the railroad right of way) to alert Trains Magazine readers of the event. I’m sure a thorough accounting will forthcoming for the ardent rail fan.
If you wonder WHY railroads (like CSX) are hesitant to do things for the railman community, I think the hypercritical commentary that has greeted this brief “news account” provides a good clue as to the answer. I write for rail fans; I love rail fans; I AM a rail fan, even though I spent most of my life aboard trains making a living, but some times we are our own worst enemy.
You’d have to have stood beside the track listening to people who, of all things, were criticizing the way the 611 was restored. My goodness, this piece of railroad history was rusting away in a museum with almost no chance that it would ever run again, yet there were people carping about how when it was restored and running, the paint wasn’t exactly right, or that this item or that wasn’t an original piece, or other minutia that doesn’t amount to a hill of beans to anyone except someone attempting to impress the rest of the world with how knowledgeable THEY are and how ignorant the rest of the world is.
One engineer I worked with told me why he HATED rail fans: He welcomed a couple aboard his cab while sitting in a siding, gave them a couple of employee time tables, some train orders and answered their questions. One of them told the employee that they’d been listening on their scanner and noticed that he’d failed to call one of the signals prior to taking the siding. I guess he was supposed to have been impressed
Thank You, Doug Riddell, for making a very articulate (I feel) comment about these and other comments on various news articles previously submitted ! I totally agree with you, on this subject !!!
Mr. Riddell, You hit the nail right on the head. I, myself, am a railfan but I am soooo ignorant of the real workings of the railroads that I don’t understand why someone would try and “one up” the engineer and not just appreciate the fact that he was graciously INVITED aboard this magnificent machine. I think I would have called the railroad police before I chased them off. I agree with everything you stated. I also appreciate Mr. Klippel’s comment.
I have to agree with Doug. A lot of fans get really nit picky about details that may be important to rivet counters, but about which the general public would never know. CSX has been taken to task by fans in several forums over its lack of a heritage program, and most recently for the small effort it has made to honor some of its predecessors. They don’t have to do any of this. They are in business to transport freight, and make money for their shareholders doing it.
I think this is a wonderful gesture to the community where a small group of ordinary folks made a selfless sacrifice to defend their homeland-our homeland-from a group of barbarians who intended harm to a great number of Americans. I applaud CSX for contributing in a way they are uniquely able.
As to the “smart” fan: any time I was ever up in an engine cab, I worked on the premise that I am a guest, and need to conduct myself accordingly. Keep my eyes and ears open, and my mouth shut. I am very well aware that train crews can get time on the street just for me being there. I’m not going to abuse that hospitality by pointing out potential rules violations.
Finally, a note to Doug Riddell: I have read your work going back to your column in PTJ years ago. I always enjoyed your stories of working on the railroad, and the insight on railroading in particular, and life in general, that they conveyed. I hope you are enjoying your retirement.
Thanks to all for the kind words following my post. I must admit that I’m extremely hesitant to ever criticize rail fans, because as a reader, you’re the reason magazines such as Trains welcome me into their pages to share my experiences. You and I have a long standing relationship, and I don’t want to jeopardize that.
If you’ve ever met me, you’ll quickly discover that I am passionate about respect for the railroad, its employees and its right of way. Doing so goes a long way toward creating and increasing opportunities for all of us, as rail fans, to pursue our hobby, whether its history, modeling, photographing or simply watching trains roll by and waving at the employees who make the wheels turn.
BTW, I’ll be at the Trains Magazine 75th anniversary, at the Harley Davidson Museum in Milwaukee, November 14. If you’re there, I hope you’ll say hello. If you haven’t yet made plans to attend, do so. There’s space still available. It’ll be an event you won’t want to miss.
Thank you, CSXT.
Doug Riddell is a blessing to this world. I miss reading his articles, and I very much enjoyed his book “From the Cab”. I hope his post will resonate with the haters.