I am looking for resourses for how catenary systems were designed for mainline railroads (as opposed to trolleys or interurbans). Primarily interested in Milwaukee Road, but any information at this point would be good (NYNH&H, PRR, VRG).
I’ve been trying searches on the internet, but have not had much luck. Either I’m overlooking the obvious or am trying the wrong keywords. Most pictures I’ve found of engines, stations, etc. don’t really show much detail. The wires are either to small to show, the angles of the pictures don’t show much or are distorted, or maybe it’s just the resolution of my computer screen.
Any ideas on books, articles, websites, photos, etc. would be appreciated.
All my books are packed up, but some of either my N&W or VGN books there are a lot of shots showing the catenay really well. Some of the shots of the dismantling of the catenary are quite good as I recall.
A lot of the New Haven stuff is still in operation and Amtrak from DC on up runs on catenary, so try looking at that too. If you haven’t already, go to the local library and just look at catenary as well as the road specific stuff. But it turns up something, and it’s free.
I can’t remember the the name of the thread, but their was one on electrifiying US railrods that had alot of info. ( mostly by M. Sol) on MLWK VS. PENN electric.
Thanks for the information about the Train Shed Cyclopedias. I’ve ordered the one you recommended. I’ll be anxious to see if it has the type of info I’m after. Even if it doesen’t, its still good to know about additional resourses. I’ll try the Yahoo Group in a bit.
Also, Rick Abramson, had his wired New Haven layout in MR back in August 2004, and he does post here from time to time. Try asking for his help both here and over on the New Haven Railroad Historical & Technical Association’s web forum at:
One additional note on catenary. A friend did up a big section of his layout years ago with working catenary. It was really cool looking and he had a set of brass VGN squareheads that had working pantographs. But, he supported everything from the “wrong” side relative to his normal access to the tracks. It was a HUGE pain in the you know what. Got caught on cuff buttons so many times he put up a huge sign, “No long sleeves not rolled up!”. and “No Watches!” Something to keep in mind.
There’s a book, The Milwaukee Electrics by Noel Holley, that has some in-depth coverage of the nuts-and-bolts of the electrification. I have the earlier edition (copyright 1987 or so), but it’s at home so I can’t look and see right now how much it covers the actual construction of the catenary. If it doesn’t, the later edition (printed about 2003, I think) has been expanded to include a lot more information and photos, so it might have some of what you’re looking for.
One of the reasons I am looking to find out as much about the prototype as possible is to build my own catanary system. I’m sure the commercial products are not all that bad, but it seems each person has his own ideas as to what is important and where sacrifices can be made.
Looking at Mainline Models (I think), the stuff looks very good, but looks like a railroad with a larger revenue source per mile than the western divisions of the Milwaukee Road. By the way, did the Virginian have the same look with wooden poles, etc?
Thanks for the list of resouce websites. I don’t really have a lot of time to spend on this right now, but it will give me some ideas to come up with over time.
Philp, go with Potlatcher’s suggestion if you are interested in the Milwaukee electrified lines. Chapter 8 of Mr Holley’s book deals with the electrical distribution system, and features many good close-up photos of the catenary being maintained. Pages 292 to 295 have drawings of the substations and typical trolley construction. But quite apart from this information, Holley’s book is really worth having. It’s a well written, beautifully illustrated account of a very interesting railroad.