OK Its opionion time of all the Roads that have disappeared over the last 50 or so years, Is there one that you feel is the one that got the least repect. For Me it would have to be the Rock Island people only want to remember the last 15 years of the Rock they dont remember the great passenger traffic they had The fact they were a small fish in a very large pond , But dispite that they were able to compete very well for a lomg time Just a thought Larry
A good choice but I would have to give the nod to the old Chicago Great Western.
I’ve always thought the Penn Central got a lot of derision. I think it was a merger that was destined to fail, but their executives didn’t help with their extravagant lifestyles and country club attitudes and plenty of PRR/NYC division that seemed downright immature in some regards. What doesn’t get remembered is that an awful lot of people worked their backsides to the nub to keep things rolling as best as possible under horrid economic conditions out east.
I just re read my post and I need to apologise for the spelling I am still recovering from laser eye surgury so please bear with for the next couple of days Larry
cnwfan51: any way we can get spell chewck to work our posts. Mine are typing mistakes.
I, of course, agree. I am impressed by how the old CGW hung on as long as it did being surrounded by powerful neighbors with better routes between the key midwest cities. The CGW had a few innovations that are long forgotten: early use of internal combustion equipment, piggyback service, and Continuous welded rail just to name a few.
Jeff
I have always thought that the Penn Central did not get much respect.
Sure, the merger looked better on paper than it did in reality. Being forced to take in the bankrupt NH did nobody a favor.
Even with all of the competition from highway transport taking away a large part of their business, the Penn Central fought a hard battle to stay afloat.
PC was the railroad that introduced and ran the Metroliner, which in itself deserves respect.
I can definitely mention one railroad that does not deserve respect: CSX.
The Penn Central might have worked it it had started earlier into the highway era, and was able to integrate the NYC, PRR, and NH portions better.
The Penn Central had too many things going against it to win, and yet it tried.
Respect should not be reserved for those who succeed, but should also be given to those that try hard to succeed, and yet end up failing.
I think B&O would be the best candidate. They were almost forgotten in the Official Territory, behind the PRR and the NYC. There was a quote in Trains about somebody saying you could always get a seat on a B&O passenger train. Even in the mid 1980s, when it looked like NS was going to acquire Conrail, CSX threatened to jettison their B&O lines.
On this forum, at least we talk about the CGW. Is there anyone on this forum that lists B&O as their favorite Fallen Flag?
OVER 50 YEARS: CCC&St. L
Less Than 50 Years: MKT or NP
Of all mentioned so far only the PC “got no respect” probably followed closely by successor Conrail. All others mentioned above plus: NKP,LV, EL, MLW, CNJ, RDG, L&HR, NH, B&M, D&H, Colorado Midland, DRGW, SP, GN, NP, RI, ACL SBD, L&N, etc., etc., etc.!..even the PRR and NYC…have been repected and revered in some form. But the PC orginaztion was and is a blemish on the records of railroading for all time!
The B&O ranks up there as one of my favourite fallen flags, after the Southern. It currently takes 2nd when grouped with the C&O and WM as the Chessie System, if grouped seperately, the B&O ranks #3, behind the Chessie System.
The Chessie System did a lot of things right, such as keeping the identity of the railroads that formed it intact while grouping them together as a “System”.
CSX screwed that up, and has been a perpetual screw-up since then, prompting a billboard on my HO, S and O-27 gauge layouts for CSX-sucks.com and one of my favourite phrases “Nobody likes CSX.”
I am pretty sure that CSX would be on the bottom of people list of favourite roads if it were to mercifully become a fallen flag.
I’m currently reading through back issues of Trains magazine from the mid 70’s, and I can certainly say that Conrail got no respect even from them. The attitude was that Conrail would fail quickly or worse yet succeed, leading to more government take-overs of railroads. Certainly no one would believe that just a little over twenty years later two major railroads would be fighting for it.
John
I agree that the main thing wrong with the Penn Central was its officers and Board of Directors. They were all theives robbing the company blind with gigantic pay checks, and perks while letting the railroad go to pot (No repairs or maintenance on locomotives, rolling stock or infrastructure).
Of course! I always felt that the B&O was overlooked among all the railroads which had yards on the East St. Louis riverfront. Later my daughter and her husband moved to Baltimore and I had many opportunities to railfan the B&O. The folks were always friendly and accomodating. And their museum is first class.
Less than 50: The ‘Katy’ for sure. But you gotta add the ‘Mo-Pac’ to dat list.
I may be responding in the wrong spirit, but I’m looking at it in terms of visibility in exposure in print and/or public-perception. PC got more exposure on its east end than on its west end.
Living in the Los Angeles area, I thought the S.P. got little respect.
Just to show you how the old CGW was dissed - even by the non-railfan community - one of my older brothers and his friends teased me one time when I was a little kid back in the 60’s when we were driving on old Highway 13 north out of Manchester and, at Thorpe (where the road crossed the CGW main) there was a very run-down looking house that looked positively decrepit and they told me that’s where Moe, Larry, and Curly ( the 3 Stooges) live - along the CGW! Kind of hilarious now that I think about it although somewhat sad as well as some 40-odd years later that run-down house is somehow still standing but, alas, the CGW mainline is gone.
I agree that the Chico Great Western got little respect,but this was no fault of their own.I put B&O,NP,and Frisco in this category.Penn Central got no respect,but this was their own doing through gross mismanagement.
I can’t go along with many of the choices like B&O, SP, CGW, etc. because they were respected, revered, and fondly remembered. So far only PC and CR have no fond following nor are they really missed. That’s no respect!