Just wondering what your favorite railroad era is whether you model it or not.
Is it …before 1900
1900-1930
1930-1960
1960-1980
1980-present…?
1960 to present
LC
1960-1980 Penn Central,Chessie System,Burlington Northern,to name a few.
The Rock in the 70’s. All those paint jobs and the rockets that ran until the late 70’s, Ahhh yes. A modeler’s dream and a very interesting period in railroad history. Long live the rock…
Since we are talking about favorite railroad era let me “plug” my Favorite Railroad Decade" Poll in the Classic Trains forums. Here is a link to it. Please stop by and vote for your favorite railroad decade. I started the poll last August and over 200 votes have been registered. Please stop by and add your vote and post some comments.
Thanks All [:)]
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=1&TOPIC_ID=6512
Early 1970’s to Present.
Just took the poll,wasn’ t aware it was there.
My favorite time would be 1950-1960.
Some steam and early diesels.[^]
Interesting subject. Since I was born in 1939, I’d have to say the era of big steam-diesel transition–1945-56. Here in Northern California, it was pretty colorful, especially on the Espee, where you could see everything from the orange-red-black Daylights in both steam and diesel, to the big 4-8-8-2 AC Cab-forwards trundling solid PFE reefer blocks east over Donner Pass (one on front, one in the middle, and if the train was really long, one just ahead of the caboose, with those cross-compound air pumps whooshing like geysers). I didn’t get to see WP until it was completely dieselized (1952), and Santa Fe didn’t get this far north (Sacramento). But Espee was in great shape and since it was slow to dieselize, the show was really spectacular. Don’t want to sound like I’m harping on the ‘Good Old Days’, because in many respects they WEREN’T. But the trains were something else!
Mine would be June 3, 1999 to the present. No, it has nothing to do with Conrail being carved up. Rather, that was the first day I began working for a different railroading magazine and thus began caring about railroads beyond something that stopped me at a grade crossing.
In the past year-and-a-half, I’ve been trying to learn as much about railroading as fast as I can, and I’m loving it. In fact, I just bought my first scanner and it’s due to be delivered to my home today. I can’t wait.
So, yeah, a lot of the old stuff is gone, but railroads haven’t all rolled up their tracks and gone home. There’s still plenty to see and more to learn than any single person can manage. I know: I’ve worked with several people who know more than any sane individual ought to. But they keep asking questions. The love of railroading and thirst for knowledge just keep feeding each other. It’s too cool.
kathi
There’s no time like the present…
Noah
You know that’s a good reason. Never heard anything like that but a good story.
Although I love the modern day railroads, I will have to say that mine would have to be the era I’m modeling well some of the era I’m modeling. 1970-1980. I am modeling 1973-1975, but I loved the CZ, and Amtrak hadn’t taken over “the train of the Gods” yet. I also am lured to model a hub of passenger trains in a terminal in the late 1940s, but I won’t “yet”…
1950-1975.In 1950 there was still plenty of steam, and early diesels.Passenger trains hadn’t started going downhill yet.After 1975 most all non EMD or GE diesels were gone,along with most F units.
1960-1980. Growing up on the East Coast, I used to love seeing those old passenger trains of the Atlantic Coast Line, Seaboard Airline, and Florida East Coast prior to all those mergers. Can never forget those E & F units in all those colors going by.
Larry
For those of us that had the privlege of hearing Dr. Albro Martin (Railroad’s Triumphant) you are reflecting what he called the experience of a new dawn in the wonderfull history of American Railroading, pardon me integrated transportation services . The word cool is really on target and the breadth of the knowlege that comes in areas like history, civil, mechanical and electrical engineering, law, labor relations and regulation, anti-trust and governmental oversight and the list goes on. I think the word awsome also applies to this industry. Steve Lee at UP put it well when he said in 1998 from his rocking chair, and I quote loosly " The last 100 to 150 years of American History is in many ways the story of the railroads." So Dawn does come to those that learn what a wonderment really is -[#ditto] I do like your positive attitude - Piouslion P.S. So as I can stay out of trouble with our moderator, My favorite decade(s) 1950 to 1990 the time of transition.
WWII era…Railroadings finest hour…! Everything that had wheels that would turn and haul things…did. And it was all needed. We didn’t have the modern trucks as we know them today. No mass interstate system in place as an alternative.
End of the steam days on the N&W. To bad I wasn’t there to live it.
That sure would have been nice, Good thing TRAINS has such a good photo library
What photo library?
Mine would be 1970 to 1985 with all the colorful consists due to merger-mania during that era, but actually ANY TIME THERE ARE TRAINS RUNNING IS THE BEST TIME!
I love them all, but my personal favorite has to be the 1950’s. Steam…first generation diesels…fallen flags…all the great streamliners…What’s there not to love?