Nostalgia & History > Southern's Train #8, 1972

Yes, that is Southern Railway's northbound Train #8 on March 13, 1972 in the rolling piedmont Virginia country side near Orange, VA. Note the the FP7A and coach between the Geeps and the pigs in Picture 1.

Remember the Southern Railway decided not to join Amtrak and instead to continue to run its then existing passenger trains. And they found a way to minimize cost. Stick it in an intermodal train to make a super intermodal (highway trailers and passengers on rail).

Just short of Alexandria the Geeps would cut off and free the FP7A and coach to make an Alexandria station stop then head for Washington Union Station. The reverse move took place with the southbound Piedmont Limited (I have and will post pictures).

The first two diesels are high-hood GP30s 2580 and 2613. The train was summed up with bay window caboose X756 (Picture 2).

Picture 3 presents the operable high-nose GP30, SOU 2601, preserved at Spencer, NC taken October 31, 2012.


Enjoy,
Marty Bernard



Edited 5 time(s). Last edit at 11/24/14 20:15 by MartyBernard.

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What an incredible train; have never seen anything quite like it. Didn't know the Piedmont was a mixed and man do I ever wish I had gone down to enjoy it. Thanks for the super photos.

Rich

M5's.
P5's.
I loved the Southern Railway.
TAH

Marty, I'm not certain, but think that's likely the Lynchburg-Washington train #8 rather than the Piedmont (which had been renumbered #6 in 1972). In March 1972 the northbound Piedmont was due into Charlottesville at 7:20pm, which would have put it through Orange well after dark. Also, I'm pretty sure that SR didn't add freight to the Piedmont until that train was cut back to Charlotte in 1975, but #7-8 were definitely "super mixed" trains from A-Day on. Anyhow, great piece of history - thanks for posting.

Dave

Yes Dave, it was Train #8. I mis-typed my notes. I corrected it.


Thanks,
Marty Bernard

Additional info at
http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,2305293
http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,2112747,2112747#msg-2112747
http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?2,382912,383021#msg-383021

The pigs on 7 & 8 ran between Monroe Yard (now gone) north of Lynchburg and Alexandria. 7 & 8 were discontinued in 1975 along with 3 & 4 to Asheville. I believe 5 & 6 were truncated to Charlotte at the same time.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/25/14 06:00 by ctillnc.

The SOU also added freight units to some passenger trains
to move power from the shops at Chattanooga and Atlanta.

The SOU was also first with containerized freight.

Uncle Joe,Seffner,Fl.

Old Southern Ry. operating crews on the old Piedmont Limited were based out of Washington, DC and worked between DC and Monroe, VA.

I have slides of a few of these trains at Charlottesville with mixed boxcar/pig/passenger combos. And once with a terrible B&W picture an SOU mostly mail train at Lynchburg with 3 GP30s as power. About 1963. Did a few of SOU's many GP30s have steam generators, or was this the mail train with only a combine at the rear that may have had a stove? It was SB, in warmer weather, at dusk.

I've never heard that any Southern GP30 had steam generators. Many Southern and CofG GP7s had them, but I don't think any GP9 or GP18 of theirs did.