Nostalgia & History > What is it?

What is this?

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Looks like a ticket cabinet without any tickets.

Jay

I guessing a commuter RR with lots of stations and thus lots of the same size tickets. Each ticket holder can be taken out to load it with tickets. I tried enlarged the plaque to read what railroad it belonged to. Here is what I make out: "Lioonier Valley Railroad Co Dallington Nation". Wikipedia says, "The Ligonier Valley Railroad (reporting mark LGV) connected the communities of Latrobe and Ligonier, Pennsylvania, approximately 10 miles (16 km) apart, between 1877 and 1952."

Well that sure does not sound like a commuter railroad with lots of stations!

Marty Bernard

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Jay and Marty:

You are both correct. This is a ticket dispensing machine.

The Ligonier Valley Railroad never operated a commuter rail service, although it provided passenger service until its last day. I was surprised to see such an elaborate device for dispensing tickets for a railroad which only served 10 stations.

That is a nice find. I remember on my visits to Forrest Beckum, first as a preteen and continuing till I was in my early 30's, admiring the nice ticket cabinet he had on display.

On yours, that does look like a lot of slots for only 10 stations. Must have contained nearly every combo possible. Have you been able to find any tickets to place in it. I know periodically there are tickets that would work in your cabinet listed on ebay for some railroads, however Ligonier Valley Railroad would be quite a find.

Jay



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/02/14 06:10 by garr.

Looking at a 1923 Topo map. I see the LV RR connected
to the Pittsburgh, Westmoreland & Somerset RR at Ligonier.

The PW & S RR was a 25 mile line between Ligonier and
Somerset, PA. The railroad only operated for 10 years
1906-1916. Wiki also states that the RR had constant
financial problems and that employees sometimes had to
wait up to 3 months before getting their pay.

Wiki lists 13 station stops for the LV RR and 14 station
stops for the PW&S RR. That is probably why there was
such a large ticket dispensing box.

BaltoJoey

garr Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> That is a nice find. I remember on my visits to
> Forrest Beckum, first as a preteen and continuing
> till I was in my early 30's, admiring the nice
> ticket cabinet he had on display.
>
> On yours, that does look like a lot of slots for
> only 10 stations. Must have contained nearly every
> combo possible. Have you been able to find any
> tickets to place in it. I know periodically there
> are tickets that would work in your cabinet listed
> on ebay for some railroads, however Ligonier
> Valley Railroad would be quite a find.
>
> Jay

One explanation for the many slots is that the Ligonier Valley Railroad connected with the Pennsylvania Railroad at Latrobe, PA. Maybe tickets were sold for trips to many destinations on the PRR.

A clarification: The ticket dispenser is not mine.

Darlington station: http://www.lvrra.org/

See also page 2 of http://www.lvrra.org/liggies/liggie_dec_2013.pdf

Bacon's Improved Coupon Ticket Cases:
http://books.google.com/books?id=dSNEAQAAIAAJ&lpg=PR58&ots=J3L6Cygxkp&dq=%22american%20railway%20supply%22%20bacon's%20patent&pg=PR58#v=onepage&q=%22american%20railway%20supply%22%20bacon's%20patent&f=false

Note that the small case in question is a tube case rather than a hook/hanger case, and is much more closely related to the "adjustable tube local ticket case' shown at the start of that ad you link to. The local ticket case was patented in 1883, but it gives no information on the patent. Tracking it down would not be impossible, but would probably be a deal of work.

Its a little hard to say if the case in hand is older or newer than the one in the ad. I would suspect a little older, but on the other hand the lack of bric-a-brac may indicate a new and simplified design form a later era.

lwilton Wrote:

> The local ticket case was patented in
> 1883, but it gives no information on the patent.
> Tracking it down would not be impossible, but
> would probably be a deal of work.

Finding a ticket case patented on 2/20/1883 is relatively easy on Google Patents:

https://www.google.com/patents/US272708

However, the name attached to it is Kirk, not Bacon. One Edward P. Bacon does have an 1863 patent for a "suspension rack for coupons, tickets or other articles to which it may be adapted," but it's a much different design from the case in the picture:

https://www.google.com/patents/US40088

There is also a Walter Rathbone Bacon who has ticket-related patents, but none that describe a case like the one in the picture.

Evan_Werkema Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> lwilton Wrote:
>
> > The local ticket case was patented in
> > 1883, but it gives no information on the
> patent.
> > Tracking it down would not be impossible, but
> > would probably be a deal of work.
>
> Finding a ticket case patented on 2/20/1883 is
> relatively easy on Google Patents:
>
> https://www.google.com/patents/US272708
>
> However, the name attached to it is Kirk, not
> Bacon. One Edward P. Bacon does have an 1863
> patent for a "suspension rack for coupons, tickets
> or other articles to which it may be adapted," but
> it's a much different design from the case in the
> picture:
>
> https://www.google.com/patents/US40088
>
> There is also a Walter Rathbone Bacon who has
> ticket-related patents, but none that describe a
> case like the one in the picture.

Evan, I found a biography for Edward Payson Bacon. It mentions
him inventing and patenting a ticket case. It also mentioned
that the patent expired in 1880. Perhaps American Railway
Supply after the patent expired, took Bacon's ticket case and
modified it to what we see in the photo at Darlington Station?


BaltoJoey