Nostalgia & History > Phoebe Snow 48 Years Ago

Forty Eight years ago today was Wednesday November 23, 1966 the day before Thanksgiving. This was the twelfth day of being a teenager and it was a half day at school. Instead of riding the bus home at noon I walked to the Erie Lackawanna Passenger Station in Elmira, NY to ride a round trip on the Phoebe Snow to Binghamton. The train had five more days to live and the EL kept it in service over the Thanksgiving Holiday period.
The schedules of #1 & #2 made it convenient for a round trip with the Eastbound #2 departing Elmira at 12:40pm arriving in Binghamton at 1:50pm and #1 the Westbound departing Binghamton at 2:55pm and back into Elmira at 4:10pm. This would give time for lunch at the lunch counter in the Binghamton Station.
Going east spent the time riding the Tavern-Lounge #790 while westbound a box car was attached to the obs car so I spent most of the time in the vestibule. At Elmira the box car was pulled off and the yard crew backed up enough for photographers to get a shot of the Tavern-Lounge.
The next Sunday I did ride another round trip to binghamton to ride the last run of the Westbound #1 as #2 made its last run on Monday.
1. EL #2 Phoebe Snow arriving Elmira, NY
2. Tavern-Lounge 790 Binghamton, NY
3. E: #1 Phoebe Snow arriving Binghamton with yard crew ready to attach box car to the rear.

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4. Tavern-Lounge 789 Elmira, NY

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Real nice story and photos. A few others of that time remember taking a trip or two while in High School.

Bob Jordan



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/23/14 08:06 by robj.

EL conductors and brakemen on the old Phoebe Snow, were based out of Hoboken, NJ and Elmira, NY and worked between these two terminals. EL passenger enginemen on the old Phoebe Snow were based out of Scranton, PA and Elmira, NY and worked between these terminals.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 11/25/16 18:21 by RodneyZona.

Thanks for those shots. I rode from Corry, PA to Chicago and return in February of 1965

I very much remember the lounge/obs with the glass partition walls. Even at 8 I was fascinated that the glass didn't break!

Had my first "real" (non-MU) train ride on the Phoebe too!

Tom Y

Growing up in NY's Southern Tier along the Erie/DL&W/EL/LV in the '50s-'60s, I love these pictures! Thanks for posting.

The Erie Lackawanna Ltd/Phoebe Snow and Atlantic Express were mid-day trains across the Tier. Would you happen to have any photos of the Atlantic Express, which by the '60s was a mail/express heavy train with an always intriguing dog's breakfast consist (including a steam/signal line equipped TOFC flat car) trailed by a single Stilwell rider coach?