Nostalgia & History > And then there was the EL. Big time railroad, just not needed!

The Erie Lackawanna became a passion for me between 1973 and its demise in 1976. It was a first class operation on a third class budget. To be sure, it was surplus to the design changes being drawn up for the railroads of the Northeast. There were so many things against its survival, that one could write a book, and as a matter of fact, one was written. Titled "Erie Lackawanna; The Death Of An American Railroad," chronicaled the demise of the road, and the industry in general during that period. Labor laws, regulatory burdens, declining traffic, and natural disasters were too much for sure, but like Lehigh Valley, it hustled to the end. Its clutter free routing made it a favorite of UPS and other time sensitive shippers, but it was not enough to offset all of the aforementioned issues. We'l look at just a few things that made it a magnet for railfan photographers, and railfans in general. I would be remiss in not mentioning the men who worked on this railroad. Dedicated to the core, they made the day to day operations work in spite of the impending doom they knew was coming. A nicer bunch of folks, I never met!

top...eastbound at Levittsburg Ohio, is taking the bypass around Youngstown

middle...On the former Lackawanna, NYY100 is lead by D&H numbered SD45. Three SD45s were swapped for three U33Cs. All were sapped back to original owners when Conrail came about

bottom...Sweet spot, RU tower at Sterling Ohio. Eastbound is about to cross B&O diamond

Bill Rettberg
Bel Air, MD



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/18/23 11:44 by Roadjob.

---

---

---

top...Looking lost at the massive Hornell shops

middle...Jefferson Jct. EL is coming off of the D&H connector a few mies east of Susquehanna

bottom...eastbound being helped out of Scranton

Bill Rettberg
Bel Air, MD



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/19/23 03:02 by Roadjob.

---

---

---

top...westbounds at Hornell

middle...wide clearance moves were very common on the Erie side of the railroad

bottom...westbound OCS leaving Buffalo
 

Bill Rettberg
Bel Air, MD

---

---

---

These truly bring honor to the EL. How sad it was put into Conrail. The EL is really missed.
Bob

Great images !
I grew up next to the EL and it took the first day of Conrail before I got my butt in gear to really take photos before everything disappeared.

The book you referenced; "Erie Lackawanna; The Death Of An American Railroad," is super !  Not only because it is an excellent account of the demise of the EL, but it is a book that should be required reading for any business school student as the broader scope pertains not only to the the EL or railroads, but business in general.

Image #2 with that 800 series SD45 looks like a westbound at Erwins on the ex ERIE west of Corning / Gang Mills.
Image #6 may be the SE-98 ? The joint EL / CNJ train interchanged at Lake Junction, NJ. Nice catch, really nice pusher set !!

Image #9, Where would this train be going west of Buffalo ? Out the Buffalo & Southwestern ? And your caption works my brain cells as I wonder when the term OCS developed. I don't think I heard it until well into Conrail years, maybe the '80's. Back in the day they were called Business Trains (at least under the rock I lived under). I was in Utica in early 1981 when Stanley Crane first came through. As Utica was the Penn Central / Conrail HQ for the Mohawk-Hudson Division there was plenty of chatter and speculation about Crane and what he might see and what they didn't want him to see as he passed by. Everyone called it "Stanley Crane's Business Train". 

Thanks for all the EL memories. I miss those days, and I really miss the people. Most of the guys I knew are gone now, and the ones left it is always a thrill to converse with and talk about the old days. They were one proud bunch !!
 



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/18/23 06:13 by train1275.

Photos of the EL - by Mr. Rettberg - what a great way to start the day!  Thank you!

Matthew

Great look back at E-L. I only caught a few brief glimpses of the E-L and only in and around the off the beaten track in the cement belt of Pennsylvania.
Thanks for the post.
Gonut

I'm another one that really misses the EL.
Another great series of images - special because all Erie Lackawanna !
Gary

Great bunch as always Bill.  Number 9 is the OCS business train heading out on the Buffalo and Southwestern taken from the Tifft St overpass.  Those track are now the Buffalo Southern Railroad.

Marvelous images, Bill! I always admired EL (Erie remains my favorite eastern road) for just the reasons you note, and in a perfect world they'd be with us today. Thanks for all your work getting these superb shots and sharing them with us!

Great EL set, at least they went out still looking good and with some fight in the soul...

JG



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/18/23 08:54 by jgilmore.

Seeing these makes me wish I had spent more time and taken more shots of the EL.

Posted from Android

Excellent series!!

Larry

For Roadjob:  In the early days of Conrail, it was possible to find an EL unit or two in Kingston, or more properly, passing through it.  I was fortunate enough to catch this one (southbound) at the Flatbush Avenue (NYS #32) crossing many years ago.  Hope you like it!

---

Stunning collection of images. 
—Mac

I always hate to repeat myself for the fear of sounding corny or worse, insincere. But doggonnit Bill, you're gonna FORCE me to learn a couple new languages! I think I've run out of all possible combinations of English words when delivering compliments about your killer photography. There is an 'upside' in this reply, though: "No Merriam-Webster dictionaries were harmed in the 8 or so minutes it took me to compose these words"...

;^)

Thank you so much, what a marvellous post.

What can I say Bill, you know I love these. Good post !

Roger Durfee
Akron, OH

Thanks for stirring up the memories for this DG (MNJ) guy. I have fond remembrances of the DW (Middletown) local crew. A fun bunch to work with and they were devoted to keeping their RR running no matter what came their way.

Every one a winner !  Gotta love that power combo in photo #1.