Nostalgia & History > Why track pans at Croton-on-Hudson?

Scanned a 1926 NY Central Electric Division
timetable today, and noticed this puzzle.

Once upon a time, Croton-Harmon didn't exist --
engines changed at Harmon, but MU trains
ran to Croton-on-Hudson, 1.17 miles farther
west/north. Obvious question: what's the point
of track pans at Croton-on-Hudson, as shown
on the page below? Just on tracks 1 and 2, so
few? no? freights could use them, and why would
a passenger train need them?

Why was GCT a Water Station?

(If anyone wants the rest of the timetable, speak up.
Dunno how long it will take to get it onto wx4.org.)
 



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 11/04/25 12:28 by timz.

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Did freight trains which originated in the Bronx or 72nd street yatd need them?

The third rail reached at least to Croton North

Posted from Android

So, question is, did freights run thru
Croton-on-Hudson on the inner tracks?

timz Wrote:
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> Why was GCT a Water Station?
>

Say it with me "Steam Generator boiler water". 

Interesting that Rule 108 -- "In case of doubt or uncertainty, the safe course must be taken." -- is "modified accordingly" if the engineman decides that the locomotives need not be uncoupled from the train when taking water at the track pan at Cronton-on-Hudson.

Hakk

chakk Wrote:
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> Interesting that Rule 108 -- "In case of doubt or
> uncertainty, the safe course must be taken." -- is
> "modified accordingly" if the engineman decides
> that the locomotives need not be uncoupled from
> the train when taking water at the track pan at
> Cronton-on-Hudson.
>
> Hakk

Re-read it "Except when scooping at track pans"

By the time I went to work at Harmon Shop 40 years ago, there was no one left from steam days, and trying to get any of that era of historical information was nigh onto impossible.

I understand that all steam passenger operations south of Harmon ended June 20, 1913. The 3rd rail electrification was complete from Grand Central north to High Bridge by January 1907 and High Bridge was an engine change point. Electrification was extened north to Yonkers by April 1908, Tarrytown by November 1911 and Croton -Hudson by February 1913.

In 1926 the Class Q electric freight motors were delivered and I believe that ended steam power south of 72nd Street Yard to 30th Street. Steam lasted into the 72nd Street roundhouse at least as late as 1930. Many of these locomotives were K class Pacifics like K-11c, & K11e and older K-2c and K-2i's, probably among other road power.

A Facebook post shows a 4-8-2 #2824 (Class L2c) at 72nd Street in December 1930 - https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=24934614766168581&set=pcb.4275345946118538

I don't know much more about it, but that would be the reason the pans were kept to at least that 1926 date.

And PHall covered the reason for a water station at Grand Central Terminal, which also would cover passenger car watering and servicing.

When I was at Metro-North I worked at Harmon Shop, but hired out at GCT and was frequently down there. The guys who worked down in there had to wear flea collars around their ankles. Fleas due to the high population of rats. That is the story I got anyway. 



Edited 5 time(s). Last edit at 11/04/25 16:11 by train1275.

So why, when taking water at a water tank, should the engine be uncoupled from the train?

TheApostleGreen Wrote:
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> So why, when taking water at a water tank, should
> the engine be uncoupled from the train?

Because scooping from a track pan is messy.....there could be spray thrown back onto occupied passenger equipment....if closed up it's not a big issue...but ya never know...as for freight equipment it would depend on what you have on the head end...