Eastern Railroad Discussion > Tank car string in Cortland, New York 25 May 2017

Coming back through Cortland NY today which was the returnable bottle crown cap(cork sealed) manufacturing capital of the world AKA Crown City at one time, Brockway Truck inc, Wickwire manufacturing welded wire, Smith corona Marchand-typewriters, New York State Teachers college.

Anyway there is a string of tank cars on the NYSW trackage in the city limits and I did not turn around to go back to look but they did not look like whale belly tank cars that I could tell, Maybe 8,000-10000 gallons?, any one know for sure? I wont be back in Cortland for two weeks so they may be gone by then-Come to think of it they may be Bitumen loads from Alberta, Canada destined for The Suite Kote asphalt terminal over on Route 11 They have to heat them there with low pressure steam to unload them.

leonz Wrote:
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> Coming back through Cortland NY today which was
> the returnable bottle crown cap(cork sealed)
> manufacturing capital of the world AKA Crown City
> at one time, Brockway Truck inc, Wickwire
> manufacturing welded wire, Smith corona
> Marchand-typewriters, New York State Teachers
> college.
>
> Anyway there is a string of tank cars on the NYSW
> trackage in the city limits and I did not turn
> around to go back to look but they did not look
> like whale belly tank cars that I could tell,
> Maybe 8,000-10000 gallons?, any one know for sure?
> I wont be back in Cortland for two weeks so they
> may be gone by then-Come to think of it they may
> be Bitumen loads from Alberta, Canada destined
> for The Suite Kote asphalt terminal over on Route
> 11 They have to heat them there with low pressure
> steam to unload them.

That would be my guess as to why they're there, but would estimate bitumen cars' capacity at more like 21000 gallons.

Here's a Google maps aerial phot URL showing Cortland's Suit Kote Asphalt facility which is built alongside remnants of the DL&W Cincinnatus branch. The facility does handle a fair number of tank cars and apparently NYS&W will store these tank cars at various sidings on its Northern Division.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Cortland,+NY+13045/@42.5914994,-76.1515511,207m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x89da6c78a5a6676d:0xb5d383c6d27fe71b!8m2!3d42.6011813!4d-76.1804843

And here's a URL to Google Maps street view of the DL&W station and crossing tower where tank cars can be seen in a siding alongside the main line: https://www.google.com/maps/@42.6020474,-76.1742078,3a,15y,151.93h,90.67t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1spiZV88kl5u2Vi5F6TO1sdg!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DpiZV88kl5u2Vi5F6TO1sdg%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D163.84282%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

BTW, what's a "typewriter?" ;-)

In the history of Cortland don't forget Brockway trucks. I too notice the strings of tank cars when passing on I-81. Never noticed the NYSW local sitcher though. Even cooler is the giant dragline working the wet gravel on the edge of the pond.

KG

The NYO&W painted switcher was assigned there for several years in the early 2000s.

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