"Takin' Twenty" with the Virginian Brethren by Skip Salmon

[NW Mailing List]

Skip:
 
Another minor item, the 44 tonner #6 was pure GE, not part of the Alco-GE  
arrangement for bigger switchers and road locomotives.  The latter were  
built in Schenectady by Alco and had the GE electricals out of Erie installed  
there; the marketing and service was joint.  (All this is well known, I'm  
just repeating to lay the foundation for the difference with the mining and  
industrial locomotives.).  The small mining and industrial locos (such as  
the one that became Vgn #6) were built by GE in Erie (except for a few built 
in  Brazil in later years) and were solely their responsibility.
 
No biggie, but an error that occasionally creeps in.  I realize you  were 
quoting someone.
 
Regards,
 
Dave Phelps
(GE Erie retiree)
 
 
In a message dated 2/17/2011 8:18:26 A.M. Eastern Standard Time,  
nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org writes:

 
Skip, 
Just  a minor correction to the peanut plants in Suffolk.  The correct  
identification for Bird Song Peanuts is Birdsong Peanuts.  Making that  
correction as a friend of the family.  I really enjoy the weekly  email.  Keep up 
the great work. 
 
H. Daniel Winter  III 
435 Willwood  Drive 
Earlysville, VA  22936 
434-989-9313
 
 
From:  nw-mailing-list-bounces at nwhs.org 
[mailto:nw-mailing-list-bounces at nwhs.org]  On Behalf Of NW Mailing List
Sent: Thursday, February 17,  2011 7:23 AM
To: NW Mailing List
Subject: "Takin' Twenty"  with the Virginian Brethren by Skip Salmon

 
Last night I had the pleasure of "Takin'  Twenty" with eight of the 
Brethren and Friends of the Virginian Railway. We  signed a Happy Birthday card for 
Bill Daniel, son of VGN carpeck George Daniel  and grandson of New River 
Superintendent Daniel.

Several items were  passed around and perused. The first is a photo 
discovered during our workday  session at the N&W (and VGN) Historical Society 
Archives. It is of the  Virginian Station in Roanoke taken about 1960, right 
after the merger. It  shows a lot of merchandise including bales of hay and 
sacks of stuff, track  side. I suspect this was taken shortly after the 
Connelly family leased the  larger building for a feed and seed store.

Also passed was a 58 page  booklet that I intend to donate to the Archives 
of "N&W Definitions". I  could not find a date in the book. Examples of NW 
definitions of that time  are: "crib": the ballast between two adjacent ties 
is "in the crib";  "lookout": caboose cupola; and the abbreviation "A/C": 
account (NOT air  conditioning which was not in the book). It was ironic 
because Lee Mosley,  retired NS employee attended our session, and in the 60s, he 
was a shop  engineer and he was the editor of this book. He said that it 
was started in  the early sixties, just after the merger so all employees 
would use the same  terms, and was given to all new employees in the engine and 
transportation  service.

The Jewel from the Past is from February 3, 2005: "Tonight I  had the 
pleasure of 'Takin Twenty' with 10 of the Brethren including first  timer Raymond 
S. Keffer who worked as a brakeman at Suffolk. Raymond told us  about the 
many peanut plants there, including the big Planters Plant that at  one time 
employed over 5,000. Others he remembered were Pond and Bird Song  Peanuts. 
He said at Christmas, you could buy all of the peanut products at  wholesale 
prices. He worked on the famous VGN Steam Switcher SA 0-8-0 #4 when  
switching in the area and didn't especially like the little Alco-GE 380 HP  diesel 
switcher #6. It couldn't pull the hills like the old #4 steamer".  (Note: 
#4 is the only VGN steam engine saved from the scrap heap and is in the  
Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke.)

I showed the Brethren a  photo I took last Friday of a work train at the 
Station Siding in Hardy, MP  V234. On the rear was NS caboose 555023 which has 
been stricken by a graffito  "artist". Another of my photos included two 
questions for the Brethren. It  showed a westbound on the old Virginian at MP 
V253 in Salem. The answers to  the questions are: Westbound merchandise 
trains are sort of rare on the  Whitethorne District and the old L&M Tannery 
water tower is in the photo.  It is dated 2-28-06 and the tower was taken down 
soon after this. Another  project and photo was discussed with the Brethren. 
I have gained permission  and given a 1950s photo (on a compact disc) by 
the N&W HS that I can use  for a project involving a handout sometime in the 
future when the old  Virginian Complex (Roundhouse, Freight House, Motor Barn 
etc.) is toured.  Carilion Medical Canter now occupies this space with a 
Research Center and the  VA Tech Medical School. I can make about any size 
photo needed from the disc  and intend to ask Carilion to work with me to make 
a "before and after"  handout for future tours for our use, and theirs. The 
photo shows all  buildings, tracks, roads, Victory Stadium, Roundhouse, 
Armory etc. that were  standing in the 1950s.

John McDaniel, my VGN source in Wabun, brought  me a copy of "On Track with 
Safety-Virginia Division" of Jan-Mar 2000. On page  63 is shown Assistant 
Superintendent Benny F. Sammons giving Landon M.  Gregory, Westbound 
Booking-Out Clerk, his 30-year Service Award Pin from NS.  Could there be two Landon 
Gregorys? Our Landon Gregory, VGN dispatcher, never  heard of the other 
Landon Gregory and said he was named after Alf Landon who  ran for president in 
1936.

Gordon Hamilton's latest "Bluefield Daily  Telegraph" item of June 25, 1911 
was passed around. This one was about the  "ultimate location of the VGN 
shops in Princeton to possibly Salem".  Apparently some Salem businessmen 
tried to get the Shops moved. Princeton at  one time accused Roanoke of 
"stealing VGN SA #4, but stealing the shops in  Princeton I guess "just wasn't in 
the cards"!

Time to pull the pin on  this one!

Departing Now from V248,

Skip  Salmon

CCCLV
 
__._,_.___  



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