photo location

[NW Mailing List]

On Wed, Jun 6, 2018 at 3:53 AM,
Jim
 wrote:

All,
> The following photo on Ebay
>
> RR Print-Norfolk & Western NW 2105 at Bluefield WV 1/23/1959
> <https://www.ebay.com/itm/RR-Print-Norfolk-Western-NW-2105-at-Bluefield-WV-1-23-1959/202327297103?hash=item2f1ba58c4f:g:fmIAAOSwn8pbEAE6>
> is shown to be made in Bluefield.  I don't recall the seeing another
> picture  of Bluefield showing the structure in the background.  Based on
> the funky looking trackwork, I am guessing this might be a weighing station
> of some kind.  Can anyone shed some more light on the images location?  Was
> it Bluefield and if so where exactly in the yard, what was the function and
> how was it used?
>

​As Jimmy said, those are retarders, which slow down a car as it goes from
the top of the hump down into the classification tracks.

As to the photo, Bluefield does/did have a tower like that, on the north
side of the east yard. But I don't recall seeing retarders in the yard; I
don't know that Bluefield did much if any classification (and it would be a
challenge given the grade in the yard). Perhaps the location is wrong and
that is actually Portsmouth, which did have a hump and classification yard.

Bruce in Blacksburg
​
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