Crewe Question

Mon Mar 21 09:08:55 EDT 2022

Abe

From the N&W Magazine, July 1944, excerpt from the Story of our Shops

Crewe Shop 
  Prior to 1888 there was no shop at Crewe, but in that year the engine terminal was changed from Petersburg to Crewe and a shop was constructed. The original shop consisted of: A 21- stall Roundhouse, a Machine Shop (40 feet by 105 feet), a Storehouse (40 feet by 60 feet), and a Coal Wharf of the trestle type which was moved from Wilson and enlarged. The turntable then serving the Roundhouse was 60 feet long and was built in what is known as the Greenleaf pattern. 
  In 1891, the Machine Shop at Crewe was extended and connected to the Storehouse. Records show that a heavier turntable, of the same length as the original turntable, was installed in 1902. During the following year, a 300-ton link-belt coal, sand and ash station was erected. This station still serves locomotives with coal and sand, but the use of ash-handling equipment has been discontinued and an Eckman type hoist substituted.
  The present brick Power House was constructed in 1912. Originally 71 feet by 86 feet, the Power House was enlarged in 1916. In 1914, the Roundhouse was enlarged and increased to 25 stalls. Five years later a 115-foot turntable was installed. 
  With the exception of the additions and betterments mentioned, the original shop buildings constructed in 1888 - when Crewe was first used as an engine terminal-remain in service. Records indicated that the original Storehouse was burned in 1895, and a new building of similar construction and size was erected in its place. 
  In May, 1942, a Coach Yard-with a capacity of 44 coaches-was placed in service to take care of servicing passenger equipment to be used for troop movements. The Yard has four tracks with facilities for battery charging, watering, icing, heating and brake testing. A building was erected for housing supplies and cleaning equipment. 
The supervisory personnel of Crewe Shop from 1888 to the present time is as follows: N. W. Norsworthy served from 1888 until his death in 1915. He was succeeded by W. J. Yingling who served from 1915 to 1918. Names of succeeding general foremen, from 1918 to the present, are: J. L. Barry (1918 to 1919), W. H. Dee (1919 to 1921), F. D. Veazey (1921 to 1923), Roy Gable (1923 to 1924), F. R. Forrest and O. W. Hendricks both served in 1924 and were succeeded in the same year by J. R. Wheary. On March 1, Mr. Wheary retired and was succeeded by W. S. Garrett.

Best
Ken Miller

> On Mar 20, 2022, at 10:34 PM, NW Mailing List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org> wrote:
> 
> Today I was looking at an 1873 map of the C&O RR, in the Library of Congress collection.
> 
> A few miles south of the C&O, down in N&W territory, that map did not show Crewe, Virginia.  Interesting.  The stations were Nottoway Court House to the east, and Burkeville to the west.  No Crewe.  Missing.
> 
> This makes sense, since the railroad companies of that time (and their men and equipment) ran only Norfolk to Petersburg, and Petersburg to Lynchburg.
> 
> So it would appear that there was no infrastructure (to use a trendy word popularized by the elites) at Crewe until the Norfolk & Petersburg and the Southside Rail Roads were merged and combined their operations.
> 
> And that leads to my question:  When were Crewe Yard and its appurtenances (a juicy lawyer word)  build, and when did Crewe begin to function as an engine terminal and crew terminal?  I have never seen this mentioned or discussed anywhere.
> 
> Begging you to indulge my ignorance.  I have lived a sheltered life...
> 
> -- abram burnett
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