[PRCo] Re: Trolley Pole Dewirements

[Bob Rathke]

>From 1972-78 I rode the Drake trolley five days a week from Brookside to downtown
and return, and then rode it frequently from 1978-83.   I remember dewirements
occuring at various random locations; not a lot of dewirements, though, and mostly
between Washington Jct. and Brookside.  There were probably more trolley (car)
breakdowns than there were dewirements in that era.  I remember numerous incidents
that required a pusher car or a bus shuttle - everywhere from Overbrook to Drake.

Bob 4/1/01


Jim Holland wrote:

> Rich Wagner of  *Wagner Car Company*  and  *Trolley Talk*  always said
> that the flanged wheel and trolley pole//harp are the symbols of the
> traction community.
>
>         I was always fascinated with both as well and the symmetry of the
> overhead and the way the trolleypole tracked always fascinated me!
> Dewirements were a fascination as well but seemed very few and far
> between!
>
>         Don't remember any dewirements on Drake except possibly outbound thru
> the turnout at Wash. Jct once.  Drake used directional frogs at the
> sidings.  And only one dewirement on Library inbound leaving Simmons
> loop.
>
>         And NO dewirements between Wash. Jct and Castle Shannon as well as NO
> dewirements on the single track gauntlet wire on Overbrook.
>
>         Remember one dewirement inbound near Poplar with an operator in
> training.  Also one inbound near Overbrook Blvd. or Inglewood inbound,
> South Park special with mostly *foreign* riders coming home from the
> Fair who only rode the interurban on this occasion.  It was at night and
> Walther was operating the car; people got dead quiet when the lights
> went out.  One other time in the daytime Walther was operating about the
> same location and we had a dewirement; John Swindler took a movie of me
> replacing the pole!
>
>         And I only remember 2-dewirements outbound on Overbrook, both the same
> day, both the same trip, and obviously the same car - 1710.  Pole spring
> might have been weak and trolley retriever was bad as Charlie (who
> else?!(:=>))  had a terrible time resetting it!  The pole dewired
> crossing the Elwyn trestle at just average speed - we had taken it much
> faster before - and we coasted to the grade crossing at Cretestone to
> replace the pole.  Then as we crossed CS Blvd into Castle Shannon the
> pole came off again.
>
>         Don't remember any dewirements at SHJ - absolutely amazing considering
> the web of overhead.  Charlie dewired once entering a yard track, but
> that is it!
>
>         Never saw nor experienced any dewirements at Smithfield and Carson but
> the interurban inbound turning from the bridge onto the ramp was going
> thru a spiral easement which is a tricky location for the pole to follow
> correctly and remember a dewirement or two here.  NEVER  saw a
> dewirement from Grant to Liberty nor Liberty to Wood nor Wood to Water
> and the cars used to whip thru the latter turn!
>
>         Those are the only dewirements I remember on the interurbans and I was
> on them as often or more than my hometown 42-Dormont!
>
>         And on my hometown line, dewirements were extremely few.  If the spring
> switch failed and a car backed out of the 42-line wye the wrong way the
> pole would dewire.  Also, outbound, the frog leading into the wye saw
> tremendous use and the runners wore to that direction and sometimes
> caused the owl going straight thru to MtLebanon at 1.25-AM to dewire -
> the flashing could be seen from my window!
>         Outbound between Hillsdale and Alabama was a gentle banked curve to the
> left.  At one point the banking leveled out and the wire was out of
> alignment so it caused a sharp angle in the overhead and would sometimes
> throw poles.  The line car was out one day and I mentioned where I saw
> the pole dewire; they then tapped that hanger toward the inside of the
> curve to remove the angle and it was fine after that.
>         And outbound where the 42 split from the 38//39 was a shallow angle
> turnout where my father and I experienced a dewirement on 1454 coming
> home from a baseball game.  Remember the number because it was the
> number of the house across the street from ours!
>         And inbound thru the yard once, possibly on the 38-line, a hanger was
> broken with the ear perpendicular to and below the contact wire which
> caused us to dewire.  Isadore Reichert didn't believe me but when we
> were heading outbound an inbound 39-line car hit that at tremendous
> speed and went about 5-6 car lengths before getting his car stopped.
> Izzy saw the hanger then and called it in!
>         Saw a dewirement at Clearview loop - wire seemed higher here and this
> might have contributed and we dewired outbound once on a city 17 with
> mushy springs at the 38//39 junction.
>         Never experienced a dewirement downtown on the 38//39//42 lines -
> Never!
>
>         There was a trailing turnout from Stanwix at Fort Duquesne (connection
> from the West End lines) and only 1000--series cars would dewire thru
> this frog - no others!  Watched it for several hours!
>         And inbound on Federal passing thru the underpass of the RR on a
> 17-city car the pole dewired 3-times - probably a badly worn wheel with
> a groove which could snag the wire!
>         Saw an 88-line dewire outbound on Liberty thru the first turn after
> Butler - too fast around the turn!
>
>         Don't remember any dewirements on 56-McKeesport, very popular
> Sunday--pass ride; none on 87, don't remember any in East Liberty near
> where grandparents lived!  And off-hand, don't remember any others.
>
>         Quite amazing for the amount of riding I did there!
>
> --
> James B. Holland
>
>         Pittsburgh  Railways  Company  (PRCo),   1930  --  1950
>     To e-mail privately, please click here: mailto:pghpcc at pacbell.net
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