[PRCo] Re: Rails to Pittsburgh

[Carl Zager]

Jim,

Unlike Bob, I never saw the 1964 edition. I was in college and working up
in Greenville and didn't spend much time home in Pittsburgh, except to
visit my wife-to-be on holidays. My mother-in-law bought us the Lorant
book for a Christmas present, probably 1981/82. She always clipped the
price corner off the cover!

We had moved out here to Bloomington, IN, by then, and I would spend hours
looking over the photos. I think it probably did more to give me a feel
for what Downtown "looked" like than my own recollections of what it
"felt" like.

I had attended and worked at the old YMCA on Wood Street from 1953-61 and
worked at the old UA Penn Theater (now Heinz Hall) in 1960-61.  when I was
working both jobs, I used to try and find different routes from the Y to
6th and Penn. I think of myself now as sort of a "city rat," walking the
alleys, riding the Crosstown, looking at buildings. Weird.

I like anything that has photos that give you insight into how structures
related to each other and to the streets. We had a similar discussion
(maybe last year) about the 6th and Penn intersection -- the hotel, the
theater and the Mayflower, Jenkins Arcade (a mall in the city), and the
drugstore ... the three theaters (Penn, Fulton, Harris) in a line up to
the bridge.

I love the Lorant book, though.

On Thu, 14 Jun 2001, Bob Rathke wrote:
>
> A good list.
>
> I've wondered about others' use of a book that has been my basic reference on
> PCC cars for years - "PCC Cars of North America" by Harold Cox, Community
> Press, Philadelphia, 1963.  72 pages - half photos, and the other half rosters
> and car specs.  Arranged by states/provinces, and then cities operating PCC's.
> Cost was $2 in 1963.
>
> I've got two editions of the Lorant book, "Pittsburgh" - the original 1964
> edition which was a large coffee table book that sold for $12.50; the later
> edition, from 1980, is smaller, but it was updated and printed on high gloss
> paper - it sold for $22.95.  Another good reference book.
>
> Bob 6/14/01
>
> -------------------------
>
> Jim Holland wrote:
>
> > > Carl Zager wrote:
> >
> > > This thread prompted me to head to my bookshelves. Don't know whether any
> > > of this is of interest, but I had nothing to do last night <grin>.
> >
> > > Books:
> > > + Rails to Pittsburgh, W.A. Feibelman, Superior (Bonanza), 1979, $15.95
> >
> > CARL::  THANKS  for your excellent listing.  I have all the PRCo
> > trolleycar stuff, including the Pgh. book by Lorant.
> >
> >         What do you think of the book above as far as showing good downtown
> > Pgh. scenes?  Does not need to include trolleycars.
> >
> > ====================
> > Jim
>
>

 Carl Zager						KB9RVB
 czager at bloomington.in.us         http://www.mccsc.edu/~czager