[PRCo] Re: carhouses & connections

[Bob Rathke]

The Chestnut and E. Ohio St. barn was still in existence in the early 1960's.  At
that time it was a Gulf gasoline station (Zwick's Garage), and the barn building
(or possibly a successor building) was their garage.  I recall being inside this
building and seeing rail poking through the floor (the garage owner may have spread
concrete over the earth and tracks).

The barn was about 150 feet east of Chestnut St., and on the south side of E. Ohio
St., rather close to the curb (just enough space for gas pumps and a couple of car
lanes between the building and the street.  The geometry of the streets at this
location has totally changed in the past 20+ years, and the new E. Ohio St.
(actually a ramp leading to the E. Ohio St. interchange) is now some distance BELOW
the level of the carbarn site.

And some of the barns on the 1945 list (below) saw trolleys well past their closing
dates.  I have a photo of a PCC moving out of the Herron Hill barn in 1957 (it was
probably a fantrip), and although used for other purposes (rail storage?) by PRC
and PAT, I believe that the Glenwood property still had some active trackage in
1964.

Bob 5/5/01

-------------------------------

Jim Holland wrote:

> >> Dennis F. Cramer wrote:
>
> >>     Unfortunately, I do not have PCC From Coast to Coast in my library as of
> >> yet.  (I know, slap my hands) so the question of carhouses goes unanswered.
> >> To sweeten the pot:   How many carhouses were there?  What was their
> >> location?  How many are left and what are their uses today?
>
> > Jim Holland wrote:
>
> > Here are the Car Houses of 1945 and the year they closed:::::::
>
> >         Carrick - 1954
> >         Craft Ave - 1967
> >         Charleroi - 1953
> >         Glenwood - 1961
> >         Homewood - 1960 (still did heavy repair on PCCs after 1960.)
> >         Herron Hill - 1951
> >         Highland Park - 1954
> >         Ingram - 1959
> >         Keating - 1965
> >         Millvale - 1952
> >         Manchester - 1959
> >         Plummer Street - 1954
> >         Rankin - dead storage until 1967
> >         South Hills - 198x
> >         Tylerdale - 1953
>
> Dennis - you might like to get Ben Rohrbeck's book:::::::
>         'Pittsburg's Car Barns, 1900--1909'
>                 (Spelling above is correct for time period.)
>
> Other Car Houses:::::::
>
>         Homestead on E. 3rd St and E. Beech Alley
>         Braddock on Braddock, 13th, Spring Alley
>         Wilmerding on Fifth and Middle
>         McKeesport
>         Lowrie at Lookout - end of 4-line.
>         Chestnut, E. Ohio St. near 16th.
>         Charles St.
>         Taggart btwn Taggart and Brighton
>         Emsworth
>         Coraopolis
>         West Park, 2-parts
>         Carnegie
>         West End near Point Bridge
>         Hilltop on Carbon near end of 44-line
>         Thirtieth St. on E. Carson
>         Butler Street
>
> Could be others?!?!?!?!(:->)
>         Ben's book gives diagram of track layout for that period.
>
> --
> James B. Holland
>
>         Pittsburgh  Railways  Company  (PRCo),   1930  --  1950
>     To e-mail privately, please click here: mailto:pghpcc at pacbell.net
> N.M.R.A.  Life member #2190; http://www.mcs.net:80/~weyand/nmra/