[PRCo] West Penn Railways Discussion

[Edward H. Lybarger]

I actually have numerous comments and clarifications to what's been said
thus far but don't have time to articulate them all this afternoon.  I will
work on this soon!

A safe starting point in discussing West Penn is to absolutely and
positively distrust anything written by railfans.  That's not to say that
they were always wrong, but they weren't generally businesspeople and didn't
really have a good handle on why things actually happened.  Some thought
that the cars were there for their own enjoyment, which is about as far
removed from the truth as can be.

Many of today's enthusiasts have a much better grasp of economics than the
gang that wrote these histories, so it's easier for the real facts to be
understood.  But to emphasize what Fred has said so far...West Penn didn't
last because miners didn't want to soil their cars, and didn't die because
of the advent of TV.  Both of those have been stated as "facts" when in fact
they are not!

I would highly commend to anyone interested in the economics and chronology
of the Connellsville Coke Region a recent book:

Warren, Kenneth   WEALTH, WASTE, and ALIENATION: Growth and Decline in the
Connellsville Coke Industry   University of Pittsburgh Press, 2001

In it you will find evidence that the Coke Region was doomed about four
years after West Penn built its final branch.

I will get back to this subject.

Ed