[PRCo] Re: Last car on 6/14

[Bob Rathke]

There was more than one car chasing - and pacing - the trolleys on Fineview
on 4/30/66.  I remember seeing the VW that day, but I don't know who was
driving it.  I also remember the full-size car that rode in front of the
trolley - the trunk lid had been removed from the car, and two or more
photographers were in the trunk shooting the moving PCC.

I didn't do much chasing that day.  I lived less than two miles from
Fineview, and so for weeks - months - before April 30 I had been out
photographing the line every weekend and many evenings.  On April 30 I
concentrated on getting more distant, wide angle views showing scenery and
people with the trolleys.

I am still in touch with a couple of the April, 1966 photographers, but
neither of them owned the VW.

Bob 10/12/04

-----------------------------
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Boris Cefer" <westinghouse at volny.cz>
To: "PRCo" <pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org>
Sent: Tuesday, October 12, 2004 1:19 AM
Subject: [PRCo] Re: Last car on 6/14


> Thanks for sharing these sad photos, Bob.
>
> Have you any clue who was taking moving pictures of Fineview cars from an
> automobile (?Beetle?) during the last day? The automobile is on several
> shots in the Steel City Traction video.
>
> Boris
>
> ----- Original Message -----
>
>
> > Content-Type: text/plain;
> > charset="iso-8859-1"
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> > April 30, 1966 was a busy day - the last day for trolleys on the North =
> > Side.  I was out early that Saturday morning driving back anf forth =
> > among photographic locations on 21-Fineview and 6/14 Avalon.  By =
> > afternoon it was raining, but fans were appearing everywhere, especially
=
> > on Finevew.
> >
> > Later in the afternoon the rain stopped, and after sunset I started to =
> > take photos using a tripod and #5 flashbuls.  Then I rode the last =
> > scheduled car - 1678 - on 21-Fineview.  When the last trolley returned =
> > downtown (it then went to Tunnel Car House), I got off and ran to catch
=
> > the last trolley on 6/14-Avalon outbound from Penn Avenue.  The car - =
> > 1799 - was jammed, but there was an even larger crowd waiting for us at
=
> > the Avalon loop.  By that time it was near Midnight, and the Mayor =
> > (Burgess?) of Avalon and other dignitaries made brief speeches.  Then =
> > the riders re-boarded the trolley for the silent ride back downtown.  It
=
> > was now May 1, and trolleys were gone from the Northside.
> >
> > I am attaching low-res scans of a couple of the B&W photos that I took =
> > of 1799 that evening:
> >
> > The first shot was taken as I ran to board 1799 downtown.  It was =
> > already SRO.  Note the black flag, and the two photographers running in
=
> > front of me.
> >
> > The crowd photo was taken at the Avalon loop as we reboarded the car.  I
=
> > believe that the man in the black suit and hat, talking to the motorman,
=
> > is John Dameron.
> >
> > Bob 10/11/04
>
>