As I think I understand it, the wide firebox was the reason why camelbacks came to be in the era. Having the cab set over one end of a wide firebox would have dominated the cab space, leaving little room for the crew. Speaking of camelbacks, I love the photo below taken at Flemington, NJ at the end of the CNJ's branch from Somerville. Passenger service ended in 1953 when this photo was taken. The branch was embargoed in the mid-1970s and a segment between Flemington and Three Bridges was acquired by the BR&W RR to serve some industries in the area. A PRR branch connected here with the CNJ. In this picture, the CNJ's two story passenger station can be seen where Main St. crosses the line. The station survives today as a bank. The nearby freight station stands too. The turntable in the foreground is long removed, but it spawned tourist shopping mecca Turntable Junction in the mid-1960s.
NS 30A holds Main 2 in Hershey, PA, waiting for H24 to clear. The smokestacks once were part of the powerhouse for Hershey's main factory, which stretched from the foreground to behind the train. Visible behind the train a portion of the factory no longer used for manufacturing has been converted to offices.
Oh wow, the Sea Girt shot includes SG Tower to the left. Photo below shows SG looking back toward the station. A PRR branch connected with the NY&LB at SG and passenger service was provided by the PRR to Trenton until 1962. In 1964 the branch was removed from Sea Girt to Farmingdale.
I remember going with my father to the Manasquan station to pick up friends who had taken the train down from Trenton. I don't remember the Sea Girt station, although they must have been close.
I get kind of confused as to the order of NY&LB stations. In 02/1983 I was blessed to have been able to ride LV 353 from Newark to Bay Head and back. I thought of taking station pictures from the rear as we went along but decided to just relax and enjoy the ride instead.
This is a nice book that features vintage photos of NY&LB stations that I've had since it was published in 1985. You may enjoy a copy. Along with all of the other Erie books in the series, most are still available at low cost. It's where I found the above picture of SG Tower.
The Sea Girt station would have been about a mile north of Manasquan. NJ Transit no longer has a stop there and the next station north of Manasquan is at Spring Lake. The former Sea Girt station building is now used as a library.
Oops. sorry, in my last post (with the AF Atlantic), I lost track of what thread I was in. Thanks for the likes, anyway. Doug
Oh, be still my heart... It was a lovely lady like this that got me started 50 years ago this year... Talk about a boyhood crush!
At least it has not been all chopped up by a string of failed restaurants, etc. What is the meaning of "Girt"???