-40%

ERIE RAILROAD LANTERN ADAMS & WESTLAKE COMPANY ERIE RR 1895

$ 224.4

Availability: 100 in stock
  • Return shipping will be paid by: Buyer
  • All returns accepted: Returns Accepted
  • Restocking Fee: No
  • Modified Item: No
  • Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
  • Condition: Vintage Lantern in good condition 1895!
  • Refund will be given as: Money Back
  • Brand: ADAMS & WESTLAKE COMPANY
  • Item must be returned within: 30 Days

    Description

    ERIE RAILROAD
    This Vintage piece of Railroad History, made by
    THE ADAMS AND WESTLAKE COMPANY
    for the
    ERIE RAILROAD
    . This lantern is marked
    THE ADAMS AND WESTLAKE COMPANY CHICAGO NEW YORK ERIE.R.R.
    PATENTED MAY 28, 1895. The brass burner is marked
    THE P & A MFG CO.
    and is in good working condition. There is a crack in the burner, see photo 12. The Corning clear glass globe is embossed
    E.R.R.Co
    . MADE IN U.S.A. Cnx,
    No cracks or chips
    .
    Please view photos and email with questions. Thanks for looking.
    Erie Railroad
    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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    Erie Railroad
    Wikimedia
    | ©
    OpenStreetMap
    A map of all the rails the Erie ever had rights over
    Overview
    Headquarters
    New York, New York (1832–1931)
    Cleveland, Ohio (1931–60)
    Reporting mark
    ERIE
    Locale
    New Jersey
    Pennsylvania
    New York
    Ohio
    Indiana
    Illinois
    Dates of operation
    1832–1960
    Successor
    Erie Lackawanna Railway
    Technical
    Track gauge
    4 ft
    8
    +
    1

    2
    in
    (
    1,435 mm
    )
    standard gauge
    Previous gauge
    6 ft
    (
    1,829 mm
    ) gauge
    Length
    2,316 miles (3,727 kilometers)
    The
    Erie Railroad
    (
    reporting mark
    ERIE
    ) was a
    railroad
    that operated in the
    northeastern United States
    , originally connecting
    New York City
    — more specifically
    Jersey City, New Jersey
    , where Erie's
    Pavonia Terminal
    , long demolished, used to stand — with
    Lake Erie
    . It expanded west to Chicago with its 1865 merger with the former
    Atlantic and Great Western Railroad
    , also known as the
    New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio Railroad
    (NYPANO RR). Its mainline route proved influential in the development and economic growth of the
    Southern Tier
    of New York State, including cities such as
    Binghamton
    ,
    Elmira
    , and
    Hornell
    . The Erie Railroad repair shops were located in Hornell and was Hornell's largest employer. Hornell was also where Erie's mainline split into two routes, one north to
    Buffalo
    and the other west to Chicago.
    On October 17, 1960, the Erie merged with former rival
    Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad
    to form the
    Erie Lackawanna Railroad
    . The Hornell repair shops were closed when
    Conrail
    took over, and repair operations moved to the Lackawanna's
    Scranton
    facility. This had a devastating effect on Hornell from which it has never recovered. (The repair shops have subsequently been used, intermittently, for the assembly of
    railroad
    and
    transit cars
    .) It is now run by
    Alstom
    . Some of the former Erie line between Hornell and Binghamton was damaged in 1972 by the floods of
    Hurricane Agnes
    , but the damage was quickly repaired and today this line is a key link in the
    Norfolk Southern Railway
    's Southern Tier mainline. What was left of the Erie Lackawanna became part of Conrail in 1976.
    [1]
    In 1983, Erie remnants became part of
    New Jersey Transit rail operations
    , including parts of its
    Main Line
    . Today most of the surviving Erie Railroad routes are operated by the
    Norfolk Southern Railway
    .
    Contents
    1
    History
    1.1
    New York and Erie Rail Road: 1832–61
    1.2
    Erie Railway: 1861–78
    1.3
    New York, Lake Erie and Western Railroad: 1878–95
    1.4
    Erie Railroad: 1895–1960
    2
    Lines operated
    3
    Passenger service
    4
    Company officers
    5
    Heritage unit
    6
    See also
    7
    Notes
    8
    References
    9
    Further reading
    9.1
    Primary sources
    10
    External links
    History
    [
    edit
    ]
    New York and Erie Rail Road: 1832–61
    [
    edit
    ]
    1834 plan
    The
    New York and Erie Rail Road
    was chartered on April 24, 1832, by Governor of New York,
    Enos T. Throop
    to connect the
    Hudson River
    at
    Piermont
    , north of
    New York City
    , west to
    Lake Erie
    at
    Dunkirk
    . On February 16, 1841, the railroad was authorized to cross into the northeast corner of
    Pennsylvania
    on the west side of the
    Delaware River
    . Construction began in 1836 and was opened in sections until reaching the full length to Dunkirk on May 19, 1851. At Dunkirk,
    steamboats
    continued across
    Lake Erie
    to
    Detroit, Michigan
    .
    When the route was completed in May 1851, President
    Millard Fillmore
    and several members of his cabinet, including Secretary of State
    Daniel Webster
    , made a special, two-day excursion run to open the railway. It is reported that Webster viewed the entire run from a rocking chair attached to a flatcar, with a steamer rug and jug of high-quality
    Medford
    rum
    .
    [2]
    [3]
    At stops, he would step off the flatcar and give speeches.
    The line was built at
    6 ft
    (
    1,829 mm
    )
    wide gauge
    ; this was believed to be a superior technology to standard gauge, providing more stability.
    In 1848, the railroad built the
    Starrucca Viaduct
    , a stone railroad bridge over
    Starrucca Creek
    in
    Lanesboro, Pennsylvania
    , which has survived and is still in use today. The viaduct is 1,040 feet (317 m) long, 100 feet (30.5 m) high and 25 feet (7.6 m) wide at the top. It is the oldest stone rail bridge in
    Pennsylvania
    still in use.
    1855 map
    Erie Railway: 1861–78
    [
    edit
    ]
    In August 1859, the company went into
    receivership
    due to the large costs of building, and on June 25, 1861, it was reorganized as the Erie Railway. This was the first
    bankruptcy
    of a major
    trunk line
    in the U.S.
    Former Erie Railroad tracks pass through
    Nutley, New Jersey
    . Track on left is out of service
    Railway switch in Nutley, New Jersey
    In the
    Erie War
    of the 1860s, four well-known financiers struggled for control of the company;
    Cornelius Vanderbilt
    versus
    Daniel Drew
    ,
    James Fisk
    and
    Jay Gould
    . Gould ultimately triumphed in this struggle but was forced to relinquish control in 1872–73, due to unfavorable public opinion following his involvement in the 1869
    gold-rigging scandal
    and to his loss of million of Erie Railroad stock to the British con-man
    Lord Gordon-Gordon
    .
    In 1869, the railroad moved its main shop facilities from Dunkirk to
    Buffalo
    . Rather than demolishing the shops in Dunkirk, the facility was leased to
    Horatio G. Brooks
    , the former chief engineer of the NY&E who was at the controls of the first train into Dunkirk in 1851. Horatio Brooks used the facilities to begin
    Brooks Locomotive Works
    , which remained in independent business until 1901 when it was merged with seven other locomotive manufacturing firms to create
    ALCO
    . ALCO continued new locomotive production at this facility until 1934, then closed the plant completely in 1962.
    The cost of
    breaking bulk cargo
    in order to interchange with
    standard gauge
    lines led the Erie to introduce a line of cars designed to operate on either broad or standard gauge
    trucks
    .
    [4]
    Starting in 1871, this allowed interchange traffic by means of
    truck exchange
    , including through passenger and freight connections to
    Saint Louis, Missouri
    using a Nutter car hoist in
    Urbana, Ohio
    .
    [5]
    [6]
    [7]
    Beginning in 1876, the Erie began plans to convert their line to standard gauge, as it became clear that the cost of changing from one gauge to another was not justified by the stability brought by the wider gauge. By the time of its reorganization in 1878, the Erie had built a third rail along the entire mainline from Buffalo to Jersey City. This project all but brought the railroad to bankruptcy.
    [8]
    New York, Lake Erie and Western Railroad: 1878–95
    [
    edit
    ]
    The
    Erie Limited
    , which traveled between New York-Chicago
    Erie system map, circa 1884
    The Erie still did not see profits and via bankruptcy was sold in 1878 to become the New York, Lake Erie and Western Railroad.
    The work of converting the railroad to standard gauge was continued, and on June 22, 1880, the entire trackage of the Erie was converted to standard gauge.
    [8]
    In 1886, it was reported that the Erie and the Philadelphia and Reading Railway shared ferry services between their two
    Jersey City
    terminals, the larger being
    Pavonia Terminal
    , and
    Fulton Ferry
    in
    Brooklyn, New York
    for 11 round trips on weekdays and Saturdays, and four round trips on Sunday.
    [9]
    In 1889, it opened a new bridge across the
    Hackensack River
    improving service to its terminals.
    [10]
    Erie Railroad: 1895–1960
    [
    edit
    ]
    By 1893, the New York, Lake Erie and Western Railroad went into bankruptcy reorganization again and emerged in 1895 as the Erie Railroad.
    [1]
    Jamestown, New York
    station, about 1909
    George W. Perkins brought Frederick D. Underwood into the Erie Railroad in 1910. During the eastern railroad strike of 1913 Underwood agreed to accept any ruling made by mediators under the
    Newlands Reclamation Act
    . One of the demands made by Erie employees was a 20% increase in wages. Erie management had refused a wage increase but compromised by asking employees to wait until January 1915 for any advance. Union leaders agreed to make this an issue which Erie management would settle with its own men. However, W.G. Lee, president of the brotherhood of railroad trainmen, asserted that the only way "to deal with the Erie is through
    J.P. Morgan & Company
    , or the banks". Underwood responded from his home in
    Wauwatosa, Wisconsin
    , saying "I am running the Erie Railroad: not George W. Perkins, nor J.P. Morgan & Co., nor anybody else."
    [11]
    In mid-1920s the successful
    Van Sweringen brothers
    gained control of the Erie, improving operations (such as standardizing the railroad's locomotives and rolling stock) and bottom-line earnings. Unfortunately, both brothers—who at the time owned several other railroads—died at an early age but had they lived the shape of railroads in the east would likely look very different today.
    [
    citation needed
    ]
    An Alco RS3 with Erie Railroad markings at Hoboken terminal, September 3, 1965
    Despite the ravages of the
    Great Depression
    , the Erie managed to hold its own until it entered bankruptcy on January 18, 1938. Its reorganization, accomplished by December 1941, included the purchase of the leased
    Cleveland and Mahoning Valley Railroad
    , swapping high rent for lower interest payments, and the purchase of formerly subsidized and leased lines. The reorganization paid off, as the Erie managed to pay dividends to its shareholders after the dust had settled.
    [1]
    In 1938, the Erie Railroad was involved in the famous
    U.S. Supreme Court
    case of
    Erie Railroad Co. v. Tompkins
    . The
    Erie doctrine
    , which governs the application of state common law in federal courts, is still taught in American
    law schools
    today.
    Erie Western Electric Railway, Toledo, Ohio
    On September 15, 1948, the Cleveland Union Terminal Company allowed the Erie to use the Union Terminal adjacent to
    Terminal Tower
    in lieu of its old station.
    [12]
    Also that year the Erie purchased a share of the
    Niagara Junction Railway
    , along with the
    New York Central
    and the
    Lehigh Valley
    .
    [13]
    Steam last operated on the Erie on March 17, 1954, when the fires were dropped on K-1 class
    Pacific
    locomotive No. 2530, used on a commuter run between
    Jersey City
    and
    Spring Valley, New York
    .
    [14]
    The Erie prospered throughout the mid-1950s, but then began an irreversible decline. The company's 1957 income was half of that in 1956; by 1958 and 1959, the Erie posted deficits. The business recession that occurred in the 1950s led the Erie to explore the idea of doing business with the nearby
    Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad
    (DL&W). The first result of this was the abandonment of duplicate freight facilities in Binghamton and Elmira, New York. Between 1956 and 1957, the Erie shifted its passenger trains from its Pavonia Terminal to the DL&W's newer
    Hoboken Terminal
    . Also, the DL&W's mainline between Binghamton and Elmira was abandoned in favor of the Erie's parallel mainline in 1958. These successful business consolidations led to merger talks (which, at first, also included the
    Delaware and Hudson Railroad
    ); on October 17, 1960, the two railroads merged to create the
    Erie Lackawanna Railroad
    .
    [1]
    Erie's large repair facility in
    Hornell
    were closed when Conrail took over in 1976 and operations were consolidated at the Lackawanna's
    Scranton
    facility. However, the merged railroad only survived for a decade and a half before continued decline forced it to join
    Conrail
    in 1976.
    Year-end mileage operated, including C&E but not NYS&W/WB&E: 2451 route-miles, 6013 track-miles in 1925; 2320 route-miles, 5395 track-miles in 1956. NJ&NY adds 46 route-miles in 1925, 39 in 1956.
    Revenue freight traffic, in millions of net ton-miles.
    Year
    Traffic
    1925
    9474
    1933
    6318
    1944
    15004
    1960
    8789
    [note 1]
    Source: ICC annual reports
    The former Erie tracks between Hornell and Binghamton were partially damaged in 1972 by
    Hurricane Agnes
    .