The "Unofficial" New York Susquehanna and Western Railway Web Page

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Ride 'em Susie!

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Last Updated: 12/30/2000 1:30pm



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A whole new "Unofficial" NYS&W Web Page is here!! After months of redesign, the new page is slowly coming together. You can visit the new page at http://trainmaster.mervernation.com/nysw/newnysw.html. Please bear with us as we debug the new HTML code. Thanks!

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VRA Westtown Dirt Move: The Volunteer Railroaders Assoc. has resumed the Middletown & New Jersey track clearing and renovation projects. Seen above is the acvtivity during the last 2 months of clearing dirt from the tracks and filling in a washout to the South.

There is still a bit of brush clearing to do and maintainance on the already cleared sections. The VRA now faces replacing ties donated by the Susquehanna and constructing a bridge over another larger washout that has become an overflow for a local farmer's field during heavy rains. The VRA plans to make Unionville this summer and operates Speeders on the line.

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Executive Inspection Trip:5/4/2000: The Susquehanna operated an inspection trip over the Southern Division to Campbell Hall then down the NJT/NS line to Passaic JCT. The previous evening, the E9's were washed for the trip. Seen above at the Fuel track at WS and at Old Green Pond Jct along the Charlottesberg Reservoir.

Bunny Train 2000: The NYS&W T&HS ran a set of "Easter Bunny" trips over the NYS&W during the 4/16-4/16 weekend. Saturdays trips ran from Newfoundland while the Sunday trips ran from Hawthorne. The power was an E9 (2400?) on the West end and a GP18 (1802) on the East end. The NYS&W's coaches and the RDC M1 were used and both days operated under beautiful weather conditions.
The Volunteer Railroaders Association staffed the Hawthorne Station with a sales counter, N Scale model railroad display (complete with an NYSW SD45 pulling a stack train), and their newly acquired Mechanical 70's Pinball Machine "Old Chicago" (undergoing restoration) was fired up "semi-operational" for free play. The VRA also maintains displays of their projects and historical railroad items.

Local Power: Late night railfans will notice an increased use of the GP20 TP&W 2062 and a GP18 (1800) on the WS3. A small problem with a light circuit on the 1800 plus more work load seem to be the reasons for the combo effort. The pair of EMDs, one Turbo one non-Turbocharged, makes for an interesting change of sights and sounds of the "Typical NYS&W Local". The GP20's sound has been described as a "Mini SD45", and the name fits. The GP20's are still reported to be troublesome and needing of rebuild/repair. With the future of local service on the NYS&W looking so good, the chances of extra attention being placed on the 6 Geeps seems pretty good.

Road Power: F45 3636 has been out of service for some time now and it's future is unclear. As usual, Rumors about the SD45's are spreading and very different.. One is that the NYS&W is collecting bids for "Dash 3" rebuilds, while the other is that the 45's will all be sold off. Only time will tell. One B40 is reported to be back from CSX while the other GE's and SD70's are still on lease. I've heard reports of NYS&W units appearing EVERYWHERE!! I guess If we can see BNSF on the NYSW, They should see NYSW on the BNSF!

Adios HANJIN: The first weekend of February marked the last HANJIN stack trains. Saturday found mixed NYS&W and CR power pulling into WS. Possibly marking the complete end of stacks over Sparta Mountain.

Since the rebirth of the Southern Division, we have enjoyed colorful strings of stack cars as the Susquehanna wore the costume of a Class 1 railroad. Like gaining power from a Superman cape, the Susquehanna began to control shipping rates in the NY rail market with Sea Land stacks, control of the D&H, a short run of Maersk, and Hanjin.
We can still count on seeing run through traffic from CSX and NYS&W's own SU and WS trains, but it would appear Susie's "Class 1 mask" has come off.... for now.
Susie-Q has always had a look on her face... like she knew something.... perhaps a secret that no one else knew. Something was happening... and it made her grin. The wink and smile she wore always seemed to promise excitement and in the past 20 years, we sure have had excitement!!

Keep smiling Susie! We know you're up to something!

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Photo By: Kevin Smith (Captain Norway)

Happy Holidays!
As the year 2000 begins, let's all take a moment to remember the past and hope it helps us shape out future.
A message to the railroads.... Strive to be "Transportation Companies" and offer full services. Remember that your employees are your railroad as much as the track, the engines and the cars.... They need care and maintenance to operate too! If an employee is upset, it's like a blown traction motor on your best locomotive.
Employees.... Keep up the good work. Without you the railroad couldn't run. Be safe, think twice act once, and keep waving to the kids. Railroads have been getting a bum rap in the press and it hurts the railroads, the hobby stores, and everyone concerned. If the magic of railroading stays in the kids eyes, they will grow to appreciate the trains instead of throwing rocks and lawsuits!
To All.... The happiest of New Years Greetings. Be Kind, Be Safe, and Be Well.

12/4/99 The action continues......
Since the final day of Conrail, the diversity of power on the NYS&W has been unbelievable. There is still a healthy mix of railroads in the motive power department, and the ex-TP&W GP20's have made a good showing.... though they are not liked as much as the GP18's by the crews.
I'll try to get some of the more interesting pictures online soon.

The Commander talks with the troops:
During the first full week of October, Walter Rich ventured to the Southern Division to give employees some idea what the future held for them. The Railfan Tours car "Good Vibrations" was parked on the Little Ferry fuel track for easy access, and Mr. Rich met with the employees there. This was a very smart move on his part, as employees being kept in the dark has been one of the biggest problems I've heard from employees of several railroads. With the NYS&Ws position in things, I can't see that there is much to worry about. If the CR split up has caused this much trouble, why on earth would the STB allow any further take overs in our area!? Let's just hope they see it our way! :-)

So Long TP&W
It's Official. The TP&W has been sold (to RailAmerica) and the NYS&W now rosters the F7 (in NYCentral colors) and the last 3 rebuilt GP20's (#2062, 2064 & 2066). The Geeps are expected to be relettered NYS&W soon and rumors about the F7 are rampant.
One GP20 was reported to be working in Little Ferry while the others sit on the Northern Division.

June & July.......
Action on the NYS&W Southern Division has been so incredible, there is no specific event to report on. But to give those who live far from the action a taste, I've thrown this tidbit together.....

SD70's and B40-8's Leased to CSX
CSX recently leased all 4000 series NYS&W locomotives to help ease the power shortage caused by the recent CR/CSX takeover.

CSX / NYSW contract to run trains
Realizing that you can't run trains in both directions on single track, CSX signed a contract with the NYS&W to run (3) trains over Susquehanna rails. Currently the mix has been former CR "ML" Autorack trains (Westbound) and Stacks (Eastbound). Are more to follow???

Whose Railroad is this??
A visitor to the Little Ferry yard would have to question just Who owns this railroad.... and possibly question if he (or she) was on the right coast! Any given day, you can witness new and old power from everywhere in North America! The list includes visits from BNSF (BN & ATSF included), UP, SSW, SP, CP, CN, IC, and leased units from EMD, HATX, and others.
If you have some time to spend, the SAFE spot to witness the action is the Ridgefield Park "Union Station" located just off Mount Vernon Ave.

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LAST RUN OF TRAIN 257
Saturday 5/29/99 around 8pm was to be the last departure of the 257 from Little Ferry Yard.....
We supplied the sign to make the last run known to all, attatched it to the NYSW 4052, posed for a few photos, and just as Joe and Dick were preparing to get a Form D.......
SU99, which had left earlier in the afternoon, derailed in Narrowsburg NY. The gloom of the moment hung even lower on our heads...... Would the last 257 be the first over the Riverline???
Sunday dawned, and with the new day came news that the derailment sight was cleared and the 257 proudly marched off into history.... complete with the "Right" crew (stayed in the hotel overnight) and only 1 day late. Thanks to NYS&W Employees Todd S, Mike H, Dick A, and Joe D for making the last run something special!

All photos on this page are protected by each photographers Copyright. Most images are available for sale as 4x6, 5x7, 8x10/12, etc. by written or E-Mailed request. Requests for photo posts on this page are also accepted by E-mailing me. Most photos removed from this page are available for reposting by request.
Thats all for now! I will be back to add more as we get it! If you would like to contribute, please E-mail me your photos and text. Thanks!
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We Salute the U.R.H.S. for it's efforts toward a NJ State Transportation Museum. Our railroad heritage is safe.... in the hands of fine people who care! Support the fund raising events of the U.R.H.S. and it's member groups to keep the dream alive!
We could all wish someone cared enough to have preserved equipment like one of those ERIE / NYSW Russian Decapods or Stillwell coaches!
(Though a few Stillwells are now in the URHS Collection pending restoration. Any Volunteers??)