Pittsburgh 1985

Wooster to Pittsburgh – 1985

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In May 1985 I went along as a volunteer with 1944 Lima-built steam locomotive Nickel Plate 765 and a set of passenger coaches on a trip from Fort Wayne to Orrville, Ohio. We were slated to run a set of excursions between Orrville and Pittsburgh over Conrail's former Pennsylvania mainline. The trips were fund-raisers for the Mad River & NKP Railroad Historical Museum.

The engine had undergone a major overhaul during the winter, and this was its first time out on the road. One of the new main rod journal bearings was running hot during the trip to Orrville, and we made frequent stops to shoot it full of grease. We hoped it would wear itself in and settle down in time for the excursions, because Conrail had stipulated that the train had to be able to maintain 70mph to avoid interfering with traffic on the busy mainline.

I had planned to ride the Saturday trip to Pittsburgh, and then leave the train and spend a couple of days sightseeing before taking Amtrak back to Fort Wayne. We left Orrville approximately on time running at a good clip, but by the time we reached Massillon, the rod journal was heating up. Conrail had the steam engine taken off the train and continued the trip with a pair of their freight engines. I rode back to Orrville with the steam engine as my Pittsburgh plans started to fall apart.

I phoned Greyhound and learned that I could catch a Pittsburgh bus at Wooster, so I bummed a ride in the back of a pickup truck. I took the first few pictures while cooling my heels at the Greyhound stop at Wooster.

My Ride!

I changed buses at Canton, and the driver of the new bus was friendly, a former railroader and something of a railfan. He recognized the logo on my shirt and asked, "Where's your steam engine?". There were only a few other passengers on the bus at that point, and that great front seat on the right side was vacant. The pretty small town is Lisbon.

The Pennsylvania state line on US 30 – we rolled across open, mostly rural country for miles, and then entered a tunnel. When we emerged from the tunnel, we were on a bridge with Pittsburgh spread out in the sun dead ahead. For a first-time visitor, the sight was quite a thrill.

At the Greyhound terminal in Pittsburgh, Paul, the driver, put my bags in his car and then drove me up to Mount Washington to introduce me to Pittsburgh's most spectacular vista before dropping me off at the William Penn Hotel.

Some pictures from a Sunday walk about downtown

I hoped to see the Sunday excursion arrive with the steam locomotive on the point, and get some pictures, so I walked up to Penn Station and picked a spot on the bridge approach where I could watch trains approach on the opposite side of the river. A couple of freight trains passed.

When the excursion train arrived, there was no steam engine. Penn Station looked pretty dowdy in 1985.

The Allegheny County Courthouse is the ultimate testament to Richardsonian Romanesque architecture. The opening of the PAT light rail subway was a few weeks away, and PCC streetcars were still running on street tracks downtown and crossing the Monongahela River on the Smithfield Street Bridge. The new PAT facility at Station Square stood ready for use.

In 1985, most public fountains in the Midwest had signs prohibiting swimming or wading. It was great to see kids enjoying the beautiful fountain at the confluence of the rivers.

On Sunday night I rode the Mon Incline up Mount Washington to take in the night views of downtown.

On Monday I bought a day pass ($4.50, I think) and spent the remainder of my visit riding and photographing transit. The longest ride I took was the trolley to Library and back. It was wonderfully scenic, and the operator said he had run on that line since 1941, when it was an interurban line to Carlisle with speeds up to 60 mph. He was set to retire when the new subway opened.