FAIRPORT, PAINESVILLE & EASTERN

DIESEL ERA OPERATIONS

 

 

            Here I have assembled information about the FP&E's operations in the diesel era (from 1945 forward).  Though the information below actually applies to operations in the mid-1960s and the early 1970s, I call this page "Diesel Era Operations" because of the following assumption: that in the grand scheme of things, the FP&E's operations did not change much between 1945 and 1976 (when the Diamond closed).  Yes, traffic levels fluctuated over the years (as can be seen on my FP&E Traffic Data page), but the FP&E's track layout and traffic pattern basically stayed the same during those years, so I think it is safe to assume that the railroad's operations in 1970 would have been about the same as they were in 1950 (especially in regards to Diamond Alkali/Shamrock).

            One item that will be very helpful to refer to in comprehending a lot of the information below is the 1966 FP&E System Map, which can be found on my FP&E Maps page.  My suggestion is that you open another tab or page in your internet browser with that map on it so that you can easily flip back and forth between the information on this page and that map.

 

 

Operations Circa 1965

 

            In Interstate Commerce Commission Finance Docket 23980, Norfolk & Western and New York Central fought over control of the FP&E (for more about this case see my FP&E History page).  In the background documents for this case are transcriptions from two days of testimony by representatives of all the parties involved, and in that testimony there was a lot of information given about the operations of the FP&E.  I have taken this information and divided it into three parts.

The first and largest part is a general overview of the FP&E and its operations provided by Hobart L. Scott, N&W Director of Special Services, who did a study of the FP&E in 1965 with assistance from G.J. Edwards (the FP&E's Vice President) and I.C. Overly (the FP&E's Superintendent).  The last two parts are made up of small but interesting bits of information regarding a variety of aspects of the FP&E's operations from two other witnesses: John F. Fitzpatrick, N&W Traffic Analyst, and Donald B. Ingold, NYC District Transportation Superintendent.

Because the testimony as it originally appears in the Docket transcriptions was not meant for what I am trying to do here—that is, give an organized presentation about the FP&E's operations—I have attempted to impose a structure upon it.  The contents of the statements below are 99% verbatim, but I have done things such as created paragraphs (which do not exist in the testimony), rearranged the order of some statements, made changes in punctuation, and added articles (such as "the")—all so that the information reads a little easier.

 

Hobart Scott

 

At the end of 1965 the FP&E operated 8.52 miles of main line and 1.85 miles of branches and spurs for a total of 10.37 miles of road; in addition, it operated 9.64 miles of yard tracks and sidings, for a total of 20.01 miles of track.  The FP&E also has an enginehouse of brick construction used for maintenance and periodic work on locomotives.  The engine terminal facilities also include a machine shop, turntable, fuel and sanding facilities.  A car shop is located in the same building, with several shop tracks outside where periodic work and light repairs to freight cars are performed.  Such heavy freight car work as is done is taken care of within the car shop enclosure.

The FP&E owns five diesel locomotives, 94 open-top hopper cars, and one caboose.

The FP&E's line connects with three trunk line carriers: the Baltimore & Ohio at Fairport Harbor, and the Norfolk & Western and the New York Central at Perry.  Stations served by the FP&E are Alkali, Fairport Harbor, Grand River, Lane Station, Maple Brook Lane, Painesville, Park Road, and Perry.

The FP&E performs switching service for the several industries located along its line and serves as an originating and terminating carrier for handling cars that are interchanged with the N&W, the NYC, and the B&O.  The FP&E also handles a good volume of traffic moving between stations on its own line.  The service between points on its own line consists primarily of a heavy movement of limestone discharged by lake vessels at the dock of the Diamond Alkali Company at Grand River in Fairport Harbor where the material is loaded by overhead cranes into open-top hopper cars for movement from Grand River to the Diamond Alkali plant at Alkali, Ohio.  Limestone is moved from the Grand River stone dock to the Diamond Alkali plant seven days per week.

The FP&E has two yards, both of which have limited capacity.  The West Yard consists of two groups of tracks: the southerly group of tracks is made up of one track used for loading and unloading piggyback traffic and four yard tracks having a capacity of approximately 90 cars; the northerly group is made up of a running track and five yard tracks owned partly by the FP&E and partly by Diamond Alkali (the FP&E's portion of the five yard tracks has a capacity of about 70 cars).  The West Yard is used for handling cars to and from the west end of Diamond Alkali's plant, including empty boxcars, empty covered hoppers, limestone shipments from Grand River and cars received in interchange with the B&O, the N&W, and the NYC.  It is also used for blocking of outbound cars for delivery to the B&O, the N&W, and the NYC.

The East Yard is also comprised of two groups of tracks: the southerly group, which is known as the New East Yard, consists of one running track and four yard tracks having a capacity of about 65 cars; the northerly group, known as the Old East Yard, consists of a running track and five yard tracks owned partly by the FP&E and partly by Diamond Alkali (the FP&E's portion of the five yard tracks has a capacity of about 60 cars).  The East Yard is used for switching all cars received in interchange from the N&W and the NYC at Perry incident to movement to their point of placement, and for switching outbound cars from the east end of Diamond Alkali's plant and from other industries in the area for delivery to connections or for placement at other points on the FP&E.

Cars that have been accumulated for the B&O in the East Yard are moved to the West Yard and added to cars for the B&O at that point for movement in one cut to Fairport Harbor.  Cars which have been accumulated and blocked in the West Yard for delivery to the N&W and the NYC are moved to the East Yard and merged with similar blocks in the East Yard, from which point they are moved to the N&W and the NYC interchange tracks at Perry.

The FP&E must handle a large volume of traffic on very limited track space.  Such handling includes switching cars for the industries it serves and blocking cars for its three connections.  Secondly, it must pull and place cars at Diamond Alkali at specific hours.  Because of the FP&E's limited track space and the necessity of handling certain traffic at specific hours, it is imperative that cars to and from its connecting lines be handled promptly—otherwise, congestion from lack of switching room would pose serious operating problems.  All inbound connecting line business must, therefore, be placed with shippers during the hours allowed and all outbound connecting line business must be delivered as quickly as practicable.

The FP&E places cars for the B&O on the interchange tracks at Fairport Harbor at about 2 p.m. and at about 8 p.m., five days per week.  On Saturdays, empty coal cars are delivered to the B&O at about noon and all other cars for the B&O are delivered at about 7 p.m.  On Sundays, one delivery is made to the B&O at about 10 a.m.  Cars received from the B&O are pulled by the FP&E from the interchange track at Fairport Harbor at about 9 p.m., five days per week, by the same crew which delivers cars to the B&O at about 8 p.m.  On Saturdays, cars received from the B&O are pulled at about 8 p.m. and about 11 p.m.  On Sundays, cars received from the B&O are pulled at about 8 p.m.  All of the cars from the B&O are moved to the FP&E's West Yard for switching and placement.

Cars for the N&W and the NYC are switched and assembled into separate blocks, one for the N&W and one for the NYC, at the West Yard.  They are delivered five days per week to the N&W and the NYC at Perry at about 3 p.m.  At that time, the FP&E crew pulls only the empty cars placed by the N&W and the NYC from the interchange tracks and moves these cars to the East Yard, where they are switched for placement the same evening.  The FP&E makes a second delivery from the West Yard, along with cars that have been accumulated in the East Yard, to the N&W and the NYC at about 9 p.m.  At that time, all cars standing on the N&W and the NYC interchange tracks—both loaded and empty—are pulled and moved to the East Yard, where they are switched preparatory to placement at hours governed by industry operations.

The FP&E does not pull loaded cars from any of the N&W and NYC interchange tracks when it makes the afternoon deliveries to Perry because it lacks track space for handling both the inbound cars from connections and the outbound cars for connections at the same time.  After it delivers outbound cars to the N&W and the NYC in the evening run to Perry, space is made available for handling the inbound cars.

On Saturdays and Sundays, the FP&E delivers cars to the N&W and the NYC at Perry once each day at about 9 p.m.  Cars standing on the interchange tracks are then moved to the East Yard for switching preparatory to placement on a consignee's sidings.

 

John Fitzpatrick

 

N&W Car Cleaning at Perry

To minimize switching on the part of the FP&E—and also to ensure shippers on that road of a high standard of service—the N&W, some years ago, established car cleaning track facilities at Perry, Ohio, and hired an independent contractor to clean cars at that point.  Absent such facilities, it would be necessary for the N&W to move unclean cars—cars that were placed for loading but rejected by shippers—beyond Perry for cleaning, with consequent delays in making cars available for loading.

 

Inbound Coal Traffic

The Baltimore and Ohio's large share of interchange traffic in 1965 resulted from the substantial volume of inbound steam coal which that railroad brought to the interchange with the FP&E.  This coal originated on the B&O and its feeder lines, and could move to the FP&E only over the direct route of the B&O.  In the past there have also been large volume movements of inbound steam coal from points on the Bessemer and Lake Erie.  When coal is purchased at these points it generally moves to the FP&E via the B&LE and the N&W, since the New York Central has refused to concur in the present reduced rates from origins on the B&LE to points on the FP&E.

 

Trailer on Flat Car Ramp

During the Fall of 1963 Diamond Alkali discussed the possibility of developing a plan for Trailer on Flat Car service from and to Painesville with the N&W.  It was explained to the N&W that the service was necessary because of the lack of consistent service on the part of motor carriers—particularly with reference to traffic to and from southern points—and that undue delays frequently were experienced in shipping via truck from Painesville because the trailers of motor carriers serving various areas in the South were not available.  Such an agreement was reached in May 1965, and the necessary ramp was placed in operation by the FP&E on its property on May 19, 1965.  The service has appealed to shippers and resulted in the transportation of 323 trailer loads from May 19, 1965 until the end of that year.

 

Donald Ingold

 

NYC-FP&E Interchange Traffic

The interchange between the NYC and the FP&E takes place on New York Central tracks with the loads and empties being separated according to the request of the FP&E.  While some carloads interchanged from the NYC to the FP&E are placed on the interchange track by through freight trains, the general operation is for a road switch operation out of our Painesville Yard, 6 1/2 miles west of Perry.  The interchange is switched seven days a week at approximately 9:00 p.m. to compliment the FP&E operation which switches the interchange point between 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m.

 

NYC Painesville Yard

The New York Central Painesville Yard was constructed in 1964 at a cost in excess of $100,000.  It consists of nine tracks with a capacity of 241 cars.  That yard was built to handle anticipated business from Painesville and to improve our service in connection with the FP&E.  The New Yard has enabled the New York Central to improve service to industries on the FP&E.

 

 

Operations Circa 1970

 

Randall Jackson

 

            The day I launched this website, a neat thing happened: I received two e-mails within hours of each other—one from my dad, and one from Stephen Timko (a well-known railroad author)—that told me about a gentleman that used to work for the FP&E.  That gentleman is Randall Jackson.  As I found out later, he not only worked for the FP&E, but knew all about their operations.  Here is Randall's background:

Randall started out working for the Southern Railway in 1963 as a Brakeman in the St. Louis Division; the next year he was promoted to Conductor.  In April 1968 he accepted a Trainmaster position on the Fairport, Painesville & Eastern Railway, and was subsequently promoted to Assistant General Manager in Charge of Operations in May 1969—a position he held until February 1976, when he went to work for the National Transportation Safety Board as a Railroad Safety Specialist in Denver.  In 1977 the NTSB promoted Randall and transferred him to Kansas City, Missouri.  Then in 1982 he accepted a position with the Federal Railroad Administration as a Railroad Safety Inspector (Operating Practices) in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.  In January 2001 he was promoted to Chief Inspector Federal Railroad Administration in Hanover, Maryland, and in 2004 Randall retired.

My dad and my grandpa were good friends with Randall during his time with the FP&E (all three of them were in Painesville's Kiwanis Club together), and Stephen knew Randall during his time as a Safety Inspector for the FRA.  Prompted by their e-mails, I located Randall and was able to get in touch with him.  Randall has been a great resource (as you will see below), and has been great about putting up with all of my questions.

            Since the content of my correspondence with Randall is somewhat scattered, I have put the information Randall has given me in a "Question-and-Answer" format for easier reading.  My questions and comments are in green, and Randall's answers and comments are in black.

 

What does a Trainmaster do?

A Trainmaster is the supervisor of the train crews, Yardmasters and yard clerks.

 

What were your job duties as Asst. General Manager?

My role as Asst. General Manager was to supervise the Trainmasters, Master Mechanic of the diesel shop, General Car Foreman of the car shop, and the Maintenance of Way Foreman (Section Gang Foreman).

 

Here is a quote I found in a railfan magazine (Extra 2200 South #38) from someone who visited the FP&E in December 1972, and I wanted to see if you can add to what he talks about: "FP&E's Alcos always run in pairs with cabs together except on unusually heavy trains where 3 units are needed.  Pairs kept together long periods, turned every other week to prolong wheel life.  On weekdays 3 crews are used, on weekend, two.  #103 is undergoing complete engine rebuilding and is regarded as best puller.  #106 was side-swiped in 3/71 causing extensive damage to cab, now in shop.  #108 newest addition, was acquired at a cost of $20,000 shortly after 106 was wrecked."

RUNNING 3 LOCOMOTIVES:  Some days we did not go to Perry in the afternoon for interchange on account of the amount of switching in the West Yard.  On these days, when we went to Perry with the 7 pm crew, we always ran 3 locomotives because it was uphill about 75% of the way to Perry.  I still remember the anxiety the engineers had about running 3 locomotives to Perry; they thought using that much power would cause the drawbars to fail and they'd end up having a derailment.

LOCOMOTIVE WHEELS:  As for turning the locomotives to keep the wear on the tires of the locomotives even: we turned them every week.  We eventually got rid of the tires and wheel centers and went to solid wheels; we had to take them to Bessemer to have them turned to the desired contour.

CREWS:  We had 8 crews working: No. 1 crew from 6 am to 2 pm; No. 2 crew from 7 am to 3 pm; No. 3 crew from 8 am to 4 pm; No. 4 crew from 10 am to 6 pm; No. 5 crew from 4 pm to 12 am; No. 6 crew from 7 pm to 3 am; No. 7 crew was the relief crew; and No. 8 crew from 12:01 am to 8:01 am.

LOCOMOTIVE 106:  As for the damage to the 106 in March of 1971, it happened on the highline track that goes from the crossing at Fairport Nursery Road up to the Hill Tracks where we spotted the stone cars.  [Scott's Note: The Hill Tracks were the two trestled tracks that ran the entire length of the Diamond's plant on its north side; the North Hill Track was closest to the lake, and the South Hill Track was closest to the plant.  Click here and here to see pictures of the western end of the Hill Tracks.]  It was about 1:45 am and the crew had come back from Perry; they had switched the train out, delivered the cars to the respective industries, and were setting out the covered hoppers toward the mill tracks—or so they thought.  The Conductor was to line the switch toward the mill tracks and the Brakeman was to kick the cars toward the mill; he cut off the cars and let them roll—but the Conductor had not lined the switch for the mill tracks: instead, the track was lined toward the Hill Tracks, and the cars rolled up the hill.  Before the locomotives could back up and the Brakeman could line the switch to go to the house track, the cars came rolling down the hill and struck the 106 in the cab area and almost sheared the cab off the frame.  I don't remember how much damage was done in dollars, but it took 3 months to repair the cab on the 106.

 

Of the three railroads the FP&E interchanged with— B&O, N&W, and PC —which did you interchange with the most?

The most cars were interchanged with N&W, then B&O, and lastly Penn Central.  We tried to get the industries to route as much freight as possible through Perry on PC or N&W because we got more money per carload from Perry than from Fairport Harbor (we got about half as much money per car from B&O).  We chose to take the absorbed switching rate instead of a percentage of the line haul rate due to the money it would cost us to participate in the freight claims on lost or damaged freight (we did not pay anything on lost or damaged freight under the absorbed switching rate).

 

Do you have any information about the FP&E's other customers?

IRC (the Rayon) was our second best customer after the Diamond.  IRC would get from 20 to 40 cars a day Monday through Friday; the Diamond would receive 250 cars a day and ship out 200 a day.  When I was there Calhio was the only industry in Perry.  We would switch them in the afternoon if we went to Perry in the afternoon; otherwise we would switch them with the evening interchange crew.

 

From what information I have, it looks like in the late 1960s the FP&E hoppers numbered in the 300s were replaced by 'hand-me-down' hoppers from other railroads which were numbered in the 800s.  I have figured out that some of the 'hand-me-down' hoppers came from the N&W (they were H-9 hoppers), but there are other 800-series hoppers I have seen in photos with the middle exterior rib painted yellow, and I'm not sure if those are also ex-N&W ones (and also, why was the rib painted yellow—did they come that way, or did the FP&E do that?).

In late 1968 and early 1969 we disposed of the 300-series hoppers and replaced them with H-9 hoppers that we purchased from the N&W (the 300-series hoppers were sold to a scrap dealer in Cleveland).  The N&W painted the H-9 hoppers bound for the FP&E with a yellow rib due to them having to be switched out of various yards and shipped to Perry to interchange with FP&E; this 'indentification tag' indicated that no charges were to be applied to the FP&E on waybills.  As we made some modifications and repairs to the H-9s—new slopesheets and other repairs—we would paint the entire car, covering the yellow rib.

 

I have some photos of a bunch of the 800-series hoppers turned upside down sitting next to the tracks at the West Yard in 1972; were those hoppers going to be scrapped?

The 800-series hoppers turned upside down in the West Yard had been involved in a derailment.  They were loaded with stone from the docks at Fairport Harbor and we could not rerail them while loaded.  I ran the locomotive crane at this time and we turned the cars over to dump the stone.  We first rebuilt the track, then we hired a contractor to scoop up the stone with a front end loader and load it in hopper cars.  After that we picked up the overturned H-9s and placed them back on their trucks and sent them to the car shop for repairs.

 

How was the FP&E's caboose used?

The caboose was used on the Perry run.  After I got there it was taken off of the Perry run and extra seats were put in the locomotives for the crew to ride on.  To take the caboose from the pit track to the rear of the train and then run around the train and make an air brake test before going to Perry meant it was close to midnight by the time the train would arrive at Perry—and we would miss the interchange for per diem.  Also, taking the caboose from the inbound train and getting it on the rear of the return train took considerable time—and this amounted to overtime for the crew.

 

Can you tell me about how the limestone trains operated (for instance, how many limestone trains did the FP&E run per day, what was the average number of cars on each train, etc.)?

            We took all empty FP&E hoppers off the South Hill Track and down to the Stone Dock first thing every morning at 6 am.  Most of the time it was about 60 cars.  We would pull the hoppers down to the dock, run around them, and spot the east-most car for loading.  I think the dock could only load about 32-34 hoppers at a time.  The 8 am crew usually made the first pull of loads from the dock for the day and spotted the remaining empties; we would pull the balance when the dock had them loaded.  The stone cars were stored on Number 4 and/or Number 5 tracks in the West Yard until the Diamond ordered them.  A shot of stone to the South Hill Track would be in varying amounts, and would include both stone cars and coke cars (and once in a while a car of anthracite coal usually between two cars of coke).  Stone cars were between 10-16 cars per shot, and we put up a shot of stone about every 6 hours, 7 days a week.

 

I've always been curious about how the hoppers of limestone were unloaded; I know they would be spotted on the trestle tracks on the north side of the Diamond, but what happened after that?

            The stone and coke cars (exact number of cars as ordered by the Diamond) would be placed on the west end of the South Hill Track, where they were emptied into a hopper underneath the trestle; from there the stone and coke mixture was lifted by conveyor or bucket belt to the top of the lime kiln silos.  The stone and coke mixture was gravity fed into the silos and eventually became soda ash.  There were two types of soda ash: heavy ash and light ash.  The heavy ash was loaded in small covered hoppers and the light ash was loaded in jumbo or large covered hoppers.  The FP&E cars used for coke loading were retrieved from the east end of the South Hill Track and sent back to the coke ovens for loading.  Most of the time there were 5-7 cars used for coke loading.

 

I have seen pictures of a boxcar (#400) and a tank car that both sat near the roundhouse in the mid-1970s; according to the Annual Reports, the FP&E acquired the boxcar in 1973 and the tank car in 1974.  Do you remember where these cars came from and what they were used for?

The FP&E #400 was used to transport partial loads from one department to another.  We got it because foreign car owners complained about the FP&E's use of their cars to make revenue moves within a plant while they did not get any revenue off of those moves.  We bought #400 from the N&W; it was a Wabash 40' boxcar.  The tank car was used to store fuel oil for our locomotives because our supplier was not always reliable in delivering to us—but since their price was low enough, we could buy the tank car and still save money on fuel by buying from them.  I don't remember where we got the tank car from.

 

Donovan Eskesen

 

            A side benefit of having a website about the FP&E is that there is the potential for former employees to discover it and contact me.  That's what happened with Don Eskesen.  Don was born and raised in Painesville Township, and after serving in the Navy for ten years he came back to the Painesville area to work for a couple of years before going off to college.  One of the places he worked was the FP&E, where he was a train crewmember in 1969 and 1970.  Don has shared some of his experiences with me (and answered a question I had), which I present below.

 

Don's Job

Sometimes I was the Fireman and other times I was the Brakeman, front or rear.  There were some months where I was assigned to a crew and some months where I was on the extra board.  When I was assigned to a crew I worked in the evening because I didn't have seniority; with the extra board I was on call to fill in for someone who called in sick or had a day off.  I switched cars at all the industries that the FP&E served; sometimes it was almost an eight hour job just switching one industry's cars.

 

Tornado

I was working the night—I believe it was in July 1969—that a tornado hit.  We were switching cars getting ready to go to Perry, but there were a lot of trees down on the tracks so we didn't go that night.  I was with the crew the next day clearing the trees out of the way.

 

Stone Trains

I think the limestone was delivered twice, in the morning and in the evening: in the evening for sure because I worked on that run, and I would have to stop traffic using flares (there were no crossing signals at High Street in Fairport which is why I had to stop the traffic with flares).  Two engines would pick up the empty limestone cars at the Diamond and we would pull them down to the Stone Dock; then we would switch the engines over to the loaded cars and push them up to the Diamond.  I don't remember exactly how many cars we would move—maybe 10 or 15 at the most.

 

Caboose

At one time the caboose was used when the train would go to Perry—but that was before I started because they didn't use it on the Perry run anymore when I was working for the FP&E.  But the caboose was still used when the train went to the Rayon: the air system was used to blow a whistle that was mounted on the caboose because trains to the Rayon were pushed instead of pulled there.

 

On the FP&E main line, just past the Diamond Magnesium Plant where the line curves to the south to head to Perry, why are there two curves?

The double curve was used for the cars going to IRC (the Rayon).  When we would get back from Perry and sort out the cars, the ones going to IRC would be pulled into the second curve and spotted for the crew in the morning; the switch was set for the Rayon as we would be leaving that drop off point.  The morning crew would use the two tracks to get their train in delivery order for IRC (remember they pushed the train to the Rayon).  [Scott's Note: I have subsequently found out via a FP&E Annual Report that the newer curve—the inner curve—was laid at the end of 1929; on December 31, 1929 it was placed in operation as the new main line track, while the older, outer curve was reclassified as a yard track/siding.]

 

 

 

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Created by Scott Nixon

October 2010

Updated: November 2012