On Wed, 22 Oct 2014 11:42:29 -0400, "conklin"
wrote:
>
> wrote in message
>news:4f7b1eea-9196-482e-b45f-1d6bb89c16ef@googlegroups.com...
>> The Hudson Line blogger visited the locomotive plant and posted a series
>> of photos.
>>
>> http://www.iridetheharlemline.com/2014/10/17/geinstawalk-tour
ng-ges-rail-locomotive-production-facility-fort-worth-texas/
>
>Interesting pictures. A long-time railfan friend of mine used to comment
>that the British claimed American steam engines were rolling slums. But
>with the streamliners (early diesels), that reputation faded.
As a Brit I can't say I have ever heard North American steam Locos
described in that denigrating way though at 60 years of age the
American steam loco was no longer around much even when I was
young.Had some picture books as a child which featured some of the
later designs such as the N+W J class ,Grand Trunk Western/CN U4's
,Southern Pacific GS Locos which would be hard to describe as Slums.
As far as most Brits were the majority of workaday black coloured
locos such as a Pennsylvania Railroad PRR I1s weren't even thought
about though some of the generation before mine encountered them when
sent to North America for military training in WW2.
Some of them may have thought such locos a bit brutal looking with
much of the piping and other bits visible compared to a British Loco.
Conversely after that the period the final post war builds of British
Locos were designed with features incorporating North American ideas
where the accessibility to maintain the bits was becoming more
important than an uncluttered look.
A lot of people probably thought American Steam Locos all looked
something like the General due to a diet of Western Films and TV
shows in the 50's and 60's, Casey Jones has a lot to answer for. Those
early 4 4 0 s with the varnished wood cabs and all those brass
embellisments were probably prettier than ours were at the time.
G.Harman
--- SoupGate/W32 v1.03
* Origin: LiveWire BBS -=*=- UseNet FTN Gateway (1:2320/1)
|
