The Western Allegheny Railroad
In 1902 the Great Lakes Coal Company had accumulated over 25,000 acres of coal-bearing land in Butler and Armstrong Counties in Western Pennsylvania. With all of this coal, they needed a way to transport the coal to port facilities of Lake Erie.
A railroad was formed in April of 1902 and was known as the Western Allegheny Railroad. It served the Great Lakes Coal, and successor North Penn Coal in eastern Butler and Armstrong Counties. 18 miles of track was constructed from the Bessemer at Queen Junction and eastward to Kaylor, PA in August of 1903. By 1906, a 23 mile extension was constructed from Queen Junction westward into Lawrence County to East New Castle. It connected with the Buffalo, Rochester and Pittsburgh Railway's Big Run Branch at Awwa Junction in East New Castle. In 1907 the WA line was pushed three miles further east of Kaylor to Brady's Bend. |
(A loaded coal train arriving Queen Junction, PA 8/25/79)
Stanley Short Photo |
(A loaded coal train leaving Kaylor, PA on July 21, 1979)
Robert Todten Photo |
A final extension of the line was made in 1912 when four miles of track was constructed from East New Castle to West Pittsburgh. This was where the WA interchanged with the B&O's Pittsburgh-Chicago main line.
The Western Allegheny was originally operated by the Bessemer and Lake Erie, until January of 1908 when it was independently operated. On February of 1926 the WA was purchased by the Pennsylvania Railroad and became a subsidiary. Eventually the PRR envisioned the line as an integral link between their Buffalo-Pittsburgh Line. This never happened as the bypass plan and WA line fell victim to the Great Depression in 1930. In 1939 service west of Queen Junction was terminated, and the tracks were removed in 1942. The trackage between Dewey and Brady's Bend was also removed in 1940. |
Although the WA was physically isolated from the PRR, it produced a decent revenue hauling coal and limestone to the B&LE at Queen Junction.
There was passenger service on the WA, but was never a main source of revenue, and ceased operating in 1931. The line received a somewhat legendary reputation among railfans. Four 2-8-0 (former PRR H10s) were operated by the Western Allegheny during steam's twilight years. The H10s were eventually retired and stored outside the Kaylor engine house in November of 1957. They were scrapped in the spring of 1958 in Butler, PA. GP7s, GP9s, and RS-11s were used from 1957 on through the mid 1960s. By the 1960s limestone traffic eventually ceased, and the volume of coal movements were inadequate for the PRR's interest. (A westbound WA coal train west of Hooker, PA 8/24/1979)
Stanley Short Photo |
(A westbound WA coal train at Brady's Bend, PA 8/25/1979)
Stanley Short Photo The B&LE eventually offered to purchase the WA, so they could preserve its own revenue earned from their traffic. It was officially purchased by the B&LE on December 31, 1967, which was precisely sixty years after becoming independent from the Bessemer. The B&LE operated the WA as the Western Allegheny Division in order to protect the seniority of the former PRR employees. In the beginning SW8 285 worked on the WA until the coal traffic started to boom in the mid 70s, and more powerful locomotives were needed. Since the Bessemer was mainly using 6 axle locomotives on the mainline, the F7 units were the preferred motive power on the WA due to tight curves. F7 Units 727 (A), 728 (A), 721 (B), 716 (B) were the units originally assigned to the WA, and underwent modifications at the B&LE Greenville Shop. They all received new electrical equipment, and EMD 645 power assemblies in their 567 prime mover. Later on through the years 722 (A), 718 (A), and 721 (B) could also be found on the WA, and even occasionally P&C Dock units.
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Operations were usually a hit or miss depending on when they loaded coal. Some times they may operate every day for a week, and then not run for two weeks. The summer months was usually the best time, and lighting to catch them operating as the crew was called on at 4pm. In December 28, 1988, Transtar Inc. purchased the B&LE and all former United States Steel (USS) properties. They hinted to railfans It wouldn't be long before the end of an era for the F units. On October 13, 1992, 727 developed an air problem, and water was mixing with its engine oil. 727 was thus taken out of service and SD9 846 took its place, ending the A-B-A trio. Finally on October 26, 1992 the last two F units were ran in a A-B-SD combination, and were taken out of service for good. The SD9s, usually 821 and 831 took over operations. Two years later on November 2, 1994; the last train ran with 821 and 831 pulling a train from Blacksburg siding to Queen Junction. The line filed for abandonment in 1997, and was officially granted on November 9, 2000.
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(Both crews are seen hanging off of P&C Dock F7 725 (A) preparing their trains at Queen Junction, PA 8/25/1979) Stanley Short Photo
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Western Allegheny Division Timetable
(Kaylor, PA engine house on 9/1975. It was razed in 1976)
Robert S. Kaplan Photo
Robert S. Kaplan Photo
Stations |
Mileage from Queen Junction |
Station Numbers |
H&G Coal Co. |
19.7 |
W20B |
Dewey Tipple (Blue Row) |
19.6 |
W20 |
Basic Energies Inc. |
19.5 |
W20A |
Harcliffe Tipple |
19.1 |
W19 |
Colt Resources |
18.2 |
W18A |
Kaylor (Engine Terminal) |
18.1 |
W18 |
West Freedom Coal Co. (Blacksburg) |
15.9 |
W16 |
Blacksburg Siding |
15.9 |
W16 |
Basic Energies Inc. |
15.9 |
W15 |
P. L. Toy Coal Co. (Fairmont) |
14.2 |
W14 |
Liggett Siding |
13.5 |
W13 |
Amerikohl (Peachville) |
12.0 |
W12 |
Bracken Construction Co. (Hooker) |
6.3 |
W07 |
P.L. Toy Coal Co. (Hooker) |
6.3 |
W06 |
Gilbert Siding |
4.3 |
W04 |
Queen Junction |
0.0 |
W00 |
Western Allegheny Steam Locomotive Roster
Number |
Type |
Builder and Construction Number |
Build Date |
Dimensions Drivers-Cylinders-Weight |
Traction Effort |
Notes (See Below also) |
1 |
0-6-0 |
Alco 27793 |
04/1903 |
55-19x26-? |
? |
Sold 1922, and scrapped unknown date |
2 |
? |
? |
? |
? |
? |
Scrapped unknown date |
3 |
4-4-0 |
Delaware Lackawanna & Western |
1881 |
64-18x24-? |
? |
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