Lehigh Valley

Lehigh Valley
Sayre, Pennsylvania
January 30, 1972




A re-visit to the Lehigh Valley's Sayre, Pennsylvania yards two years later provided clear, sunny weather, although much colder. On display was a fine assortment of locomotives in all three of the major color schemes currently in use, including Alco no. 637 in "snowbird" colors, RS-3 no. 215 in Cornell Red, "alligator" no. 407 in yellow and grey and what appears to be EMD switcher no. 112, also in Cornell Red. Cornell Red with a black stripe were the oldest colors, with the gray and yellow version introduced in 1964 and the "snowbird" scheme in 1965. Some second hand uinits were repainted in Tuscan Red with a narrow gold stripe, reflecting Pennsylvania Railroad influence. In 1971 the LV escaped Pennsylvania control and instituted a version with a wide gold stripe, with black and white visibility stripes on the front end.

The Lockhart Street footbridge, which spanned the south yard throat, provided an ideal vantage point for visiting railfans. Today, sadly, it 's just a memory, along with much of the yard trackage.




This page posted 2/1/2018; revised 1/1/2019. Text and photo ©2018 Lamont Downs.