Re: (erielack) Boonton overview, annotated

[nemd27_@_speedpost.net]

That puts it in perspective.  It's all so different today, esp. with 287
now completed.


Henry J.





On Tue, 5 Feb 2008 09:09:47 -0600, "Tupaczewski, Paul R (Paul)"
<paultup_@_alcatel-lucent.com> said:
> NOTE: This message had contained at least one image attachment.
> To view or download the image(s), click on or cut and paste the
> following URL into your web browser:
> 
> 
> http://lists.railfan.net/listthumb.cgi?erielack-02-05-08
> 
> boonton-annotated.jpg (image/jpeg, 2202x1650 2110272 bytes, BF: 1.72 ppb)
> 
> Hi folks,
> 
> Been a little under the weather lately, so I'm just getting to this
> today. I've annotated Ed Wheeler's excellent Boonton overview shot and
> it's attached.
> 
> I've roughly outlined where Route 287 is (it's the light blue line that
> pretty much follows the Morris Canal bed) and noted key streets. I also
> outlined roughly the path of the Morris Canal in green - as you can see,
> 287 follows the path. The canal made a hard turn by Main Street and
> headed towards the iron works and a plane to carry it up the "Main
> Street hill" in Boonton, ducking under the DL&W. If you go to this
> location today, you can still make out where the canal crossed under
> parallelling Morris Avenue there.
> 
> I've noted some DL&W customers there, including the large Drew Chemical
> complex and Boonton Feed. I've also outlined the Van Raalte silk mill
> (still there today as a distributor of parts for Packard automobiles!).
> I highlighted it because I've seen in DL&W customer lists this
> particular factory - always wondered how the DL&W served them: Did they
> just get stuff at the freight house and truck it over? There's quite an
> elevation difference between the two locations so I doubt there was a
> track, but there appears to be a bridge of some sort there.
> 
> The "turntable" is the one that can stil be seen today. Also note the
> right-of-way of the former RR&M at the very bottom of the image, which
> later became a street.
> 
> To further drive home the point of why I'm such a big Boonton Line fan,
> I've highlighted where I grew up about two blocks south (left on the
> map) of the Boonton Line - albeit not in the house that is there!)
> 
> To answer some of the questions posed about this image:
> 
> * The aerial of Boonton I posted earlier was taken further southwest of
> this image (left and up), taken looking more northwest (up and right)
> * In the earlier days, Drew had its own Plymouth critter that switched
> the plan. By the early 1960s, the EL was able to handle all the
> switching and the critter was sold to the Morris County Central Railroad
> (see? Tying this into the photos of the 385 I posted yesterday :)
> * The line coming off the main by the freighthouse led to the former
> Boonton Iron Works (as noted on the image). This actually was the
> original end of the Boonton Branch as it came east from Denville. It
> extended to just beyond the right edge of the photo. In EL years, the
> line terminated at a Lennox Air Conditioning distributor, and I actually
> did see a flatcar with a large piece of A/C equipment on it being
> switched into there. Rare movements! The deck truss bridge *IS*
> substantial (see our "Boonton Discovery Day" images of this same bridge
> at: 
> 
> http://el-list.railfan.net/discdays/boonton/dd-10.jpg
> http://el-list.railfan.net/discdays/boonton/dd-12.jpg
> 
> As I said, traffic on this spur was rare, so the DL&W and EL both used
> it to store tank cars from Drew Chemical.
> 
> * I have to look up in my DL&W "customers list" to see the name of that
> customer towards the bottom of the image, but that building is STILL
> THERE (they tore down the overhead walkway over Myrtle Ave. in the early
> 1990s, though). Today, the entire area around that building is built up
> (no surprise there, I guess)
> 
> * The large V-shaped gash in the terrain by Main Street isn't the Morris
> Canal, it's the Rockaway River which cuts deeply through the terrain at
> this location.
> 
> Hope this helps!
> 
> 	- Paul
> 
> 
> 
>  <<boonton-annotated.jpg>> 
> 
> ________________________
> Paul R. Tupaczewski
> Alcatel-Lucent
> CDMA/IMS Trials and Demos Group
> 67 Whippany Road, Room 15D-116
> Whippany, NJ 07981
> Phone: 973-386-4966
> Fax:  973-386-4147
> Cell:  973-650-5871
> 
> 
> 
> 
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- ------------------------ 
  Henry J.
  SE, Pa.
  #2113 / #44  
  nemd27_@_speedpost.net
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