Junkyard Train

Today, once again we ride a freight train of Allentown's great industrial past. In the early 1970's, the Redevelopment Authority tore down the neighborhood on either side of the Lehigh Street hill. At that time they had persuaded Conrail to move the the Barber's Quarry Branch line exclusively to the southern side of the Little Lehigh. The branch had crossed over and back to service the great Wire Mill. After crossing Lehigh Street, the train would proceed along the creek passing under the 8th Street Bridge. At the 10th Street crossing it would service another great industrial giant, Traylor Engineering. In 2009 President Obama visited a successor, Allentown Manufacturing, which has since closed. The line would continue along the creek until it turned north along Cedar Creek to Union Terrace. After crossing Hamilton Street by the current Hamilton Family Diner, it would end at the current park department building. Nothing remains of the line, the tracks were removed. The Allentown Economic Development Corporation recently received a grant to rebuild the line to 10th Street, even though the plant Obama visited has closed. The neighboring former Mack Plant now houses a go cart track. How the money will be squandered remains to be seen. The top photograph was taken by local train historian Mark Rabenold in 1989. It shows the later relocated section of the track that was just east of the Lehigh Street crossing.

reprinted from March of 2011

The Barbershops Of Allentown's Past

I was never a frequent patron, but one of my reoccurring photographic interests was barbershops. Although Allentown now has more barbershops than ever, mine are from a different era. Some of the shops still exist, although the name and clientele has changed. Shown above is the former K&K, on S. 6th Street.*

All photos on this blog will enlarge when clicked.

ADDENDUM: This post first appeared on this blog in 2013. With the proliferation of many local history facebook groups, including my own Allentown Chronicles, I see much subject matter I covered years ago now being repeated by others.  So, even at the risk of seeming less than original, I still repost older images for the benefit of new readers.

* my photograph is from 1996.  The building no longer exists.

The Hamilton Street Bridge

The current Hamilton Street Bridge was completed in 1959, replacing the former steel trestle bridge. With the new Hamilton Street entrance ramp aligned further to the south, a small portion of front street and a few houses were vacated. Additionally, an entrance ramp was added from Union Street, which previously ended at Front Street. The photo above shows a portion of the earlier bridge and the former A&B meat packing plant, beyond their office building.  The office building has been incorporated into the America On Wheels Transportation Museum. lower photo shows entrance to former steel trestle bridge, with entrance ramp skirting A&B Packing House.

reprinted from May of 2013

Sparring At Allentown City Council

In the latest round of the City Council bout, former Human Relations Director Nadeem Shahzad urges council to proceed with the no confidence vote against the mayor, proposed by councilman Ed Zucal. Shahzad claims that he was forced to resign because he would not fire Karen Ocasio, who has since been dismissed directly by Matt Tuerk. 

Both Shahzad and Ocasio may well be filing discrimination suits. On the back burner is a discrimination investigation championed by Zucal. 

The rumor mill has Zucal considering a run for mayor come election time. I've come to believe that any current candidate has to have some Hispanic flavor, only if it's just a hint of Cuban coffee, as in Tuerk's case.

Shown above courtesy of the floor, at a recent city council meeting.

The Dinosaurs Of Sumner Avenue

Up to the early 1950's, Allentown was heated by coal, and much of it came from Sumner Avenue. Sumner was a unique street, because it was served by the West End Branch of the Lehigh Valley Railroad. The spur route ran along Sumner, until it crossed Tilghman at 17th Street, and then looped back East along Liberty Street, ending at 12th. Coal trucks would elevate up, and the coal would be pushed down chutes into the basement coal bins, usually under the front porches of the row houses. Several times a day coal would need to be shoveled into the boiler or furnace. By the early 1970's, although most of the coal yards were closed for over a decade, the machines of that industry still stood on Sumner Avenue. Eventually, they took a short trip to one of the scrap yards, which are still on the same avenue, but not before I photographed them.

reprinted from 2011

photocredit:molovinsky

Allentown Meat Packing Co.

My grandfather lived on the corner of Jordan and Chew, and butchered in a small barn behind the house. He would deliver by horse and wagon to his customers, corner markets. The house is still there, the barn, long gone. My father, and one of his brothers, acquired the H.H. Steinmetz packing house in 1943. Operating as Allentown Meat Packing, by 1950 they closed the slaughter house, and converted the front of the plant into a meat market open to the public. That continued to 1970, when it was leased to an operator who sold meat by freezer full packages. In 1975 the building was torn down, as part of a long term lease agreement with A&B, who wanted the space for parking. The photo was taken just prior to demolition.

reprinted from January 2011

Lehigh Valley Transit, Clearing The Tracks

One of the challenges faced by The Lehigh Valley Transit Company was keeping the tracks cleared of snow during long winters. Special cars were constructed with huge plows for that purpose, plus some regular passenger cars had small plows mounted on the front for continuous cleanup. Shown above is a special plow car stored at the Fairview Yard.







The trolley system required much more infrastructure than later buses. Shown here is track intersection being constructed in center city Bethlehem. Corresponding electric lines would have to be constructed overhead to power the cars. For your viewing pleasure, here is an introduction to an available video by Gerhard Salomon on the service in Easton.



More information on The Rockhill Trolley Museum

reprinted from May 2010

The Union Street Train Tower

The Union Street crossing was a busy place. It was located between the Jordan Creek and south 3th Street. Virtually all the train lines serving Allentown converged here. The Lehigh Valley Railroad's old main line also crossed Union Street further east, toward the Lehigh River. Allentown was at this time served by two train stations, the Lehigh Valley Railroad Station which was built over the Jordan Creek, and the New Jersey Central, which still stands as a closed restaurant and bar. This photograph, from 1930, is first in a series which will chronicle both the demise of our railroad era, and manufacturing base. Today, the tower is long gone and only one track survives. It is used by a private short line operator.

photograph from the Collection of Mark Rabenold 

reprinted from July 2011