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The Little Giant

Posted September 12th, 2008 by johnchic

The Pittsburgh & Lake Erie (P&LE) railroad was a regional road that operated just 1/10 of one percent of the nations rails but carried over one percent of the tonnage.  This amazing feat earned it the nick name of “The Little Giant”.  The history of the P&LE is very colorful from its early independent days to its absorption into the New York Central System and then back to being an independent.  But I’m not going to go into that here and that’s not the reason I chose to model this tough, gritty road.  My reasons are much more personal.  I practically grew up riding on the back of the Little Giant.  My first ride came at the ripe old age of 2 months.  My parents took their new arrival to visit “nonna” in Munhall, PA the day before Thanksgiving 1950.  For those of you who don’t know what happened; well lets just say the area had a bit of unexpected snow.  That trip began a journey filled with many fond memories with family, holidays, and train rides that remain with me today. (also my grandfather worked for the P&LE in the early part of the last century first as a section foreman and then later as a crossing watchman) 

When the P&LE discontinued passenger service between Pittsburgh and Youngstown, Ohio my days of riding trains came to an abrupt end.  It wasn’t until a visit to Station Square, the shopping and entertainment complex at the former P&LE main terminal building in downtown Pittsburgh, that my interest in the P&LE was renewed.  While walking in the parking lot with my wife Debbie I heard the blast of an air horn.  As I looked toward the tracks I couldn’t believe my eyes.  There was a passenger train backing into the station.   It consisted of a dusty GP7 and three grimy green coaches. I had no idea that the railroad was still running passenger trains.  After talking to the conductor I came to understand that this train was called “The Beaver Vally Local” a commuter train that ran between the town of College, PA and downtown Pittsburgh.   So I made plans to ride it in an attempt to recapture the memories of my youth.  The possibility of future rides was short-lived, however.  Shortly after my ride that service was also discontinued.  I did have another opportunity to ride the the rails of the P&LE, however, this time behind the NKP 765 steam engine on an excursion trip.

All of these factors led me to model the fictional town of Beaverton on my 4×8 foot high-rail O-gauge railroad.  The layout was initially conceived to recreate a typical river town along the P&LE’s 65 mile right-of-way in south western Pennsylvania.  The time period is the late 1950’s.  I have since up-dated to the 70’s with the addition of more modern engines and rolling stock.  But changing back and forth is as easy as changing automobiles and railroad equipment.

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