Herbert V. Trice Lehigh Valley Railroad Collection A Finding Aid to the Collection Cayuga County Historian s Office Auburn, New York Contact information: historian@cayugacounty.us 315-253-1300 Prepared by: Linda Frank, Ph.D. December 1, 2015
Collection Summary The Title: Span Dates: 1833-2011 Bulk Dates: 1880-1960 Compiled By: Herbert V. Trice Extent: 46 containers plus 5 oversized; 63 linear feet plus oversized and blueprints. Location: Special Collections, Cayuga County Historian s Office, Auburn, New York Summary: The Herbert V. Trice Collection is possibly the largest and most comprehensive grouping of material related to the Lehigh Valley Railroad. The collection includes materials regarding the railroad in New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey during the 19 th and 20 th centuries, and it contains primary source documents, photographs, corporate records, station blueprints, original time tables, track plans, employee rosters and other historical material. Administrative Information Provenance Mr. Trice s children, Judith A. Trice and Curtis R. Trice, donated their father s collection to the Cayuga County Historian s Office in 2014. Processing History The Trice Collection underwent preliminary processing in 2014, and further reorganization and preservation in 2015. This preliminary finding aid was produced in 2015. Many items (including photographs, are indexed at the Cayuga County Historian s Office. Copyright Status The status of the collection s copyright is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.). Preferred Citation Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Herbert V. Trice Lehigh Valley Railroad Collection, Special Collections, Cayuga County Historian s Office, Auburn, New York. Container number, file number.
About Herbert V. Trice Herbert V. Trice (1918-2013) was born in East Mauch Chunk (now Jim Thorpe), Carbon County, Pennsylvania. His father, Walter V. Trice (1890-1970) was an electrician and signal maintainer on the Lehigh Valley Railroad first in Pennsylvania and later in Cayuga County, New York. Herbert Trice s interest in the railroad began when he was just a child, and his interests grew to encompass many rail lines within New York State. Among railroad historians, Mr. Trice was a dean, and his collection of photographs, corporate information and eyewitness accounts of the rise and fall of the Lehigh Valley Railroad, make this collection unique and important. Mr. Trice was a respected railroad historian for the majority of his life. An avid collector of railroad photography and memorabilia, Mr. Trice was also a skilled photographer, amassing a one-of-a-kind archive of photographs, dominated by his interest in railroad history. In 2004, Mr. Trice published The Gangly Country Cousin: The Lehigh Valley s Auburn Division (DeWitt Historical Society: Ithaca, NY). About the Lehigh Valley Railroad in Cayuga County The Lehigh Valley Railroad dominated the anthracite coal transportation routes in Pennsylvania. Carrying the profitable cargo from the coal mines of Pennsylvania to markets in the Northeast and Canada, the Lehigh Valley Railroad (LVRR) continued to expand during the nineteenth century to include mainlines and branch lines Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey. Through a series of investments and acquisitions, the Lehigh Valley Railroad assumed operations of the Southern Central Railroad in New York State, and the company s 115-mile line from Sayre, Pennsylvania (near the New York border) to the Lake Ontario port of North Fair Haven in Cayuga County, New York. The LVRR also took control of the Cayuga Lake Railroad Company, running from Ithaca, New York to Cayuga, New York, and added several miles of track to reach the central New York city of Auburn. This acquisition and the new track allowed for the connection between the Southern Central and the Cayuga Lake lines. By 1890, these two divisions became the 160-mile Auburn Division. Within a few years, the LVRR purchased the Elmira, Cortland & Northern Railroad, adding these lines to the company s Auburn Division and increasing it to some 300 miles of track. The Auburn Division was unlike the company s larger and more modern systems from New York City to Buffalo, in part, because the track served primarily rural villages and small towns. The Auburn Division remained single tracked, without automated signals, and powered by light rail motor power. However, this also allowed the Auburn Division to profitably provide
service to passengers and local businesses transporting farm products, particularly milk, to other urban areas through the LVRR s connections to mainline tracks. In 1914, the company added the Seneca Falls Branch, connecting the Auburn Division to the LVRR mainline near Geneva, New York, and increasing the Auburn Division s total track to 315 miles. The following year was the highpoint for the company in New York State, with some 650 miles of mainline track divided between their Buffalo, Seneca and Auburn Divisions. As the use of automobiles and the interstate highway system grew in popularity, freight and passenger travel also changed. Canal traffic and railroad utilization declined, putting pressure on companies such as the LVRR to consolidate and terminate unprofitable rail lines. After World War I, railways had already reached their peak years with respect to miles of track and number of employees, and by the time of the Great Depression, many lines and companies had disappeared. In Cayuga County, the spur running north to Fair Haven was discontinued in 1936, and the trestle used to move coal onto ships was dismantled the following year, signaling the finality of the closing. Also in 1937, the Civilian Conservation Corps (the CCC), turned the former rail yard area into Fair Haven Beach State Park. The Second World War brought about a brief renewal in rail traffic, but declining business at the war s end led to the end of passenger service in 1948. The following year, rail traffic once again declined to pre-war levels. By 1953, the LVRR tracks from other stations in the northern part of Cayuga County were also abandoned. Some of the tracks became part of a 14 mile multi-use recreational trail beginning at the old LVRR station in Cato, New York. Despite many attempts to save the Lehigh Valley Railway, in 1962, the Pennsylvania Railway took control of the remaining lines, but due to continued losses, they too declared bankruptcy in 1970. Several stations and depots were closed throughout New York State, including the stations in Auburn, Union Springs and Martville. The Auburn roundhouse is still standing, and is currently used as a storage facility for a local company, while the Union Springs station is now occupied by the village offices. In 1976, Conrail acquired control of the remaining assets of the Lehigh Valley Railway, and by the end of that decade, most of the remaining mainlines were removed.
Please note: This is a preliminary finding aid to assist researchers in understanding the scope of the collection. Many individual items are indexed in greater detail than provided in this finding aid, and the index is available for use by researchers when visiting the Cayuga County Historian s Office. Researchers may also contact the office by phone or email if inquiring about a specific item s availability. Description of Container Bin 1 Framed Images and documents (7) - Oversized 1870s-1950s Box 1 Original list of Industrial Tracks ca 1899-1926 Snapshots of diesels ca 1960s Clippings and correspondence Archival photo albums (2) containing 5 x 7, 3 x 5 sepia and B/W steam engines Box 2 Color images LVRR Bridges w/research notes Original charter of NY & Middle Coal Field RR & Coal Co. (1866) Stockholders reports and proceedings 1863 and 1869 8 x 10 photographs 1880s-1950s (10+) 8mm film Lehigh Valley Wreck Owasco Lake Station LVRR shipping tags (4) two styles, two each Employee rosters, 1940s-1960s Clippings and photocopies of correspondence Track plan, Geneva-Ithaca Bound photocopy, LVRR Station Loading Order Book, 1911 LVRR corporate documents, some photocopies Box 3 Archival albums (2) containing 8 x 10 prints of engines, depots, rolling stock & facilities (1910s-1940s) and Snapshots, 1930s and 1940s Correspondence, 1960s Timetables and shipping directions, Philadelphia & Reading RR (1893) Southern Central Bond (Tompkins Co), 1867
Box 3 (cont.) LVRR Corporate documents, billing forms Newspapers, clippings 1899-1936 Carbons of LVRR Correspondence (1917-1936) Snapshots of Fair Haven Coal Docks 1890s-1910 Box 4 Box 5 Pre 1900 map of crossings, depots in NYS 1940 LVRR Bond with coupons attached Photocopies of LVRR corporate documents (1880s-1930s) VHS tapes Memories of the LVRR Five (5) archival boxes containing 2 ½ x 41/2 negatives 1940s Box 6 Three (3) slide carousels, 2 color, 1 B&W Aerial views of tracks, diesel and steam engines Box 7 Snapshots, 1960s-1980s engines, bridges, track scenes Circa 2000 photo of Herbert Trice at LVRR Retirees Luncheon Box 8 Lehigh Valley Railroad Passenger Cars Photo and Diagram Book 1 Time tables 1920s (2) Time tables 1930s (17) Time tables 1940s (21) Time tables 1960s (8) Time tables 1975 (2) Box 9 York 1886 (Vol 1 & 2); 1889; 1890 Box 10 York 1881; 1884 (Vol 1 & 2); 1885 (Vol 2 only); 1887(Vol 1 & 2); 1888(Vol 1 & 2); 1889 (Vol 2 only Vol 1 in Box 9); Box 11 Flags, diamonds and statues V1 (1975) to V21no.3 (2011) 71 issues total nearly complete Anthracite extra, Summer 2006 Coal Trade Journal, Black Diamond Express
Box 11 (cont.) 1890-1906 Original minutes of Lehigh Valley Railway Co. director and stockholders meetings Box 12 Original records, LVRR stations 1937-1950s Auburn 1946 City of Auburn land values Photos ca 1900: engines, viaduct, trains (long and short view) Box 13 Photocopies of books 1895-1912 News clippings, notes Misc. LVRR letterhead, leases, waybills, etc. 1871-1936 Souvenir LVRR Sterling Historical Society Box 14 Photographs (snapshots to 8 x 10) some original Records of LVRR Veteran s Association Employee Rosters 1920s-1950s Box 15 Prints and negatives, 1937-1946 Identified crew member photograph with steam locomotives 44 B&W and 47 color slides, Auburn and surrounding Box 16 Box 17 Box 18 200+ color slides LVRR depots from New Jersey to Buffalo Misc. magazines and pamphlets Lehigh Coal and Navigation Co., stock certificates, 1939-1955 (30) Misc. newspaper clippings Notes regarding Cayuga Lake Railroad and Buffalo Division Photocopied articles in notebooks Newspaper clippings and misc. papers 200+ 8 x 10 photos 1900-1990s Box 19 Archival wrapped reports Town of Phelps appraisals, 1927-1940 LVRR Abandonment of tracks and other facilities, replacement of storehouse, 1930s Three (3) maps showing track lines/right of way, LVRR at Ithaca, 1917
Box 20 LVRR Pamphlets and circulars, some corporate/employee related, 1883-1968 LVRR Seal Record Book, 1959-1965 Photographs of derailment at Oswego, 1929 1863 NY State Senate Report of the Committee of Railroads 1870 NY Middle Report to Stockholders 48-page 1902 LVRR Brochure Stereocard, Trumansburg RR Bridge Box 21 Sketch Minutes 3 boxes includes 1854-1873, 1890-11902 1865 Memorial pamphlet Southern Central Railroad Box 22 Box 23 Box 24 Notebooks containing Original LVRR track plans: Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Tioga, Seneca (partial), Buffalo, Geneva Zone Notebook containing Town of Ovid Tax Case 1935-1937 Notebook containing Tax and Land rights cases, 1920s-1940s Five (5) Notebooks containing LVRR track plans: Seneca, Tompkins, Cortland, Madison, Oneida, Chemung, Schulyer, Cayuga counties LVRR Rent Book Collector 4 Buffalo area, 1894-1898. Fire damaged, legible Letterbox containing 22 sets of minutes with attachments, 1833-1902 (incomplete) Letterbox Sketch Minutes, LVRR board, 1857-1879 and 1882-1939. Minutes of monthly meetings of board of directors nine volumes. Box 25 Approx. 100 blueprints of engines and tenders, LVRR. 1942 & 1944 Clearance forms, 1969-1971 Track charts, 1940s and undated Bound volume of Officers, Agents, Stations, etc., LVRR 1910 Bound volume instructions to conductors, LVRR, 1929 Lehigh Valley Annual Reports, Vols. 1-3 covering 1881-1915 Box 26 Lehigh Valley Annual Reports, Vols 4 & 5, covering 1916-1972 Printed Volume from New York State Board of RR Commissioners, 1890 & 1894
Box 27 Binder containing Timetables, NY Central, 1921 & 1956; Shipping bills, 1892; NY Central Lines Magazine, 1925; Railroad passes, 1905-1948 Bound reports by LVRR President 1907 & 1908 Unclassified clippings, photocopies of documents Bound minute book of Utica, Ithaca & Elmira Railroad, 1871-1977 Box 28 Binder containing LVRR roster, undated, but begins in nineteenth century Bound secretary s record, Auburn Lodge, 1937 with roster LVRR blank forms Schematic for new private telephone car, 1956 Two archival photo albums containing 300+ B & W snapshots Box 29 Box 30 Contemporary Railroad History, New York 32 volumes book Autumn 1888, LVRR Comet magazine Four archival wrapped volumes: The Official Guide of the Railways and Steam Navigation. 1910, 1928, 1940, 1956 Box 31 Scrapbook about LVRR Hardcover books (20) see index for titles Box 32 Nine Hardcover books see index for titles Box 33 35 York. 1891-1906 Total 17 volumes. One volume, General Railroad Laws of the State of New York with Amendment, 1906. Book 36 Five VHS tapes and two DVDs of annual LVRR retirees reunions, 1996-2001. DVDs of books and misc materials Two binders containing 767 slides of images ranging from 1880-2000 (slides date from 1980-2000) Four CDs containing images used in Herbert Trice s book Thirteen negatives, 1910-1960s Misc. correspondence LVRR, 1960s Box 37 Over 275 images and negatives, 1875-1979 (bulk 1930s and 1940s) Two VHS tapes featuring footage of LVRR employees, 1956-1990
Box 38 Box 39 Archival wrapped volumes, Annual Report of State Engineer & Surveyor of Railroad Corporations. 1868, 1871, 1877, 1879, 1880 (some fragile) Three volumes, NY Railroad Commissioners Reports, 1883 (two volumes) and Vol. 2 only, 1885 Archival wrapped volumes, Annual Report of State Engineer & Surveyor of Railroad Corporations. 1851, 1854, 1858, 1878 (some missing covers/fragile) Annual Report of Secretary of Internal Affairs, 1900 Box 40 Annual Reunion of LVRR Retirees program books, 1986-2006 Magazines and newsletters, 1980-2011 Binder of photos engines and yards, no date Copies of correspondence and track maps Four newspapers, 1950s Box 41 Photographs, ranging in size from snapshots to 11 x 17, 1904-1970 (bulk 1970s) Binder of prints from negatives in the collection, 1900-1984 Three photo albums of 5 x 7 or smaller original photos, 1889-1939 Box 42 Box 43 Box 44 Box 45 Seven binders containing research notes, photographs, 1890s to 1960s. (bulk are prints from original negatives in the collection, 1950s and 1960s. Binder of 376 slides, individually labeled Items relating to Cortland Branch, includes photocopies, news clippings and correspondence regarding historical materials on the Cortland Branch Binder containing photo prints of engines ca 1930s, 1940s and 1960s Two binders containing photographs of LVRR employees and scenes on the Elmira and Cortland Branches (1890s-1940s) York 1896 (Vol. 1), 1897 (Vol. 2), 1900 (Vols. 1 & 2) York, 1894 (Vol. 1), 1895 (Vol. 1), 1896 (Vol. 2), 1899 (Vol. 2), 1901 (Vols. 1 & 2), 1902 (Vol. 1)
Box 46 York 1893, (Vol. 2), 1895 (Vol. 1), 1897 (Vol. 1) and 1898 (Vol. 2) See index for contents of Oversized Map Boxes 1 & 2, and oversized blueprints (not indexed) Additional photographs, original, stored in vault Three archival boxes glass negatives