N&W/CHW Elkton interchange and surrounding operations

[NW Mailing List]

Brandon,
     Cars destined for the CW are taken into Shenandoah by NS freights. 
The CW operates a couple of crews out of Harrisonburg to Shenandoah to 
pick up cars and return to Harrisonburg. The V92 is one train number.  
Yard crews in Shenandoah will cut the CW cars out of a train. The CW 
crews switch up their own trains mostly at the south end of the yard. 
Also crews will come over to take unit grain trains to Hburg and return 
empties to Shenandoah. Most of these unit train now come south from 
Hagerstown and return the same way. Of course there is always the rare 
train that arrives from Roanoke.
     There used to be a passing siding at Elkton on the west side of the 
main line. The north end of this siding was just south of MP H111 and 
continued south past MP112. At the south end, where it joined the main 
line, there was a crossover switch where the siding continued straight 
into what was called the "Storage Track". At the south end of the 
Storage Track was another crossover to the main line where the track 
also continued straight into the spur for Monger Coal Co.
     Before the grain business really boomed (because of large poultry 
industry in the Harrisonburg and surrounding areas) to large numbers of 
loads, there were only small numbers of misc. cars to be set off to the 
CW. We set these cars off on the storage track at Elkton. At that time 
the CW, being a "Short Line" only could come as far north on the N&W 
main as Elkton to pick up their cars. They could not go into 
Shenandoah.  The CW would pick up their cars and set off cars for the 
N&W to pick up. Later, after the big grain boom, large blocks of cars 
were set off and picked up on the passing siding.
      Later the siding/storage track/Monger spur was taken up and only 
the "Bark Siding" (a short dead end siding on the east side of the 
track) remained. An agreement was made whereas the CW crews were allowed 
into Shenandoah Yard, but, could only handle their cars.

Jimmy Lisle