They Are Almost All Gone!!!

Everything on this post card is gone, except for the publisher of the post card. Norfolk & Western ended in 1982, The Powhatan Arrow made its last run in 1969, and David Sweetland, the photographer died in 2008.

The Norfolk and Western (N&W) Class J locomotives were 4-8-4 "Northern" streamlined engines. Having been built at the railroad's shops located in Roanoke, Virginia from 1941 to 1950, they were operated in revenue service until the late 1950s. They were built to run on the N&W main line between Norfolk, Virginia and Cincinnati, Ohio, pulling the Powhatan Arrow as well as other passenger trains. The train pictured on the front of this post card is pulling the Powhatan Arrow, train Number 26, the day train from Cincinnati, Ohio to Norfolk, Virginia. This picture was taken in September of 1957, toward the end of the locomotive’s life of service. This website (one of my favourites) tells us about the Powhatan Arrow. https://www.american-rails.com/powhatan.html The Norfolk & Western was in a hurry to enter the streamliner ranks after World War II, so once wartime restrictions had been lifted they rushed a collection of refurbished prewar equipment into service as the new Powhatan Arrow on April 26, 1946. The trains were pulled by N. & W.'s own streamlined Class J 4-8-4 steam locomotives. In 1949, however, the makeshift equipment was replaced by new smooth-sided lightweight coaches, diner, and tavern-lounge-observation from Pullman-Standard—still being pulled behind the Class Js. Also unique to the train was its motive power. In classic N&W fashion the train was powered by steam, not diesels. The locomotives that made it unique were the ones discussed earlier in this blog. The train itself was adorned in a beautiful livery of Tuscan red and black with gold trim and carried a local Native American theme. According to the N&W's 1950 timetable the westbound Powhatan Arrow (train #25), left Norfolk at 7:25 a.m. and arrived in Cincinnati, Ohio later that night just after 11 pm. Train #26 was the eastbound that left Cincinnati and arrived at Norfolk. Overall, it took the trains between 15 1/2 and 16 hours to complete the trip across the southern Appalachians carrying an average train speed of nearly 44 mph (quite fast, especially considering the terrain the Arrow was traveling). The Arrow continued to run the J Class steam locomotives until the late 1950s when Electro-Motive GP9 diesel locomotives, equipped with steam generators, replaced the Js. The switch to diesels is perhaps most surprising in the fact that the Geeps were non-streamlined locomotives.

The post card was published by Audio-Visual Designs out of Earlton, NY after 1983. There is a five-digit zip code followed by the 4-digit extension. The picture was taken by David R. Sweetland. I could find 29 railroad-related books authored by him. I found his death announcement from September 17, 2008 at this website: https://railroad.net/viewtopic.php?t=54992 David Ross Sweetland, 71, of Exton, a retired Conrail manager and a lifelong railroad buff, died of cancer Saturday at Neighborhood Hospice in West Chester. A native of Rhode Island, Mr. Sweetland earned a mechanical engineering degree from the University of Maine, where he met his future wife, J. Susan Heath. He served in the Army Reserve with a railroad transportation group. In 1959, he joined the Pennsylvania Railroad's mechanical department in Altoona. In 1976, when Conrail was created, Mr. Sweetland was in charge of re-numbering the locomotive fleet for the new company. He was transferred to Philadelphia in 1985 by Conrail and became manager of mechanical training, educating the next generations of railroaders. After his retirement in 1996, he was a consultant at the Academy of Industrial Training in Essington. Mr. Sweetland wrote 72 railroad books and many articles. He was a member of several railroad historical organizations. He was especially proud to be involved in the preservation and restoration of a Class E7 diesel locomotive, which he rescued from the scrapyard, his wife said. The train, one of the first passenger diesel locomotives acquired by the Pennsylvania Railroad, has been on display for 10 years at the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania in Strasburg. In addition to his wife, Mr. Sweetland is survived by sons Ross and Christopher; daughters Elizabeth and Joyann; and two grandchildren. A memorial service will be 11 a.m. tomorrow at Central Presbyterian Church, where Mr. Sweetland was an elder, 100 W. Uwchlan Ave., Downingtown. Friends may call from 10.