“Déjà vu all over again”

(Top photo by Bert Pennypacker©, bottom by Jack Hughes.)

—Above are two photographs I can’t help comparing.
One is the cover and December entry of my 2019 Audio-Visual Designs black-and-white All-Pennsy Calendar.
The second my brother took back in 2016 at Tyrone’s tiny Amtrak station. I used it as a cover for my 2017 train-calendar.
The railroad is Pennsy’s old mainline across PA. The railroad is now Norfolk Southern. Tyrone, north of Altoona, is where the railroad turned east toward Harrisburg.
6439, a Pennsy J-1 (2-10-4), is rounding Horseshoe Curve, west of Altoona. The J was Pennsy’s war-baby — it’s not a Pennsy design = Baker valve-gear instead of Walschaerts, and no slab-sided Belpaire firebox.
When WWII broke out Pennsy was stuck with tired old steam-locomotives. Pre-war investment had gone into electrification. Pennsy needed new locomotives, but the war didn’t allow it develop its own steamers. Diesels were also out.
They had to shop around. Various steam-locomotives were tried, including Chesapeake & Ohio’s SuperPower T-1 Texas. The J is C&O’s T-1 slightly restyled.
Pennsy had been conservative, so the T-1 was revolutionary. Pennsy previously abhorred “appliances.” Yet SuperPower was rife with “appliances.” Booster-engines on the trailing-truck, feedwater heat, etc. Stuff that might need repair. Better to just stay away from “appliances.”
Chesapeake & Ohio’s T-1 was Lima Locomotive’s SuperPower 2-8-4 Berkshire stretched. “SuperPower” was meant to maximize side-rod steam locomotives. Primary was a gigantic fire-grate and combustion-chamber, linked to a huge boiler. Such an arrangement was less likely to run out of steam at high usage (high speed). It could keep up with high steam demand.
While powerful, SuperPower was somewhat a mismatch for Pennsy. SuperPower is high-speed, and Pennsy was too mountainous, especially in PA with its Appalachians.
In fact after the war Js gravitated toward the midwest, where gradients were easier. Js could boom-and-zoom heavy coal tonnage to Lake Erie.
Later PRR locomotive development reflected the Js. Suddenly Pennsy was no longer conservative. This is evident in the Q-1 (4-6-4-4) and Q-2 (4-4-6-4) duplexes = four drive-pistons on a common frame. The idea was to reduce side-rod weight by avoiding a 2-10-4’s long heavy side-rods.
The rods of a locomotive pound the rail as they rotate. They can be counter-balanced, but not entirely. Duplexes were a Baldwin Locomotive angle to reduce side-rod weight.
Only one Q-1 was built — it suffered from a dirty rear-engine location, which also constricted firebox size. The Q-2s were more successful— one experimental and 25 others were built.
But they were quickly retired in favor of diesels. None were saved, and they weren’t much better than Pennsy’s J = slightly more powerful, but much more costly to maintain.
No Js were saved either. Pennsy didn’t actually own the Js. Prior steamers were PRR owned. Later were outside investors.
Dieselization was rampant, although Pennsy wanted to remain coal-fired. But the hand-writing was on-the-wall.
Diesels didn’t need water- and coaling-towers, plus the many mechanics needed to keep ‘em running. Availability was higher with diesels, and they were less expensive to run.
Plus diesels didn’t pound the rail.
So during WWII steam-locomotion was essentially finished. Pennsy woulda bought more diesels, except -a) they wanted to remain coal-fired and -b) availability was limited by the war.
“BAMPP-BAMPP-BAMP-BAMPPPP!” (two longs, a short, then a long), a westbound is blowing for Plummers Crossing east of Tyrone. Then it blows again for another grade-crossing just past Tyrone’s Amtrak station.
Here it comes; around the bend!
Photograph from Tyrone’s Amtrak station and the locomotive is in-yer-face. Just like Pennypacker’s photo of 6439 rounding Horseshoe Curve.

• “Déjà vu all over again” is Yogi Berra.