The P&WV Hi-Line

[ple1556]

Saw an article in The Valley Independent Online that Three Rivers Marine/Rail Terminal is to receive a million dollar grant for thier rail facility along the Monongahela River in Belle Vernon/Monessen ....May be more affectionately known as the "Gibsonton Yards" of the Monessen Southwestern Railway.

Link to article: http://triblive.com/neighborhoods/yourmonvalley/yourmonvalleymore/5250990-74/rail-airport-terminal#axzz2nZ0EIxb1
_________________
High green!!

[jayrod]

Thanks for the post. The article made me a bit curious, though. Very little info seems available online. Does anyone know when MSW officially quit operations? Some mill roads soldiered on after the closure of their parent company until they were sold. And, does the terminal's rail operation as it is now serve other customers?
_________________
Eric Schlentner
Aka, jayrod

[PWVJer]

...MSW Rail operations stopped when the Wheeling-PGH Steel
operations (Monessen/Allenport Works) went belly-up.
Think, I may have the exact demise dates, I gotta look...

In the glory years 50's- 60's- early 70's, the MSW roster included:

15 EMD/GE units,
5-GE center cab 80-ton
10 EMD SW-8 & SW-9's
...not including the 4 units @ Allen-Port rolling Mill. Just a few
miles up-river from the Monessen Plant.

MSW Owned Rolling Stock 50's & 60's:

10 assorted flats
81 Slab cars
127 Gondolas
18 Ingot
109 Hoppers
10 Tanks
64 Side Dumps
12 Hot Metal
2 Spacer cars.

It's been some time since I last visited the current Marine Terminal.
The WE had some nice coal movements, smaller balk road salt (Penn-Dot)
traffic, pre-fab new home wood truss builder, and a few other smaller
rail-barge-truck river bottom type raw materials. CSX shared some of this traffic as well.

The Big Story Now....Frac-Sand, wet-Gas and a host of other
materials & bi-products for the Well-Fracking Industry.

BTW, very close by, right next door, the large Coke operations may
resume in early spring 2014.
Link:

http://www.workforarcelormittal.com/AboutArcelorMittal/ArcelorMittalFacilities/ArcelorMittalMonesson/tabid/275/Default.aspx

Maybe, Brian F. or Gene S. can add/correct some additional info.

[PWVJer]

Whoops, here' a nice set of 43 Mill pics from the Library of Congress:
Direct Link;

http://www.loc.gov/pictures/search/?va=exact&sp=2&st=gallery&q=Photograph%3A+pa2744&fi=number&op=PHRASE

[jayrod]

So who owns/does all the switching now - W&LE and/or CSX? Am I correct to assume that Allenport was a separate but related operation? There's no connection between them. Allenport was on Pennsy rails.
_________________
Eric Schlentner
Aka, jayrod

[PWVJer]

3 Rivers Marine & Rail Terminal.
Well OK, in a nut-shell...

These folks own & operate switching moves with
at least two SW-9 switchers. The WLE/P&WV ROW goes over the "spinney bridge" and thru
3-Rivers complex.

Access from the C'ville main line(MP.21) to the branch @ Monessen then down to Wheeling-Pitt-Mon.-Works.
This interchange line was built & owned by the P&WV to service the Mill, and compete with the P&LE/P-Mickey.

CSX/P&LE River line to Brownsville (MGA) and PRR) inter-change,
runs next to the Marine Terminal and the Coke Works. During the W-P Mill's golden years,
the raw slabs were moved in P&LE unit trains, up river to Brownsville Pa.,
then back over the bridge to the PRR/Conrail then down to the Allenport
Roll & Finish Complex.

[jayrod]

That makes sense. I remember the P&LE dedicated slab trains. They touted it as innovative thinking.

The P&WV connection is a twisty bugger.

If the coke works fire up, does the Wheeling service it or CSX?
_________________
Eric Schlentner
Aka, jayrod

[PWVJer]

The Coke Plant is "on target for full operations by May 2014"
some "Hot-Tests" may start late Jan.Feb.2014 according
to the Wall Street Folks. Don't know how much traffic the W&LE
will get. In the past, these WE moves seemed to partner well.

maybe one could/might observe & connect some dots...

are all those hoppers still in storage on the Clariton Branch?
^any MofW activity on/at MP 21-22 including the branch?
^has CSX did any ?
^how much additional C'ville Div. winter-work is still on-going?
(this may be some what of a mute point) looks like
the frac-gas biz is the prime driver.
^ and any white shirt types talking?

At this point, don't know, have no clue and would not even make a guess.