Nashville-Chattanooga & St. Louis Railway
Item: 3-N Price: $115.00
Remarks: Operated 1851-1957. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice block lettering and gold patina.
History
The Nashville-Chattanooga & St. Louis Railway was a railway company operating in the southern United States in Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia. It began as the Nashville & Chattanooga Railroad, chartered in Nashville in December 11, 1845, built to 5 ft (1,524 mm) gauge and was the first railway to operate in the state of Tennessee. From this link between two Tennessee cities, it gradually grew until it formed one of the important railway systems of the South by the turn of the twentieth century.
Click on image to view larger picture
Nashville-Chattanooga & St. Louis Railway
Item: 4-N New Listing Price: $125.00
Remarks: Operated 1851-1957. Fraim forged.
Superb serif lettering and dark patina.
History - continued from above
During the Civil War the rail line was strategic to both the Union and Confederate armies. The Tennessee campaigns of 1862 and 1863 saw Union troops force the Confederates from Nashville to Chattanooga along the line of the railroad. The tracks and bridges were repeatedly damaged and repaired, and at different times carried supplies for both armies.
The Louisville and Nashville Railroad, an aggressive competitor of the NC&StL, gained a controlling interest in 1880 through a hostile stock takeover that caused much rancor between the cities of Nashville and Louisville. However, the railroads continued to operate separately until finally merging in 1957. Today the Nashville-Chattanooga & St. Louis Railway is part of the CSX Transportation Co.
Click on image to view larger picture
Nashville & Florence Railroad
Item: 5-N Price: $100.00
Remarks: Operated from 1851-1957
Superb serif lettering and rustic copper patina.
Absorbed into the L&N.
History
The Nashville & Florence Railroad was formed in 1879 to construct a 79 mile line from Columbia, Tennessee to Florence Alabama. The Louisville & Nashville Railroad, quietly watching the development and knowing the geography of the area could be rich in iron ore and timber, quickly purchased a majority of of stock. The L&N then advanced the project of moving the planned line forward which had laid dormant for three years. The Nashville & Florence Railroad was eventually absorbed into the rapidly growing Louisville & Nashville Railroad network.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York Central & Harlem Railroad
Item: 8-N Price: $100.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Slaymaker forged.
Superb serif lettering and patina.
Merged into the NYC in 1914.
History
The company was incorporated on April 25, 1831 as the New York and Harlem Railroad, to link New York City with suburban Harlem. Eventually the rail line was leased to the New York Central, and the street railway line to the Metropolitan Street Railway Company (and later the New York Railways Company). When Grand Central Terminal was completed, the divorce of the two was quite obvious, but before that, where exactly did the street railway operate? For the most part, on Fourth Avenue, and extending as south as Ann Street, about a mile from the southern tip of Manhattan island.
The line became part of the New York Central Railroad system with trackage rights granted to the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad into Manhattan. It is now part of the Metro-North Railroad system, and the only Manhattan trackage of that system.
Click on image to view larger picture
New Jersey Railroad
Item: 11-N Price: $100.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Adlake forged?
Superb block lettering and dark patina.
History
On March 7, 1832 the New Jersey Rail Road and Transportation Company (NJRR) was chartered as a parallel line to the Camden and Amboy. Regular NJRR service began September 15, 1834 between Newark and Jersey City, using a temporary track over Bergen Hill. An extension to Elizabeth opened December 21, 1835, using the turnpike from the south end of Broad Street.
On February 1, 1867, the C&A and NJRR were informally joined as the United New Jersey Railroad and Canal Companies (UNJ). The Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) approved a lease of the UNJ on May 15, 1871, and the UNJ approved May 19. On May 18, 1872 the C&A, D&R Canal and NJRR were consolidated, forming the United New Jersey Railroad and Canal Company. The new company was split into two divisions: the New York Division consisted of the NJRR and the C&A Trenton Branch towards Philadelphia, while the Amboy Division was the original C&A main line.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York & Jamaica Railroad
Item: 12-N Price: $95.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Fraim forged.
Superb block lettering and great carmel patina.
Gobbled up by the Long Island R.R. in 1860.
History
New York & Jamaica Railroad Company was organized about 1857, and constructed a railroad from the terminus of the Long Island Railroad in Jamaica to the water's edge at Hunter's Point, and when ready for opening the trains of the Long Island Railroad, instead of running over the Brooklyn & Jamaica Railroad into the city of Brooklyn, turned off at Jamaica and were brought to Hunter's Point. This diverted the main line of travel on Long Island from the city of Brooklyn to the new terminus. This new line was opened in 1860. About the same time its property, corporate rights and franchises were acquired by the Long Island Railroad Company. From that time the Brooklyn & Jamaica Railroad was run as a branch road between Jamaica and East New York.
Jamaica is a major hub station of the Long Island Rail Road, and is located in Jamaica, Queens, New York City. It is the largest transit hub on Long Island and is one of the busiest railroad stations in the country with weekday ridership exceeding 200,000 passengers.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York-Pennsylvania & Ohio Railroad
Item: 14-N Price: $115.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Fraim forged.
Superb serif lettering and two-tone patina.
History
The Nypano Railroad, earlier the New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio Railroad, was organized from the bankrupt Atlantic and Great Western Railroad in March 1880.
The road was owned by five of the English investors in the A&GW and ran from Salamanca, New York to Dayton, Ohio. J. H. Devereaux, former president of the A&GW, was elected first president of the new company. Devereaux was succeeded by Jarvis M. Adams who, on March 6, 1883, leased the NYP&O to the New York, Lake Erie and Western Railroad. On February 27, 1896 the property was sold under foreclosure to representatives of the Erie, and subsequently reorganized as the Nypano. The company was merged into the Erie in 1941.
Click on image to view larger picture
New Orleans-Texas & Mexico Railroad
Item: 16-N Price: $110.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice block lettering and patina.
History
The New Orleans Texas & Mexico Railway was the overiding corporate entity of the Gulf Coast Lines. These lines were owned by the St. Louis-San Francisco Railroad (Frisco) up until the mid-1920s when the Missouri Pacific Railroad (MoPac) took them over.
Click on image to view larger picture
New Orleans-Texas & Mexico Railway
Item: 17-N New Listing Price: $125.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Slaymaker forged.
Superb serif lettering and dark patina.
History - continued from above
As the "corporate workhorse" of the Gulf Coast Lines, the NOT&M was used to purchase many smaller Texas lines, including the New Ibernia & Northern (1916), Houston & Brazos Valley (1924), and International-Great Northern (1924). When the MoPac gained control of the NOT&M, it still operated as a buying machine, and later gained control of the San Antonio-Uvalde & Gulf (1925) and the Asphalt Belt (1925), the Sugarland (1926), the Asherton & Gulf (1926), the Rio Grande City (1926), the New Orleans & Lower Coast (1926), the San Antonio Southern (1926), affectionately known as the "Sausage." All of the flags of the Gulf Coast Lines and its acquired roads were absorbed into the MoPac in 1956.
Click on image to view larger picture
New Orleans & Lower Coast Railway
Item: 18-N Price: $175.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice block lettering and patina. Low serial #
History
The New Orleans & Lower Coast Railway was a subsidiary of the Rio Grande Pacific Company. In 1911, this company was combined with the New Orleans Southern Railway to form the New Orleans, Southern & Grand Isle Railway, which by 1916 was sold to form the New Orleans & Lower Coast Railroad. By 1926 this last independent operation was under the control of the Missouri Pacific and later absorbed.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York Central Railroad
Item: 20-N Price: $55.00
Remarks: ca. late 1800s. Forged by the A&W Co.
Great block lettering and superb gold patina.
Key used on lines east of Buffalo.
History
The New York Central Railroad (reporting mark NYC) was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes region of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Midwest along with the intermediate cities of Albany, Buffalo, Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Detroit. New York Central was headquartered in New York City's New York Central Building, adjacent to its largest station, Grand Central Terminal.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York Central Railroad
Item: 21-N Price: $65.00
Remarks: ca. 1800s-early 1900s. Forged by the A&W Co.
Nice pocket worn block lettering. Superb gold patina.
Key used on lines east of Buffalo.
History - continued from above
The Mohawk and Hudson Railroad was the oldest segment of the NYC merger and was the first permanent railroad in the state of New York and one of the first railroads in the United States. It was chartered in 1826 to connect the Mohawk River at Schenectady to the Hudson River at Albany, providing a way for freight and especially passengers to avoid the extensive and time-consuming locks on the Erie Canal between Schenectady and Albany. The Mohawk and Hudson opened on September 24, 1831, and changed its name to the Albany and Schenectady Railroad on April 19, 1847.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York Central Railroad
Item: 22-N Price: $95.00
Remarks: ca. late 1800s.
Early A&W hex stamp = 1st series.
A&W hex stamp under the "R."
Superb block lettering and gold patina.
Key used on lines east of Buffalo.
History - continued from above
In 1914, the operations of eleven subsidiaries were merged with the New York Central & Hudson River Railroad, re-forming the New York Central Railroad. From the beginning of the merge, the railroad was publicly referred to as the New York Central Lines. In the summer of 1935, the identification was changed to the New York Central System, that name being kept until the acquisition by the Pennsylvania Railroad.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York Central Railroad
Item: 23-N Price: $50.00
Remarks: ca. 1800s-early 1900s. Forged by the A&W Co.
Attractive pocket worn block lettering and
gold patina. Key used on lines east of Buffalo.
History - continued from above
The Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway, also known as the Big Four, was formed on June 30, 1889 by the merger of the Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Indianapolis Railway, the Cincinnati, Indianapolis, St. Louis and Chicago Railway and the Indianapolis and St. Louis Railway. The following year, the company gained control of the former Indiana Bloomington and Western Railway. By 1906, the Big Four was itself acquired by the New York Central Railroad. It operated independently until 1930, it was then referred to as the Big Four Route.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York Central Railroad
Item: 24-N Price: $95.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Bohannan forged.
Superb serif lettering and two-tone patina.
Slim accent ring barrel. Key barrel is 1/8 smaller
than standard NYC key. A nice 1!
History - continued from above
The generally level topography of the NYC system had a character distinctively different than the mountainous terrain of its archrival, the Pennsylvania Railroad. Most of its major routes, including New York to Chicago, followed rivers and had no significant grades other than West Albany Hill. This influenced a great deal about the line, from advertising to locomotive design, built around its flagship New York-Chicago Water Level Route.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York Central System Railroad
Item: 26-N Price: $45.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Superb block lettering and two-tone patina.
Key used on lines east of Buffalo.
History - continued from above
Steam locomotives of the NYC were optimized for speed on that flat raceway of a main line, rather than slow mountain lugging. Famous locomotives of the system included the well-known 4-6-4 Hudsons, particularly the 1937–38 J-3a's; 4-8-2 World War II–era L-3 and L-4 Mohawks; and the postwar S-class Niagaras: fast 4-8-4 locomotives often considered the epitome of their breed by steam locomotive aficionados.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York Central System Railroad
Item: 27-N Price: $75.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Superb block lettering and gold patina.
Key used on lines west of Buffalo.
History - continued from above
At various times during the 1940s and 1950s, the Century and other NYC trains exchanged sleeping cars in Chicago with western trains such as the Super Chief and the City of San Francisco. The cars, which contained roomettes, double bedrooms and drawing rooms, provided through sleeper service between New York City and Los Angeles or San Francisco (Oakland Pier).
Click on image to view larger picture
New York Central System Railroad
Item: 28-N track dept. Price: $125.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Fraim forged?
Superb serif lettering and dark patina.
History - continued from above
On January 26, 1968, the NYC's last passenger timetable became effective. The final timetable revealed a drastically truncated schedule in anticipation of its merger with the PRR. Most local and long-distance passenger service had ended, including that of the 20th Century Limited.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York Central System Railroad
Item: 29-N Price: $45.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Steel shorty.
History - continued from above
In 1968 the NYC merged with its former rival, the Pennsylvania Railroad, to form Penn Central. Penn Central went bankrupt in 1970 and merged into Conrail in 1976. Conrail was broken up in 1998, and portions of its system were transferred to CSX and Norfolk Southern Railway, with CSX acquiring most of the old New York Central trackage.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York Central Railroad
Item: 30-N tool house key Price: $45.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Bohannan forged?
Superb block lettering and gold patina.
Early TH key, no "S" for system.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York Central System Railroad
Item: 31-N tool house key Price: $50.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Bohannan forged?
Nice serif lettering and gold patina.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York Metro
Item: 33-N Price: $85.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Passenger rail line.
Superb block lettering and carmel patina.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York-Ontario & Western Railway
Item: 34-N Price: $135.00
Remarks: ca. early-mid 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice two-tone patina. Another hard key to find.
History
The railroad began life as the New York and Oswego Midland Railroad, organized by Dewitt C. Littlejohn in 1868. Its mainline extended from Weehawken, New Jersey in the greater New York City area to Oswego, New York, a port city on Lake Ontario. It had branch lines to Scranton, Pennsylvania; Kingston, New York; Port Jervis, New York; Monticello, New York; Delhi, New York; Utica, New York and Rome, New York. The part south of Cornwall, New York was operated over the New York Central Railroad's West Shore Railroad via trackage rights.
The New York-Ontario & Western Railway, more commonly known as the O&W or NYO&W, was a regional railroad with origins in 1868, lasting until March 29, 1957 when it was ordered liquidated by a US bankruptcy judge. The O&W holds the distinction of being the first notable U.S. railroad to be abandoned in its entirety
Click on image to view larger picture
New York State Railway
Item: 37-N Price: $95.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Fraim forged.
Superb serif lettering and patina.
Great looking trolley key!
History
New York State Railways was a subsidiary of the New York Central Railroad that controlled several large city streetcar and electric interurban systems in upstate New York. New York State Railways was formed in 1909 when the properties controlled by the Mohawk Valley Company were merged.
New York State Railways emerged from receivership in 1934, and gradually the remaining core city lines were sold as separate operations.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York-Susquehanna & Western Railroad
Item: 38-N Price: $55.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Adlake forged?
Nice deep stamp marks and dark patina.
History
The New York-Susquehanna & Western Railway (reporting mark NYSW) (a.k.a. the Susie-Q or the Susquehanna) is a Class II American freight railway operating over 500 miles (800 km) of track in the northeastern states of New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. It was formed in 1881 from the merger of several smaller railroads. Passenger service in Northern New Jersey was offered until 1966. The railroad was purchased by the Delaware Otsego Corporation in 1980, and became a regional player during the 1980s in the intermodal freight transport business.
The NYS&W operates over 500 miles of track in three states. The network consists of three main routes, one running from Northern New Jersey to Binghamton and the other two branching north from Binghamton to serve Utica and Syracuse.
Click on image to view larger picture
New Hope & Ivyland Railroad
Item: 39-N Price: $45.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Elongated barrel.
Nice block lettering and copper/gold patina.
History
The NH&I got its start as the Northeast Pennsylvania Railroad. Its trains began running between New Hope and Philadelphia in 1891. Later incorpated into the Reading System, the NH&I became a classic milk route, providing freight and passenger servive to residents of a rural area.
Click on image to view larger picture
New Hope & Ivyland Railroad
Item: 40-N Price: $45.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Different style cut than NH&I key above.
History - continued from above
The NHRR was originally known as the New Hope Branch of the Reading Company (RDG), which leased the North Pennsylvania Railroad, of which it was a part. The railroad ran as far as Hartsville Station (near Bristol Road) until March 29, 1891, when the line was extended to the long-desired terminal of New Hope, Pennsylvania.
Click on image to view larger picture
Newburyport Railroad
Item: 42-N Price: $115.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Superb serif lettering and patina.
Key bit style is very similar to a B&M key
History
The Newburyport Railroad (later known as the Newburyport Branch of the Boston and Maine Railroad) was a railroad that came about from the merger of three small rail companies into one rail line to compete with the Eastern Railroad for service between Newburyport and Boston, Massachusetts. The Newburyport Railroad ran from Newburyport to Wakefield, Massachusetts, where it connected with the Boston and Maine (B&M) for service into Boston.
After World War I, the Newburyport Branch experienced a decline in ridership, and in 1924, the B&M tried to end service, but passenger and industry protest kept it open. In 1940, the B&M successfully applied to close the line between Newburyport and Topsfield, and service ended there in December 1941. The following year it abandoned the line between Georgetown and the paper mill in Bradford, servicing the paper mill from the B&M main line instead. In 1950, passenger travel ceased between Topsfield and Danvers, and in 1959, all passenger travel on the line came to an end.
Click on image to view larger picture
Northampton & Bath Railroad
Item: 44-N Price: $125.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Fraim forged.
Superb serif lettering and copper patina.
History
Chartered in 1902, this shortline railroad connected from the LV, CNJ, and RDG at Northampton to the L&NE and DL&W at Bath.
Click on image to view larger picture
Nevada Northern Railway
Item: 45-N Price: $225.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. A&W forged.
Nice block lettering and gold patina.
A popular western short line.
History
The Nevada Northern Railway (reporting mark NN) was a railroad in the U.S. state of Nevada, built primarily to reach a major copper producing area in White Pine County, Nevada. The railway, constructed in 1905-06, extended northward about 140 miles from Ely to a connections with the Western Pacific Railroad at Shafter and Southern Pacific Railroad at Cobre.
Click on image to view larger picture
Norfolk & Portsmouth Belt Line Railroad
Item: 47-N Price: $125.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Fraim forged.
Superb box lettering and patina. A beauty!
History
The Norfolk & Portsmouth Belt Line Railroad (NPBL) is a class III railroad operating in southern Virginia. The NPBL serves Norfolk, Portsmouth and Chesapeake and has been operating since 1898. The NPBL is owned fifty-seven percent by Norfolk Southern Railway and forty-three percent by CSX Transportation. The NPBL interchanges with; Chesapeake and Albemarle Railroad, CSX Transportation, Bay Coast Railroad (formerly the Eastern Shore Railroad), and Norfolk Southern. The NPBL is a terminal switching company that owns 36 miles of track, (plus 27 miles of trackage rights) and links commerce around the deepwater port from Sewells Point to Portsmouth Marine Terminal, including the Southern Branch Elizabeth River.
Click on image to view larger picture
Norfolk & Portsmouth Belt Line Railroad
Item: 48-N Price: $100.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Fraim forged.
Superb box lettering and patina.
Click on image to view larger picture
Northwestern Pennsylvania Railway
Item: 49-N Price: $95.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Nice Pennsy oldie!
Nice block lettering and superb carmel patina.
NW stamped on both sides.
History
The Pennsylvania Trolley Lines received a face lift and by May 2, 1909, the new electrified railway had twenty-seven trains going through Cambridge Springs, serving as the connection to Meadville. A traveler who used the line from Cambridge Springs to Erie would expect a commute of about 85 minutes. However, On November 6, 1912, it was agreed that the two services would merge and become one operation, the Northwestern Pennsylvania Railway, providing direct service between Erie and Meadville.
In 1925, with the introduction of bus service to Erie and Meadville, the decline of the trolleys expanded even further. Service was cut from downtown Meadville in September 1927, service was ended to Linesville the same year. The Meadville and Conneaut Park line was canceled in August 1928. Finally, the last service of trolley lines through Cambridge Springs, which went from Meadville to Erie, was ended on September 28, 1928.
Click on image to view larger picture
Northwestern Pacific Railroad
SOLD New Listing Price: $135.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Superb block lettering and gold patina.
History
The Northwestern Pacific Railroad (reporting mark NWP) is a railroad covering the 62 mi (100 km) stretch between Schellville and Windsor with freight and Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit commuter trains. Formerly, it was a regional railroad that served the entire North Coast of California, its main line was 271 miles (436 km) long, running between Schellville and Eureka, with an additional portion of the line running from the Ignacio Wye to the edge of San Rafael. The portion of the NWP main line between the Ignacio Wye in Marin County and the depot in Healdsburg is owned by Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART), a commuter railroad.
Click on image to view larger picture
Northern Pacific Railroad
Item: 52-N Price: $85.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Fraim/Slaymaker forged.
Superb serif lettering and carmel patina.
History
The Northern Pacific Railway (NP) was a transcontinental railroad that operated across the northern tier of the western United States from Minnesota to the Pacific Coast. It was approved by Congress in 1864 and given nearly 40 million acres of land grants, which it used to raise money in Europe for construction. Construction began in 1870 and the main line opened all the way from the Great Lakes to the Pacific when former president Ulysses S. Grant drove in the final "golden spike" in western Montana on Sept. 8, 1883.
Click on image to view larger picture
Northern Pacific Railway
Item: 53-N Price: $100.00
Remarks: ca. late 1800s. Forged by the A&W Co.
Nice block lettering and dark patina.
Early A&W hex stamp = 1st series.
History - continued from above
Congress chartered the Northern Pacific Railway Company on July 2, 1864 with the goals of connecting the Great Lakes with Puget Sound on the Pacific, opening vast new lands for farming, ranching, lumbering and mining, and linking Washington and Oregon to the rest of the country. Congress granted the railroad a potential 60 million acres of land in exchange for building rail transportation to an undeveloped territory.
Click on image to view larger picture
Northern Pacific Railroad
Item: 54-N New Listing Price: $45.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice block lettering and gold patina.
History - continued from above
In 1886 the Northern Pacific also opened colonization offices in Germany and Scandinavia, attracting farmers with cheap package transportation and purchase deals. The success of the NP was based on the abundant crops of wheat and other grains and the attraction to settlers of the Red River Valley along the Minnesota-North Dakota border between 1881 and 1890. The Northern Pacific reached Dakota Territory at Fargo in 1886, and began its career as one of the central factors in the economic growth of North Dakota. The climate, although very cold, was suitable for wheat, which was in high demand in the cities of the United States and Europe. Most of the settlers were German and Scandinavian immigrants who bought the land cheaply, and raised large families. They shipped huge quantities of wheat to Minneapolis, while buying all sorts of equipment and home supplies to be shipped in by rail.
Click on image to view larger picture
Northern Pacific Railway
Item: 55-N Price: $50.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Superb block lettering and gold patina. This key
stamped "RY" + keys above stamped "RR" = nice set.
History - continued from above
After the turn of the century the Northern Pacific had a record of steady improvement. Together with the Great Northern, the Northern Pacific also gained control of the Chicago-Burlington & Quincy Railroad, gaining important access to Chicago, the central Middle West and Texas, as well as the Spokane-Portland & Seattle Railway, an important route through eastern and southern Washington. Its physical plant was upgraded continuously, with double-tracking in key areas, and automatic block signaling along its entire main line. This in turn gave way to centralized traffic control, microwave and radio communications as time progressed.
Click on image to view larger picture
Northern Pacific Railway
Item: 56-N Price: $45.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Superb block lettering and carmel patina.
History - continued from above
In later years, Louis W. Menk became president of the Northern Pacific, and then he brought it together with the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, the Great Northern Railway, and the Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway on March 2, 1970, to form the Burlington Northern Railroad. The merger was allowed despite a challenge in the Supreme Court, essentially reversing the outcome of the 1904 Northern Securities ruling. A 900 mi (1,400 km) portion of the former Northern Pacific mainline in Montana was spun off and is now operated by Montana Rail Link.
Click on image to view larger picture
Northern Pacific Railway
Item: 57-N New Listing Price: $45.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice block lettering and gold patina.
History - continued from above
The NP's premier passenger train, the "North Coast Limited" was among the safest and finest in the nation, suffering only one passenger fatality in nearly 70 years of operation.
Click on image to view larger picture
Northern Pacific Railway
Item: 58-N Price: $45.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice block lettering and copper like patina.
History - continued from above
The Northern Pacific was headquartered in Minnesota, first in Brainerd, then in Saint Paul. It had a tumultuous financial history; the NP merged with other lines in 1970 to form the Burlington Northern Railroad, which in turn merged with the Santa Fe to become the BNSF Railway in 1996.
Click on image to view larger picture
Norfolk Southern Railroad
Item: 60-N Price: $100.00
Remarks: ca. early-mid 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice block lettering and dark patina.
Not to be confused with today's
Class-1 Norfolk Southern.
History
The Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) was the final name of a railroad that ran from Norfolk, Virginia, southwest and west to Charlotte, North Carolina. It was acquired by the Southern Railway in 1974, which merged with the Norfolk & Western Railway in 1982 to form the current Norfolk Southern Railway.
Click on image to view larger picture
Norfolk Southern Railroad
Item: 61-N Price: $100.00
Remarks: ca. early-mid 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice block lettering and gold patina.
Not to be confused with today's
Class-1 Norfolk Southern.
Click on image to view larger picture
Northwestern Elevated Railroad
SOLD Price: $125.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Forged by A&W Co.
Superb block lettering and gold patina.
Merged into Chicago Rapid Transit Company in 1924.
History
The Northwestern Elevated Railroad was the last of the privately constructed rapid transit lines to be built in Chicago. The line ran from the Loop in downtown Chicago north to Wilson Avenue in Chicago's Uptown neighborhood with a branch to Ravenswood and Albany Park that left the main line at Clark Street. The line survives as the Brown and Purple lines and as the northern portions of the Red Line of the Chicago 'L' system.
Click on image to view larger picture
Newburgh & South Shore Railway
Item: 65-N Price: $95.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Forged by Adlake Co.
History
The Newburg & South Shore Railroad (reporting mark NSR) is a railroad that operates in Cleveland, Ohio. The line operates on 13 miles of railroad track. It was originally built to service U.S. Steel mills in Cleveland. The line is owned by Omnitrax
Also known as the South Shore Belt Line, the N&SS served industrial sites in the Cleveland area. Only seven main-line miles long, it was completed in 1904 as a wholly owned railroad of the US Steel Corporation. Its railbed bore heavy 90 lb/yard (45 kg/metre) rail and presented N&SS trains with 2 miles of 1% grades and 2 miles of 1.15% grade.
Click on image to view larger picture
Norfolk & Western Railway
Item: 66-N Price: $115.00
Remarks: ca. early-mid 1900s. Slaymaker forged?
Nice serif lettering and gold patina.
Given the moniker, "King Coal."
History
The Norfolk & Western Railway (NW), was a US class I railroad, formed by more than 200 railroad mergers between 1838 and 1982. It was headquartered in Roanoke, Virginia, for most of its 150-year existence. Its motto was "Precision Transportation." It had a variety of nicknames, including "King Coal" and "British Railway of America" even though the N&W had mostly articulated steam on its roster. During the Civil War, the N&W was the biggest railroad in the south and moved most of the products with their steam locomotives to help the South the best way they could.
Click on image to view larger picture
Norfolk & Western Railway
Item: 67-N Price: $100.00
Remarks: ca. early-mid 1900s. This style
of key will work the N&W cast brass locks
as well as the key above.
History - continued from above
The N&W's earliest predecessor was the City Point Railroad (CPRR), a 9-mile (14 km) short-line railroad formed in 1838 to extend from City Point (now part of the independent city of Hopewell, Virginia), a port on the tidal James River, to Petersburg, Virginia, on the fall line of the shallower Appomattox River. In 1854, CPRR became part of the South Side Railroad, which connected Petersburg with Lynchburg, where it interchanged through traffic with the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad (V&T) and the James River and Kanawha Canal.
Click on image to view larger picture
Norfolk & Western Railway
Item: 68-N car key Price: $75.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice block lettering and carmel patina.
Not rare but a hard key to find.
History - continued from above
William Mahone (1826–95), an 1847 engineering graduate of the Virginia Military Institute (VMI), was employed by Francis Mallory to build the Norfolk and Petersburg Railroad (N&P) and eventually became its president in the pre-Civil War era. Construction of N&P began in 1853. Mahone's innovative corduroy roadbed through the Great Dismal Swamp near Norfolk, Virginia, employed a log foundation laid at right angles beneath the surface of the swamp. It is still in use 150 years later and it withstands immense tonnages of coal traffic.
Click on image to view larger picture
Norfolk & Western Railroad
Item: 69-N car key Price: $65.00
Remarks: ca. 1960s. Adlake forged.
Nice block lettering.
History - continued from above
The N&P was severed by the war. The portion east of the Blackwater River at Zuni, Virginia, was held by the Union for most of the war. The eastern portion of the City Point Railroad played a crucial role for Union General Ulysses S. Grant during the Siege of Petersburg, and was operated by the United States Military Railroad. The South Side Railroad was also heavily damaged.
Click on image to view larger picture
Norfolk & Western Railroad
Item: 70-N post N&W-NKP merger key Price: $55.00
Remarks: ca. 1960s. Adlake forged.
Key has the same style bit as a NKP key.
History - continued from above
William and Otelia Mahone were illustrious characters in post-bellum Virginia. Mahone got quickly to work restoring "his" N&P, and resumed his dream of linking the three trunk lines across the southern tier of Virginia to reach points to the west. He became president of all three, and drove the 1870 merger of N&P, South Side Railroad and the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad to form the Atlantic, Mississippi and Ohio Railroad (AM&O). The AM&O extended 408 miles (657 km) from Norfolk to Bristol, Virginia. The Mahones moved to the headquarters city of Lynchburg, the midpoint of the AM&O. The acronym AM&O was said to stand for "All Mine and Otelia's."
Click on image to view larger picture
Norfolk & Western Railroad
Item: 71-N post N&W-NKP merger key Price: $55.00
Remarks: ca. 1960s. Adlake forged.
Nice block lettering. Key has the
same style bit as a NKP key
History - continued from above
In 1881, the AM&O was reorganized and renamed Norfolk and Western, a name perhaps taken from an 1850s charter application filed by citizens of Norfolk, Virginia. George Frederick Tyler became president. Frederick J. Kimball, a civil engineer and partner in E.W. Clark & Co., became First Vice President. Henry Fink, whom Mahone had hired in 1855, became Second Vice President and General Superintendent.
Click on image to view larger picture
Norfolk & Western Railroad
Item: 72-N Wabash style cut Price: $50.00
Remarks: ca. 1960s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Nice block lettering and gold patina.
Post 1964 N&W-Wabash merger key.
History - continued from above
As the availability and fame of high-quality Pocahontas bituminous coal increased, economic forces took over. Coal operators and their employees settled dozens of towns in southern West Virginia, and in the next few years, as coal demand swelled, some of them amassed fortunes. The countryside was soon sprinkled with tipples, coke ovens, houses for workers, company stores and churches. In the four decades before the Crash of 1929 and subsequent Depression, these coal towns flourished. One example was the small community of Bramwell, West Virginia, which in its heyday boasted the highest per capita concentration of millionaires in the country.
Click on image to view larger picture
Norfolk & Western Railroad
Item: 73-N Wabash style cut Price: $60.00
Remarks: ca. 1960s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Very nice block lettering and patina.
Post 1964 N&W-Wabash merger key.
History - continued from above
The company was famous for building its own steam locomotives, a practice rare outside Britain (where most railways either built their own locomotives or had outside contractors build locomotives to their designs). The locomotives were built at the Roanoke Shops at Roanoke. The Shops employed thousands of craftsmen, who refined their products over the years. The A, J, and Y6 locomotives, designed, built and maintained by NW personnel, brought the company industry-wide fame for its excellence in steam power.
Click on image to view larger picture
Norfolk & Western Railroad
Item: 74-N signal lock key Price: $18.00
Remarks: Key will work with this style N&W signal lock
History - continued from above
In 1982, NW merged with the Southern Railway, another profitable carrier, to form the Norfolk Southern Corporation (NS), but it continued paper operations until it was merged into the Norfolk Southern Railway in 1997.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York-Chicago & St. Louis Railroad
aka the "NKP R.R."
Item: 75-N Price: $125.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Forged by the A&W Co.
Superb block lettering and yellow-gold patina.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York-Chicago & St. Louis Railway
aka the "NKP R.R."
Item: 76-N Price: $125.00
Remarks: ca. late 1800s. A&W forged?
Superb serif lettering and carmel patina.
Rare "RY" stamp. A beauty!
Click on image to view larger picture
New York-Chicago & St. Louis Railroad
aka the "NKP R.R."
Item: 77-N Price: $125.00
Remarks: ca. late 1800s-early 1900s. A&W forged.
Superb block lettering and carmel patina.
A well preserved beauty!
Click on image to view larger picture
New York-Chicago & St. Louis Railroad
aka the "NKP R.R."
Item: 78-N Price: $125.00
Remarks: ca. late 1800s-early 1900s. A&W forged.
Superb block lettering and two-tone patina.
Another well preserved beauty!
Click on image to view larger picture
New York-Chicago & St. Louis Railroad
aka the "NKP R.R."
Item: 79-N New Listing Price: $85.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Adlake forged?
Superb serif lettering and two-tone patina.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York-Chicago & St. Louis Railroad
aka the "NKP R.R."
Item: 80-N Price: $125.00
Remarks: ca. late 1800s. Forged by the A&W Co.
Superb block lettering and gold patina.
Double digit serial #
Click on image to view larger picture
New York-Chicago & St. Louis Railroad
aka the "NKP R.R."
Item: 81-N rip track key Price: $125.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Fraim forged.
Superb block lettering and gold patina.
A rare 1!
Click on image to view larger picture
New York-Chicago & St. Louis Railroad
aka the "NKP R.R."
Item: 82-N New rip track key Listing Price: $100.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Fraim forged.
Superb block lettering and gold patina.
A rare 1!
Click on image to view larger picture
Nickel Plate Road
aka the "New York-Chicago & St. Louis R.R."
Item: 83-N Price: $65.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Forged by the Adlake Co.
Superb block lettering and carmel patina.
History
The Nickel Plate Railroad was constructed in 1881 along the South Shore of the Great Lakes connecting Buffalo and Chicago to compete with the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railway. The railroad operated in the mid-central United States. Commonly referred to as the Nickel Plate Road, the railroad served a large area, including trackage in the states of New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri. Its primary connections included Buffalo, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Indianapolis, St. Louis, and Toledo. In 1964 the Nickel Plate Road and several other mid-western carriers were merged into the larger Norfolk and Western Railway
Click on image to view larger picture
Nickel Plate Road Railroad
Item: 84-N signal lock key Price: $17.00
Remarks: Key will work this type of NKP Yale signal lock
If key does not work your lock, you can return it.
Click on image to view larger picture
Nickel Plate Road
aka the "New York-Chicago & St. Louis R.R."
Item: 85-N New Listing Price: $55.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Forged by the Corbin Co.
Key will most likely work a NKP utility lock
such as this style shown.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York & Long Branch Railroad
Item: 87-N Price: $135.00
Remarks: ca. late 1800s. Stylish ring barrel.
Superb serif lettering and patina.
History
The New York & Long Branch Railroad (NYLB) was a railroad in central New Jersey, running from Bay Head Junction in Bay Head to Perth Amboy, where it connected to the Central Railroad of New Jersey's Perth Amboy & Elizabethport Railroad. The railroad was jointly owned and operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Central Railroad of New Jersey and became property of Conrail in 1976. It is now part of New Jersey Transit's North Jersey Coast Line.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York & Long Branch Railroad
Item: 88-N Price: $25.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Slaymaker forged?
Click on image to view larger picture
New York-Lake Erie & Western Railroad
Item: 90-N Price: $125.00
Remarks: ca. late 1800s. Forged by the T. Slaight Co.
Superb serif lettering and gold patina.
Nice Slaight centenarian +
History - 1878-1895
The New York and Erie Rail Road was chartered April 24, 1832 by Governor of New York, Enos T. Throop to connect the Hudson River at Piermont, north of New York City, west to Lake Erie at Dunkirk. On February 16, 1841 the railroad was authorized to cross into the northeast corner of Pennsylvania on the west side of the Delaware River. Construction began in 1836.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York-Lake Erie & Western Railroad
Item: 91-N Price: $125.00
Remarks: ca. late 1800s. Forged by the T. Slaight Co.
Superb serif lettering and patina.
Another nice Slaight centenarian +
History - continued from above
In the beginning, like most start-up roads, the NY&E went through troubled times. After being reorganized as the Erie Railway in 1861, the Erie still did not see profits and via bankruptcy was sold in 1878 to become the New York, Lake Erie and Western Railroad. By 1893, the New York, Lake Erie and Western Railroad went into bankruptcy reorganization again and emerged in 1895 as the Erie Railroad.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York-Lake Erie & Western Railroad
Item: 92-N Price: $55.00
Remarks: ca. early 1900s. Bohannan forged.
Pocket worn serif lettering and great patina.
History - continued from above
In 1960 the Erie merged with the Delaware-Lackawanna & Western Railroad to form the Erie-Lackawanna. In 1976 this organization and five other lines that had gone bankrupt were merged to form the Conrail system, which in 1999 became part of the CSX and Norfolk Southern railroads.
Click on image to view larger picture
New York-New Haven & Hartford Railroad
Item: 93-N signal dept. key Price: $75.00
Remarks: ca. mid 1900s. Rustic style
key with superb block lettering. Key listed
in the "American Railway's Switch Key Directory."
History
The New York-New Haven & Hartford Railroad (NH), commonly known as the New Haven, was a railroad that operated in New England from 1872 to 1968, dominating the region's rail traffic for the first half of the 20th century.
Click on image to view larger picture
Dates quoted for keys are approximate dates. Railroad switch keys initials (reporting mark) are assumed to be correct and accurate.
Comments on any railroad initials origin, including (typos), are welcome. Last update 04/24/2021
contact webmaster
|
