Thursday, February 15, 2007

Fitchburg Railroad Steam Locomotive #139


Fitchburg R.R 139 formerly Troy & Boston R.R. 13.

Became Fitchburgh R.R in May 1887 renumbered 342 & 603.

Then became Boston & Maine 1097.

Scrapped in 1908.

Built by Schenectady in 1879. Builder # 1122.

CVL 16" x 22"

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Joseph A. Smith (1895-1978) was an avid collector of railroad photos, sharing many of them with fellow collectors in the Northeast. A former plumbing contractor, Smith presumably developed his interest in railroads through his father – a trolley motorman in Troy, NY.

His extensive collection focused on the lines that once served Troy: Delaware & Hudson, Rutland, Boston & Maine and New York Central. Many of his children – especially his sons Joseph Jr., James and Paul -- developed a similar interest and added to his collection with photos of their own. Maintaining the collection is now in the hands of his grandson, Kenneth Bradford. Coincidentally, Ken’s other grandfather worked as a manager at the Schenectady plant of the American Locomotive Company.

Smith was a life member of the Capital District Railroad Club of Schenectady. He was also a member of the Mohawk-Hudson Chapter Railway Historical Society and its parent organization, the National Railway Historical Society.