Randy Hees Wrote:
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> Thats a fair question... and I haven't found a
> good answer... Both C&C and SP used both wyes and
> turntables without regard to space available.
>
> A turntable was built at Laws by the C&C when they
> established the site, but that turntable was later
> removed and installed at Hammil by the C&C... The
> current Laws turntable was installed by SP.
Laws once had a engine house that was built when the railroad arrived. It was relocated to Belleville in 1888 because that is where it was needed due to changes in the train schedules.
> Moving beyond the Owens Valley there was a wye at
> Mt Mongomery (by C&C). Filbin and Belleville both
> had wyes (C&C) and a turntable at Candelaria (by
> C&C)... Candelaria makes sense... its a tight
> space.
It appears that at Summit (near later-day Mt Montgomery) there once was a turntable. An inventory ledger now at CSRM that listed property by county list a "turn table track" at Summit. This location was right at the summit -- not in the wider saddle where the later wye was located.
> Wabuska had a wye, but that maybe only after
> standard gauging and the NCB, although for a short
> time it was the transfer point between the narrow
> and standard gauges.
It is reported that when the freight transfer from sg to ng was transferred from Mound House to Wasbuska the railroad built a wye there. Also installed a water tank and several hundred (if not thousands) of feet of track for the transfer platforms, etc. The transfer platforms are also reported to have been made portable and moved once or twice later during the conversion.
> It seems like a turntable would make sense at
> either Hawthorn or Mina to service the engine
> houses... and makes less sense at Hammill, Laws or
> Owenyo.
Hammil was the bottom end of the helper district, but Laws was the operational end of the helper district.
Crews worked out of Mina and Laws. One of the engine crews in the wreck of the two helper 4-4-0s in the cut near MT Montgomery had an engineer from Laws and his fireman was from Mina. I am also told that because of this operating practice the railroad kept several locomotive maintenance men at Laws to service the locomotives that were staying overnight. The turntable was probably installed by SP due to changes in the schedule of operations.
Brian Norden
