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Remains of the Third Rail

Transmission tower bases, insulators, and ghosts

Thomas insulator

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This is a Thomas Company manufactured 5-part transmission tower insulator employed by the ORCo in its initial construction of its power transmission line. Model M-4331 is composed of five parts: The crown, skirt, and three petticoats. These insulators were some of the largest made, measuring 14 inches tall, 14 inches across the crown, and weighing 44 pounds. This insulator, which was re-created from at least 150 pieces, came from tower #25. All of these porcelain insulators were broken by the scrappers in 1932 so as to extract the metal mounting pin that had salvage value.

A 500's Ghost

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If a great deal of time is spent examining the West Shore Railroad – Oneida Railway Company right-of-way today, an occasional “ghost” of the interurban’s past may be noticeable. This ghost of a 500 series car – and its reflection – allowed itself to be photographed as it raced eastward past Hecla Pond near Stop 11. Before the coming of the Third Rail Line in 1907, the New York Central harvested ice at this location.

Transmission tower #150

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Situated between the main power sub-station at Clark Mills (#1) and sub-station #4 at Manlius Centre (later referred to as Minoa) were 392 electric power transmission line towers. Most - but not all - of these towers were 39-feet tall. At their top the towers supported three 44 pound pin mounted insulators; each cradling one of the three power lines. Shown here are the remains of tower #150 - its four angle iron legs and its 4-inch galvanized grounding conduit. All of the towers were placed on the north side of the Third Rail's right-of-way.

Dana Pohl stands on the rear entrance steps of his Vernon station. This is the only surviving depot built by the NYWS&BRy between Utica and Syracuse. It is a standard depot whose unique element is the 2nd floor telegraph operator's office and room. The mainline trackage had been on the far side of the building.

Vernon station, Stop 16

Insulating Blocks

Above- Insulating blocks were important elements in the construction and operation of the ORCo’s 3rd rail line. Their purpose was twofold: 1- To secure the live 3rd rail to the tie mounted cast iron brackets and, 2- To prevent the electricity from traveling from the 3rd rail into the bracket. A pair of insulating blocks (right, above) were required to encase the bull head (doubleheaded) 3rd rail. Because they were made of fired porcelain (by the Ohio Brass Company) they were not universally salvaged during the 3rd rail’s scrapping process. It is still possible to discover and harvest “nesting insulating blocks,” such as the ones shown above at left, along the now abandoned right-of-way of the railroad. Some stretches of the line are devoid of blocks; in other areas they are quite numerous.

Mileposts

Cast concrete mileposts can still be found along the ORCo-WSRR right-of-way. They were knocked out of the ground upon abandonment of the line so that most of those surviving all have broken bottoms. This one lies near its former in-ground site near Creaser Road, the former Cheese Factory Road at Stop 9. If you care to harvest these, you better have eaten your Wheaties first!

Sub-stations

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Of the four ORCo power sub-stations, two survive today – number 2 (Vernon) and number 4 (Minoa). Of these two, Vernon is the better preserved. It is shown here still sitting astride of New York State Route 5, the old Yellowstone Trail, where modern motor vehicles frequently pass it by. The interurban cars passed the facility within the grassy area between the roadway and building, which is currently a possession of the Oneida Indian Nation.

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​A Division of The Lensmen

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