PODCAST · history
Living with Steam
by Aaron Heverin
This unique podcast features the sounds of railroad operations in Buffalo, Western New York, and elsewhere. Steam engines, early diesel engines, freight and passenger trains; they're all heard exactly as they sounded from 1948 to 1955. The recordings were made on a Webster-Chicago wire recorder by John M. Prophet III, noted Pennsylvania Railroad historian and dedicated railfan for his entire life. Visit livingwithsteam.com for more information about each episode.
Episodes
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Railroad Enthusiasts & A Convention in Altoona
This episode of Living with Steam features the second set of recordings John M. Prophet III made from August 28th to September 1st in 1952 from Tyrone, and Huntingdon, PA. In this set, John also recorded from Cresson, PA, and the Pennsylvania Railroad’s famous Horseshoe Curve. In addition to...
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LwS EXTRA: "Train Sounds for the Model Railroad"
This episode of Living with Steam EXTRA is a bit different in that I’m featuring several of the railroad sound recordings from my collection that were made specifically for adding a bit of realism to a model railroad; specifically that of an O-gauge model railroad. While the post-war period in...
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Tyrone, Huntingdon, Cresson & The Curve - Part 1
Right after leaving work on Thursday, August 28, 1952, John hopped in his car and drove to Tyrone, Pennsylvania where he began to record as much Pennsylvania Railroad steam engines as possible. Known as "The Hub of the Highways", Tyrone was a big spot on the Pennsy's Middle Division trackage…
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William A. Steventon & The Railroad Record Club, Part 3
In this episode of Living with Steam EXTRA, we'll conclude the story of William A. Steventon and how he came to develop the Railroad Record Club in the 1950s. It wasn't easy for Steventon to pull this venture off especially in an era where railroad sound recordings were in high demand amongst...
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Two, Too Many in Cove, Pennsylvania - July 24-25, 1951
On the evening of July 24, 1951, John M Prophet III drove his car into Cove, Pennsylvania; a small “don’t blink or you’ll miss it” town located north of Harrisburg, and right on the Pennsylvania Railroad's Middle Division mainline between Duncannon and Marysville. John wanted to make a special…
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A Day in Palmyra, June 26, 1951
This is the second of a three part series documenting a road trip John M. Prophet III made back in July of 1951. In the last episode of Living with Steam, you heard the railroad sound recordings John made in Trenton, NJ; his last stop on the trip. Now, you'll hear the incredible recordings of…
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The Pennsylvania Railroad Passenger Station at Trenton, NJ & Goodbye to PRR Steam in Buffalo
This episode of Living with Steam features recordings John Prophet made at the Pennsylvania Railroad Passenger station in Trenton, NJ on July 27, 1951. As a bonus, the episode also features recordings John made during the last week Pennsylvania Railroad steam engines were used to pull passenger...
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Lws EXTRA: "PRR Diesels, 1970"
In this episode of LwS EXTRA, you'll be introduced to the railroad sound recordings John M. Prophet made after 1955, when he put away his Webster-Chicago wire recorder in favor of a new magnetic tape recorder. The tape featured in this episode is one John labeled as being "#1" in a set of five...
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"Railroad News" & A Week at BV Tower
Welcome to the first episode in season 3 of Living with Steam. In July of 1949, John Prophet paid another visit to New York Central’s Bay View (BV) interlocking tower, which was located in Blasdell, NY. In reality, John stopped by BV tower accompanied by his sister Annette and a few of his close...
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Angola
“About half-past three o’clock yesterday afternoon, the telegraph flashed the news to this city that an accident had occurred near the Village of Angola, to the New York Express train, on the Lake Shore Road, due at Buffalo at 1:30 pm, and that there was a fearful loss of life.” 84 years later…
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Living with Steam EXTRA: William A. Steventon & the Railroad Record Club, Part 2
In this episode of Living with Steam EXTRA, we continue the story of William A. Steventon and how he took the practice of sharing railroad sound recordings with like-minded railfans to a whole new level. As strange as it may sound to us now, back when the railroad industry dominated the American...
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A Dark and Stormy Night at Tower 50
On September 22, 1949, John M. Prophet III brought his Webster-Chicago wire recorder to New York Central's Tower 50; a very busy interlocking tower located right in the heart of Downtown Buffalo, and perhaps one of the best locations for capturing non-stop train activity. Unfortunately for John…
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Living with Steam EXTRA: William A. Steventon & the Railroad Record Club, Part 1
In this episode of LwS EXTRA, we begin our look at the life and legacy of William A. Steventon and the Railroad Record Club. The RRC was a brilliant and very innovative way for Steventon to share the many sound recordings he made in addition to those from other railfans who also started making...
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Bay View Tower #6, September 18, 1948
This episode of Living with Steam features recordings John M. Prophet III made in the late evening (and early morning) of September 18 (19), 1948 at BV Tower in Blasdell, NY. John made a total of 19 recordings at this interlocking tower and this is one he labeled “#6.” While the recordings...
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Living with Steam EXTRA: High Iron Company's 1973 D&H Sesquicentennial Excursions
On Memorial Day weekend in 1973, Ross Rowland Jr.'s High Iron Company organized an excursion train to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the Delaware & Hudson Railroad. The train would be pulled by ex-Reading #2102 dressed up to look like D&H #302. Jim Van Brocklin, who along with John Prophet...
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Tower XC and the Port of Erie
In May of 1951, John Prophet took his wire recorder to Interlocking Tower XC in Erie, PA. XC sat at the junction of the New York Central's 6-track east/west main line, and the north/south P&E Branch of the PRR. This was perhaps the busiest location John ever recorded from as ore and freight…
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Living with Steam EXTRA: Buffalo Central Terminal from the 10th Floor
This is the first episode of Living with Steam EXTRA, where between episodes of the main podcast, I'll share railroad recordings made by folks other than John Prophet. On a cold, early evening in February 1993, I was inside Central Terminal in Buffalo, NY having a "look-around" with several...
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Tower 47, The West Shore, and Robber Barons
On Tuesday, May 1, 1951, John M. Prophet III brought his wire recorder to New York Central's Interlocking Tower 47; located on the Central's mainline about a mile east of Buffalo Central Terminal. At first glance, the tower seemed like it was built in a spot where it wasn't needed. But when you…
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There's No Place Like Westfield, NY for the Holidays
After spending Christmas of 1948 with his family, John M. Prophet III drove to Westfield, NY to visit some friends on the 26th. While there, he stopped at the Westfield passenger station in order to set up the wire recorder and capture whatever train happened by. If the town name "Westfield, NY"...
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The Life of John M. Prophet III & The First Recordings at BV Tower
Welcome to Season Two of Living With Steam. In this episode, we'll learn about the life of John M. Prophet and how he came to be such a knowledgeable and dedicated railfan; eventually becoming the foremost expert on the Pennsylvania Railroad for his time. John was born in 1915, and from a very...
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A Trip to Virginia and the N&W
In June of 1953, John Prophet packed up his car and drove out of Buffalo to begin an excursion by heading east/south-east. He visited Altoona, Tyrone, and Cresson, PA, and he also went as far as Cumberland, MD... always trying to stay within sight of railroad tracks... always on the lookout for...
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The NRHS Rochester Branch Excursion of 1952
The Pennsylvania Railroad's Rochester Branch ran through some of the most picturesque scenery in New York State, including Letchworth State Park, as wound its way between Rochester, NY and Olean, NY. Built on the abandoned towpath of the old Genesee Valley Canal, the Rochester Branch served…
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Port Jervis & Saratoga Springs, NY
By the early 1950s, John Prophet was discovering all too well that steam engines were being dropped from mainline railroads all over the country. Even at Buffalo in 1951, John was seeing more diesel engines on the tracks of the New York Central than he had noticed only a year earlier. In order to...
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A Visit to Tower 49-A in October of 1951 - Part 2
We return to NYC's Tower 49-A in Buffalo, NY on a warm evening on October 21, 1951. John Prophet is in the tower with his best friend, Sam Herrington for what amounts to a very busy remainder of Sam's shift. We'll also hear about Sam's hobby; building miniature steam trains, and how one was used…
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A Visit to Tower 49-A in October of 1951 - Part 1
Interlocking Tower 49-A was a New York Central signal/switching tower located a mile west of Buffalo Central Terminal. John Prophet made some of his best recordings of New York Central, Pennsylvania, and Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo trains from here. John's best friend, Sam Herrington, was an...
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The B & O Railroad Buffalo Division
The Baltimore & Ohio Railroad entered Buffalo, NY after it had acquired the Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburgh in 1932. Regardless, it used the trackage and stations the B R &P had been using since 1881. John Prophet visited the Buffalo Division of the B & O, which ran between Buffalo and…
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Trains, Thunderstorms & Murder
Thunderstorms and trains together create a fantastic audio experience. When the "train" is pulled by a steam engine, the experience is even more thrilling. In this episode, we'll travel with John Prophet to Big Moose, a small town in the Adirondack Region of New York State. It's here, during a...
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New York Central's Tower 65 in Niagara Falls, NY
Episode 6 of Living With Steam takes us to Niagara Falls, NY, and New York Central's Tower 65. This area was known as "Suspension Bridge" on all NYC timetables due to the history of this area where the very first railroad suspension bridge was built back in 1855. We'll learn more about the…
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Buffalo's Streetcars and Tower F in Black Rock
In this episode, we learn about Buffalo's streetcar system and hear IRC recordings made in North Buffalo in June of 1950. Then, we visit the Erie Railroad's Tower FW and learn how interlocking towers work. Finally, we take a ride with John Prophet on TH&B train #380, pulled by Hudson engine #502,...
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New York Central's Tower 50 & John's Special Place; Renovo, PA (REMASTER)
In this episode, we visit New York Central's Tower 50 in Buffalo. NY on November 26, 1949. While perhaps not as "glamorous" a location as some others that John visited because there were no grade crossings where an engine could show off its whistle, Tower 50 was nonetheless an incredible location...
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What is a Webster Chicago 288-1 Wire Recorder?
If portable tape recorders weren't available until around 1955, how did John Prophet capture his railroad sounds beginning in 1948? We'll learn all about the Webster-Chicago wire recorder in this episode and how John was able to work around its limitations in order to make the recordings featured...
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Early Cameras and Bay View Tower
Before 1948, when portable sound recording devices came on the market, the only way for a Railroad Enthusiast like John Prophet to capture and preserve their love of trains was to use a still camera or a movie camera. What types of cameras were used and how difficult was it to capture a moving...
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Why Preserve Anything?
In this episode, we’ll take a look at why archival preservation on film or audio recording device is such a necessity. Since we’re interested in the railroad industry of Buffalo, why was it so important to take pictures or make sound recordings of trains? Why did people find the need to preserve...
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Living With Steam - Pilot Episode
Welcome to Living With Steam. This bi-weekly podcast features the sounds of railroading in Buffalo and Western New York from 1948 to 1955. The recordings featured in this program were captured in the field by John Prophet using a portable wire-recorder; a technology that many people have never...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
This unique podcast features the sounds of railroad operations in Buffalo, Western New York, and elsewhere. Steam engines, early diesel engines, freight and passenger trains; they're all heard exactly as they sounded from 1948 to 1955. The recordings were made on a Webster-Chicago wire recorder by John M. Prophet III, noted Pennsylvania Railroad historian and dedicated railfan for his entire life. Visit livingwithsteam.com for more information about each episode.
HOSTED BY
Aaron Heverin
CATEGORIES
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Living with Steam have?
Living with Steam currently has 34 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Living with Steam about?
This unique podcast features the sounds of railroad operations in Buffalo, Western New York, and elsewhere. Steam engines, early diesel engines, freight and passenger trains; they're all heard exactly as they sounded from 1948 to 1955. The recordings were made on a Webster-Chicago wire recorder by...
How often does Living with Steam release new episodes?
Living with Steam has 34 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to Living with Steam?
You can listen to Living with Steam on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Living with Steam?
Living with Steam is created and hosted by Aaron Heverin.
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