Jersey City , New Jersey 1924 Photo by Jim Speer and got off at Sparta Station. There was music, speeches and food. The battle ended with the artillery demolishing a stone farmhouse. “Getting there” and “being there” were both exciting times. On an Indian summer day in October 1938, I was privileged to ride a Stroudsburg to Oak Ridge. We crossed over the Delaware River bridge and viewed the Delaware Water Gap from the cupola of the boose. caWe passed through Dunfield and Columbia with a two car train. At Hainesburg Junction eighteen loaded coal cars were added. The engineer pumped up the brakes and we were off for the pleasant trip through Paulinskill Valley. We passed Vail, Blairstown, Marksboro, Stillwater, Swartawood, Halsey, Warbasse and Sparta Junction. The scene changed at Sparta. The steep grade on Sparta Mountain slowed the train down to a walk. At Beaver Lake, I boarded the engine, No. 2481. The Susquehanna freight train from East engineer told me about bringing ice down the White Lake and other stories. With instructions from the enginemen I jumped off the moving train near home and I was home. “Being there” was good but “getting there” on a freight train was an experience that I will always remember. (Continued on page 6) Franklin Junction, The Lehigh & Hudson River Railroad 1924 Photo by Jim Speer 4
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