Reading Co. Photo Gallery - Shops
The Reading had many shops and servicing terminals located throughout its system to maintain and repair its large fleet of locomotives and rolling stock. There were also a number of yards to sort and route freight cars to their various destinations. Many facilities both large and small have been since demolished or adapted to other non-railroad uses. Below are just a few examples of these once thriving and vital faciltiies of the Reading.
Bethlehem Engine Terminal, 1973. (photo courtesy Gary Stuebben)
St. Clair Yard, In 1913 the Reading Railroad expanded its repair shops and marshalling yards in Saint Clair making it the “largest classified coal yards in the world.” There were 63 tracks that covered 46.5 miles, with a capacity for 2,861 cars, and an engine house large enough to contain 52 locomotives. Over 1,200 men and 25 supervisors were employed here when it was working at full capacity. (photo courtesy Specter Manufacturing, copy courtesy Bonnie Baker, St. Clair, Then and Now)
St. Clair Car Repair Shops, date unknown. (photo courtesy St. Clair, Then and Now)
Reading Loco Shops, 1990. (photo courtesy V.G. Aylward)