The Phoebe Snow

No, not the singer.

The train.

In 1881, the Delaware, Lackawana, and Western Railroad built the Vestal, NY, U.S.A. train station. The main passenger train of the day was the Phoebe Snow, which ran from Hoboken, NJ to Buffalo, NY, stopping in the town I lived in for the majority of my youth.

My parents purchased a water color of the still operating station, back in the days before I was born. It was painted by Marie Massoti, one of my mom's favorite local artists.

I am not sure of the exact history of this painting, but the fact that men are removing wood from a warehouse, leads me to believe that my father, who was a contractor, had a history with this station.

I posted a Blip about the Great Train Wreck of Vestal some time ago, but never realized that the original Phoebe Snow's last run was in 1949. A friend pointed out that incarnations of the train ran until 1966, so I have edited this post to avoid confusion.

Train travel took a back seat to automobiles, and the distinctive green Vestal station eventually became a museum.

In 1972, the station was moved from the Vestal Rail Trail to the Vestal Parkway, where it still stands today. Apparently, if it wants to gain historical status, it will have to be moved back where it was originally located.

I haven't been to the museum in years, but plan on Blipping about it soon.


Marie painted small bits of history. I imagine that this painting speaks more than I can imagine.

Maybe there's a reason for me living back in the area where I grew up.

I'm beginning to understand why.