December 2024 - The MrT Podcast Studio

USRJ S3 Ep 37 From west of Syracuse to Albany

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 22:53 — 21.0MB)

From west of Syracuse to Albany – US Rail Journeys Series 3 Episode 37

In ‘From west of Syracuse to Albany’ I travel another 150 miles on my journey to New York on the Lakeshore Limited.

Please click on a thumbnail to see the photographs that go with this podcast:

Syracuse:

The William F. Walsh Regional Transportation Center is an intermodal station serving Syracuse and the surrounding area. It also hosts Greyhound Lines, Megabus, and Trailways. In addition there are local and regional busses and taxis.

William F. Walsh is a former mayor of Syracuse and representative in the U.S. Congress.

Syracuse station is served by the daily round trip of the Lake Shore Limited, two daily Empire Service round trips, and the daily Maple Leaf round trip.

Utica station:

The Boehlert Transportation Center at Union Station is served by Amtrak and the Adirondack Railroad. Sherwood Boehlert is a retired U.S. Representative.

The station is in the Italianate style with a rusticated granite first story and buff brick above. There are thirteen bays across the façade and fifteen on the side elevations. With a brick parapet crowning the building and a large clock flanked by eagle sculptures over the main entrance it is most impressive.

Inside there is a restaurant and a barber shop. There are twelve large benches, with heating by steam pipes.

Eight Amtrak trains use the station daily: two on the Lake Shore Limited, four on the Empire Service, and two on the Maple Leaf. The Adirondack Railroad operates a heritage railway with a seasonal service terminating in Tupper Lake.

Schenectady:

Schenectady station dates from in 2018 and hosts five Amtrak routes. The Lake Shore Limited, the Empire Service, the Maple Leaf, the Ethan Allen Express between New York City and Burlington, Vermont and the Adirondack between New York City and Montreal.

Albany–Rensselaer:

Albany–Rensselaer station, formally the Joseph L. Bruno Rail Station, is in Rensselaer, about 1 1/2 miles from downtown Albany across the Hudson River. Amtrak’s Empire Corridor routes use the station – the Adirondack, Berkshire Flyer, Empire Service, Ethan Allen Express, Lake Shore Limited, and Maple Leaf.

Listen to the podcast to hear about my journey from East of Syracuse to Albany..

This podcast is also available through Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, Deezer, Podchaser, Spotify, Vurbl , You Tube and others.

Music:

AKM Music licenses Steam Railway and Lousy Thief for use in this podcast.

TH2023 Ep21 Franco’s Spain

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 50:58 — 46.7MB)

Season 2023 – Talk 21 – Franco’s Spain

In ‘Franco’s Spain’ Peter Duffy tells us about the Spanish dictator who controlled Spain from 1939 to 1975.

Click a thumbnail below to view the image gallery that accompanies the talk.

Early career:

After he passes out from Toledo, Franco is posted to Morocco where he remains until the late 1920s.

He comes a lieutenant in 1912, a captain in 1915, a major in 1917, a colonel in 1925, and a general in 1926, making him the youngest general in both the Spanish army and across Europe.

His military achievements and bravery in battle drive both his promotions and also 13 medals and decorations. His key roles in North Africa are in the Spanish Foreign Legion. He becomes commander when his predecessor dies in battle.

Sidelined:

From 1928 to 1931 he is director of the military academy and responsible for the training of the officer corps of the army. However in 1932 he is effectively sidelined with a posting by the new Republican government. Franco becomes military commander in La Coruña, a minor post in northwest Spain.

After this period in the wilderness he is restored to grace. From 1933 to 1934 he is commander in chief of the Spanish forces in Morocco. Then from 1935 to six he becomes chief of the general staff.

In 1936 another sideways move to Captain General of the Canary Islands.

Marriage and religion:

During his posting to La Coruña he marries Doña Carmen, a very pious woman. She influences his personal beliefs. His religious faith and Catholicism become part of his identity when he makes religion and the Catholic Church principal supports of his regime.

For Franco, his Catholic faith and Spanish nationalism are inseparable. At a personal level Franco believes that he has a personal mission to save Spain from liberalism and communism.

Listen to Peter tell the full story .

About this podcast:

This is an edited recording of a talk given to the Farnham u3a World History: Ancient, Medieval and Modern Group.

This podcast is also available through Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, Deezer, Podchaser, Spotify, Stitcher , Vurbl , You Tube and others.

AKM Music licenses Media Magazine for use with this talk.

USRJ S3 Episode 36 Erie to east of Rochester

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 19:02 — 17.4MB)

Erie to east of Rochester – US Rail Journeys Series 3 Episode 36

In ‘Erie to east of Rochester’ I travel a further 250 miles on my journey to New York on the Lakeshore Limited.

Please click on a thumbnail to see the photographs that go with this podcast:

Erie:

By the time we reach Erie we are only 40 minutes late. The ‘Art Deco‘ station opens on 3rd December 1927. Today Logistics Plus own the site and their headquarters is in the building. There is also a micro brewery / brew pub, The Brewerie, on the ground floor.

In 1927 trains departed every hour for destinations across the US. Today the station hosts two trains a day, the eastbound Lakeshore Limited services to New York/Boston and the westbound ones to Chicago. In 2023, 15,236 Amtrak passengers passed through the station.

A bus service operates to transport passengers into Erie.

Buffalo – Depew station:

Buffalo-Depew station dates from 1979. It replaces the magnificent, but by that time underused, Buffalo Central Terminal as Buffalo’s main Amtrak station. The station is 10 miles (16 km) east of downtown Buffalo.

It has the standard Amtrak 1970s to early 1990s design. This includes concrete block walls, floor-to-ceiling windows and a cantilevered black roof. There are eight trains per day with two Empire Service round trips, one Lake Shore Limited round trip, and one Maple Leaf round trip.

Rochester:

Rochester’s station moves to the current site in 1914. That New York Central railway station is four stories high with three high arching windows, reminiscent of train driving wheels, at the front of the train shed. Sadly this famous station is demolished in 1965.

In 1978 Amtrak builds an Amshack style station which opens on July 12, 1978. This temporary facility lasts until late 2015 when it makes way for the current station, the Louise M Slaughter station.

Dorothy Louise Slaughter was an American politician elected to 16 terms as a United States Representative from New York state, serving from 1987 until her death in 2018.

Listen to the podcast to hear about my journey from Erie to east of Rochester.

This podcast is also available through Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, Deezer, Podchaser, Spotify, Vurbl , You Tube and others.

Music:

AKM Music licenses Steam Railway and Light Fun Azz for use in this podcast.