North Bennington | Tracking the Light

July 27, 2010.

Pan Am at North Bennington? Who could have imagined this 20 years ago?

Pan Am Railways RJ1 at at North Bennington; Victorian-era railway station with a sky blue 1970s-era diesel-electric. Exposed with a Canon EOS 7D.

I spent that morning following Vermont Rail System’s ‘B&R Job’ south from Rutland. Yet the photographic highlight was catching its connection, Pan Am’s RJ-1 local, at North Bennington.

Back in the day, Pan Am was an airline with round the world schedules. The name conjures up images of handsome blue Boeing 747s, or pre-World War II ‘Clippers’ (see planes).

Pan Am Railways is a re-branding of the Guilford system which operates former Boston & Maine and Maine Central lines. In 2007, two former Canadian National GP40-2L (sometimes identified as ‘GP40-2W’) locomotives were painted in a livery reminiscent of the old Pan Am Airlines’ scheme.

Yet, this scenario seems just a bit weird to me, like some alternate version of the future. Anyway you look at it, the combination of the restored historic station and a sky blue engine is both fascinating and strange.

North Bennington Station. — North Bennington station.

Southward Pan Am RJ-1 passes the Bennington Battlefield site. For a number of years the tracks here were largely dormant.

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A Bit of Art by the Tracks.

I was at North Bennington, Vermont to photograph Pan Am Railways’ (formerly Guilford Rail System) RJ-1 local freight that was performing freight interchange with Vermont Railway System.

This route had been dormant for many years but reopened in recent times. While I’d been to North Bennington on several occasions, this was the first time I photographed trains there.

The North Bennington Station has been beautifully restored. Out on the platform is a statue of a man gazing impatiently at his watch, as if he were a passenger waiting for a train.

Art with train — Statue with RJ-1 at North Bennington, Vermont on July 27, 2010. Exposed using a Canon EOS 7D with 100-400mm image stabilization zoom set at 190mm; f11 at 1/250 sec, ISO 200.

I made a variety of images of Pan Am’s former Canadian National GP40-2L working around the station. I like this one because it’s different. I used a smaller aperture to allow for greater depth of field, while focusing on the statue instead of the locomotive.

I believe that’s the old freight house beyond the locomotive and cars.

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North Bennington on a Summer Afternoon

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Pan Am with Statue at North Bennington, Vermont, July 27, 2010.

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Railway photography by Brian Solomon

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Railway photography by Brian Solomon