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This episode of Living with Steam EXTRA is a bit different in that I’m featuring several of the railroad sound recordings from my collection that were made specifically for adding a bit of realism to a model railroad; specifically that of an O-gauge model railroad. While the post-war period in America saw a boom in the demand and popularity of O-gauge model train manufacturers such as Lionel, American Flyer, and Marx, the fact remained that regardless of how authentic these trains looked… they were “toys.” They were INCREDIBLE toys for sure… but still toys.
Right after leaving work on Thursday, August 28, 1952, John hopped in his car and drove to Tyrone, Pennsylvania where he began to record as much Pennsylvania Railroad steam engines as possible. Known as "The Hub of the Highways", Tyrone was a big spot on the Pennsy's Middle Division trackage where the hauling of coal, iron ore, paper products and passengers occurred 24 hours a day... EVERY day. If John or anyone else wanted to make sound recordings or take photographs of PRR steam engines in action, Tyrone was the place to be.
Unfortunately, not everything went according to plan on this trip. John's "unrelenting standards" of doing everything possible to avoid making any recordings of PRR trains pulled by the new diesel engines caught up with him in a not-so-pleasant way... as you will hear.
This is part one of a two part episode featuring the recordings John made from August 28th until September 1st 1952.
In this episode of Living with Steam EXTRA, we'll conclude the story of William A. Steventon and how he came to develop the Railroad Record Club in the 1950s. It wasn't easy for Steventon to pull this venture off especially in an era where railroad sound recordings were in high demand amongst railfans yearning to relive the days of trains pulled by steam engines. Competition was out there.
Also featured in this episode is a fun and informative interview I had with Ken Gear, who was at the right place at the right time to acquire the entire Steventon estate of Railroad Record Club archives even though it was in serious danger of being destroyed and lost forever.
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Copyright 2026, Aaron Heverin
This episode of Living with Steam features the second set of recordings John M. Prophet III made from Tyrone, and Huntingdon, PA. In addition to recording from those spots, John also recorded from Cresson, PA, and eventually, the Pennsylvania Railroad’s famous Horseshoe Curve.
In addition to hearing the recordings, you’ll also learn why John made the trip to Tyrone in August 1952 in the first place; to attend the NRHS Annual Convention in Altoona, PA.