Books about the LVRR, or with substantial LVRR content, arranged by Title or by Author
ALCO’s To Allentown, by Thomas A Biery, The Railroad Press, 1998. A nice collection of color and black & white photos of railroads in the Lehigh Valley: LV, CNJ, RDG. In spite of its title, it doesn’t concentrate exclusively on ALCo products!
Anthracite Classics – Photography of William R. McClellan, by Jaime F.M. Serensits, The Railroad Press, 2001. Photo coverage of the LVRR and CNJ, mostly in the late 1950s to early 1960s. Also covers PRR and RDG.
Anthracite Country Color, by Gerard Bernet, Railroad Avenue Enterprises, 1998. A beautiful photo book featuring the work of Bruce and Arch Kantner. In addition to the LV, covers CNJ, PRR & RDG.
Bulletin No. 126, Lehigh Valley Issue, The Railway and Locomotive Historical Society, April 1972. Complete roster of steam and diesel locomotives from the beginning through 1972. Builders, original build and rebuild dates, disposal date. Only the GE U23Bs are missing!
CNJ/LV Color Guide to Freight and Passenger Equipment, by Craig T Bossler, Morning Sun Books, 1994. Great collection of color photos for modelers, covering most of the LV equipment of the 1960s and 1970s.
Color Pictorial of Northeastern Railfanning, A, by Steven Ford & Fred Hart, N.J. International, undated. Photo coverage of LV, CNJ, LNE, RDG, E-L and a few others. No text, captions only.
Handsomest Trains in the World, The – Passenger Service on the Lehigh Valley Railroad, by William T. Greeberg, Jr., and Frederick A. Kramer, with Theodore F. Gleichmann, Jr., Bells & Whistles, 1978. A history, with lots of b&w photos, of passenger service on the LVRR.
Handsomest Train in the World, The – The First Twenty-Five Years of the Lehigh Valley Railroad’s Black Diamond Express, by Richard F. Palmer, Sayre Historical Society, 2011. 42-pages containing numerous photos, data and descriptive information, including personal accounts, about the “glory days” of the famous train.
Hard Coal Carriers, The, Volume 1: First Generation Geeps, by Gerard Bernet, Railroad Avenue Enterprises, 1994. In-depth coverage of the GP7s, GP9s & GP18s operated by LV, CNJ, DL&W, ERIE, E-L & RDG. Mostly black & white photos, only eight pages of color, counting covers.
History of the Lehigh Valley Railroad, A – The Route of the Black Diamond, by Robert F Archer, Heimburger House, 1977. THE definitive history of the LVRR, from birth to Conrail. Black & white photos. 372 pages!
Lehigh Gorge Pictorial, A, special issue of Flags, Diamonds and Statues, Vol. 8, Nos. 3 & 4, Anthracite Railroads Historical Society, 1989. Great color photos of action in the Lehigh Gorge.
Lehigh Valley Freight and Passenger Equipment Rosters, by Eric A. Neubauer, Society of Freight Car Historians, 1996. “Intended to be the first word on Lehigh Valley freight and passenger cars, not the last.” But undoubtedly the place to start! Comprehensive listings with a little background, no photos.
Lehigh Valley in Color, by Robert J Yanosey, Morning Sun Books, 1989. Color photos with lots of good commentary, arranged along the main line traveling westward.
Lehigh Valley in Color 2, by Robert J Yanosey, Morning Sun Books, 1991. More color photos with good commentary. Arranged as volume 1, but contains more early photos.
Lehigh Valley in Color 3, by Jeremy F Plant & Richard T Steinbrenner, Morning Sun Books, 1999. History, maps, loco roster, color photos arranged by era: 1930s/40s, 1950s, 1960s & 1970s.
Lehigh Valley Memories – A Tour of the Lehigh Valley Railroad in New York’s Finger Lakes Region, 1941-1959, by David Marcham, DeWitt Historical Society of Tompkins County, 1998. A personal memoir of the LVRR from the author’s boyhood years. Well written and illustrated with the author’s photos, scans of memorabilia.
Lehigh Valley Railroad – A Pictorial Review, by Ed Gardner, self-published, undated. A collection of b&w photos, reproductions of timetables, advertisements, postcards and other documents, including the music for “The Black Diamond March and Two Step.”
Lehigh Valley Railroad – The New York Division, by Mike Bednar, Garrigues House, 1993. My favorite Lehigh Valley book. Like the Morning Sun books, arranged westward along the main line, but with lots of personal commentary and colorful anecdotes about life on “the Lehigh.” Includes Mike’s hand drawn interlocking diagrams from his days as a tower man, and an extensive diesel locomotive roster.
Lehigh Valley Railroad – The Wyoming and Buffalo Divisions, by Mike Bednar, Garrigues House, 2003. A sequel to Mike’s first LV book, also arranged westward along the main line, with a chapter on the M&H Branch inserted at the appropriate junction. Like the first book, contains personal commentary and colorful anecdotes about life on “the Lehigh,” but does not cover these areas in the same depth as the New York Division book.
Lehigh Valley Railroad Diesel Paint Schemes (1925-1976), by Carl Steckler (cjs9 at cornell dot edu), 40 Simms Hill Rd, Dryden, NY 13053, 1993. A complete listing of all the color schemes used on LV diesels, with a painting history of each locomotive. Illustrated with b&w photos of one locomotive illustrating each color scheme. Reprints available from the author at this address, $30/copy including shipping.
Lehigh Valley Railroad East of Mauch Chunk, The, by William T Greenberg Jr & Robert F Fischer, The Gingerbread Stop, 1997. Nice collection of black & white photos from the 1950s, with lots of maps, interlocking diagrams, excerpts from timetables, and reproductions of advertisements.
Lehigh Valley Railroad Locomotive Development, Anthracite Railroads Historical Society, 1999. A reprint of an LVRR internal document by J.P. Laux, Superintendent of Motive Power, issued ca. 1935, updated ca.1940. B&W photos. Covers highlights, not a comprehensive listing.
Lehigh Valley Railroad Passenger Cars – Photo and Diagram Book No. 1, by M Mickey & D Warfel, Railroad Avenue Enterprises, 1980. Features HO scale reproductions of LVRR passenger car diagrams & data, black & white photos, color cover photos.
Memories of Eastern Pennsylvania Railroading, by Gerard Bernet, Railroad Avenue Enterprises, 2000. More of the beautiful photographs of the Kantner brothers, this time covering LV, CNJ, RDG, E-L (incl. DL&W & ERIE) & PRR.
Northeast Railroad Scene, The, Vol. 1: The Lehigh Valley, by Bob Pennisi, Railroad Avenue Enterprises, 1976. A collection of black & white photos, with minimal text other than captions. Color on covers only. Part of a series on the railroads that were merged into Conrail.
Railroads in the Lehigh River Valley, edited by Randolph L. Kulp, Lehigh Valley Chapter, National Railway Historical Society, 1962. A local history of the CNJ, Chestnut Ridge, E-L and predecessors, Ironton RR, L&HR, LVRR and predecessors, Northampton & Bath, PRR, RDG and predecessors, L&NE and predecessors, Quakertown & Bethlehem RR. Illustrated with b&w photos.
Rails North – Lehigh Valley Railroad in New York State, Central New York Chapter, National Railway Historical Society, Inc., 1971. Brief history, black & white photos mostly from steam era, reproductions of public timetables.
Steam Era of Lehigh Valley, The, by Chuck Yungkurth, Andover Junction Publications, 1991. High quality black & white photos, good narrative of the steam years, ending with the transition to diesels. Page 23 has a chart of all the classes of steam locomotives used, dates built, and period in service.
Trackside Around Allentown, PA, 1947-1968 with Arthur Angstadt, by Jeremy F Plant, Morning Sun Books, 2001. A collection of the color photos of Allentown railfan Arthur Angstadt, covering LV, CNJ, LNE and RDG.
Trackside Around Buffalo, 1953-1976 with Ray Richards, Reg Button & Devan Lawton, by Stephan M Koening, Morning Sun Books, 2001. A collection of the color photos of three Buffalo area railfans, covering LV, E-L, PRR, B&O, C&O and others.
Trackside Around Sayre-Towanda-Waverly with Lloyd Hall, by Jeremy F Plant & Bill Caloroso, Morning Sun Books, 2003. A collection of the color photos of Towanda railfan Lloyd Hall, covering LV, ERIE, DL&W, E-L, and PRR. Lots of great photos, mostly from the 40s and 50s, including steam in color. Don’t expect to see many units in anything other than clean bright Cornell Red with three black stripes in this book (only three pages of 1960s – 1970s LV photos)!
Trackside Around Scranton, PA, 1952-1976 with Edward S Miller, by Chuck Yungkurth, Morning Sun Books, 1999. A collection of the color photos of Pittston railfan Ed Miller, covering LV, E-L, D&H and others.
Ups and Downs of a Rural Line, The – Elmira, Cortland and Northern RR: 1867 to 1967 and On, by David Marcham, DeWitt Historical Society of Tompkins County, 2009. The author, once an LVRR towerman at Cortland Junction, vividly reconstructs the life of the route from its early years as an independent road through its years as the Elmira and Cortland Branch of the Lehigh Valley Railroad. Packed with black and white photos, maps, track diagrams, etc.
Upstate Odyssey – The Lehigh Valley Railroad in Western New York, by Mary Hamilton Dann, Railroad Research Publications, 1997. A history illustrated by photos, drawings, maps and reproductions of documents. No color.
Archer, Robert F: A History of the Lehigh Valley Railroad – The Route of the Black Diamond, Heimburger House, 1977. THE definitive history of the LVRR, from birth to Conrail. Black & white photos. 372 pages!
Bednar, Mike: Lehigh Valley Railroad – The New York Division, Garrigues House, 1993. My favorite Lehigh Valley book. Like the Morning Sun books, arranged westward along the main line, but with lots of personal commentary and colorful anecdotes about life on “the Lehigh.” Includes Mike’s hand drawn interlocking diagrams from his days as a tower man, and an extensive diesel locomotive roster.
Bednar, Mike: Lehigh Valley Railroad – The Wyoming and Buffalo Divisions, Garrigues House, 2003. A sequel to Mike’s first LV book, also arranged westward along the main line, with a chapter on the M&H Branch inserted at the appropriate junction. Like the first book, contains personal commentary and colorful anecdotes about life on “the Lehigh,” but does not cover these areas in the same depth as the New York Division book.
Bernet, Gerard: The Hard Coal Carriers, Volume 1: First Generation Geeps, Railroad Avenue Enterprises, 1994. In-depth coverage of the GP7s, GP9s & GP18s operated by LV, CNJ, DL&W, ERIE, E-L & RDG. Mostly black & white photos, only eight pages of color, counting covers.
Bernet, Gerard:Anthracite Country Color, Railroad Avenue Enterprises, 1998. A beautiful photo book featuring the work of Bruce and Arch Kantner. In addition to the LV, covers CNJ, PRR & RDG.
Bernet, Gerard: Memories of Eastern Pennsylvania Railroading, Railroad Avenue Enterprises, 2000. More of the beautiful photographs of the Kantner brothers, this time covering LV, CNJ, RDG, E-L (incl. DL&W & ERIE) & PRR.
Biery, Thomas A.: ALCO’s To Allentown, The Railroad Press, 1998. A nice collection of color and black & white photos of railroads in the Lehigh Valley: LV, CNJ, RDG. In spite of its title, it doesn’t concentrate exclusively on ALCo products!
Bossler, Craig T.: CNJ/LV Color Guide to Freight and Passenger Equipment, Morning Sun Books, 1994. Great collection of color photos for modelers, covering most of the LV equipment of the 1960s and 1970s.
Dann, Mary Hamilton: Upstate Odyssey – The Lehigh Valley Railroad in Western New York, Railroad Research Publications, 1997. A history illustrated by photos, drawings, maps and reproductions of documents. No color.
Ford, Steven & Hart, Fred: A Color Pictorial of Northeastern Railfanning, N.J. International, undated. Photo coverage of LV, CNJ, LNE, RDG, E-L and a few others. No text, captions only.
Gardner, Ed: Lehigh Valley Railroad – A Pictorial Review, self-published, undated. A collection of b&w photos, reproductions of timetables, advertisements, postcards and other documents, including the music for “The Black Diamond March and Two Step.”
Greenberg, William T Jr & Fischer, Robert F: The Lehigh Valley Railroad East of Mauch Chunk, The Gingerbread Stop, 1997. Nice collection of black & white photos from the 1950s, with lots of maps, interlocking diagrams, excerpts from timetables, and reproductions of advertisements.
Greenberg, William T Jr, & Kramer, Frederick A , with Gleichmann, Theodore F Jr: The Handsomest Trains in the World – Passenger Service on the Lehigh Valley Railroad, Bells & Whistles, 1978. A history, with lots of b&w photos, of passenger service on the LVRR.
Koenig, Stephan M: Trackside Around Buffalo, 1953-1976 with Ray Richards, Reg Button & Devan Lawton, Morning Sun Books, 2001. A collection of the color photos of three Buffalo area railfans, covering LV, E-L, PRR, B&O, C&O and others.
Kulp, Randolph L, ed.: Railroads in the Lehigh River Valley, Lehigh Valley Chapter, National Railway Historical Society, 1962. A local history of the CNJ, Chestnut Ridge, E-L and predecessors, Ironton RR, L&HR, LVRR and predecessors, Northampton & Bath, PRR, RDG and predecessors, L&NE and predecessors, Quakertown & Bethlehem RR. Illustrated with b&w photos.
Laux, J P: Lehigh Valley Railroad Locomotive Development, Anthracite Railroads Historical Society, 1999. A reprint of an LVRR internal document by LVRR’s Superintendent of Motive Power, issued ca. 1935, updated ca.1940. B&W photos. Covers highlights, not a comprehensive listing.
Marcham, David: Lehigh Valley Memories – A Tour of the Lehigh Valley Railroad in New York’s Finger Lakes Region, 1941-1959, DeWitt Historical Society of Tompkins County, 1998. A personal memoir of the LVRR from the author’s boyhood years. Well written and illustrated with the author’s photos, scans of memorabilia.
Marcham, David: Ups and Downs of a Rural Line, The – Elmira, Cortland and Northern RR: 1867 to 1967 and On, DeWitt Historical Society of Tompkins County, 2009. The author, once an LVRR towerman at Cortland Junction, vividly reconstructs the life of the route from its early years as an independent road through its years as the Elmira and Cortland Branch of the Lehigh Valley Railroad. Packed with black and white photos, maps, track diagrams, etc.
Mickey, M & Warfel, D: Lehigh Valley Railroad Passenger Cars – Photo and Diagram Book No. 1, , Railroad Avenue Enterprises, 1980. Features HO scale reproductions of LVRR passenger car diagrams & data, black & white photos, color cover photos.
Neubauer, Eric A: Lehigh Valley Freight and Passenger Equipment Rosters, Society of Freight Car Historians, 1996. “Intended to be the first word on Lehigh Valley freight and passenger cars, not the last.” But undoubtedly the place to start! Comprehensive listings with a little background, no photos.
Palmer, Richard F: Handsomest Train in the World, The – The First Twenty-Five Years of the Lehigh Valley Railroad’s Black Diamond Express, Sayre Historical Society, 2011. 42-pages containing numerous photos, data and descriptive information, including personal accounts, about the “glory days” of the famous train.
Pennisi, Bob:The Northeast Railroad Scene, Vol. 1: The Lehigh Valley, Railroad Avenue Enterprises, 1976. A collection of black & white photos, with minimal text other than captions. Color on covers only. Part of a series on the railroads that were merged into Conrail.
Plant, Jeremy F: Trackside Around Allentown, PA, 1947-1968 with Arthur Angstadt, Morning Sun Books, 2001. A collection of the color photos of Allentown railfan Arthur Angstadt, covering LV, CNJ, LNE and RDG.
Plant, Jeremy F & Steinbrenner, Richard T: Lehigh Valley in Color 3, Morning Sun Books, 1999. History, maps, loco roster, color photos arranged by era: 1930s/40s, 1950s, 1960s & 1970s.
Plant, Jeremy F & Caloroso, Bill: Trackside Around Sayre-Towanda-Waverly with Lloyd Hall, Morning Sun Books, 2003. A collection of the color photos of Towanda railfan Lloyd Hall, covering LV, ERIE, DL&W, E-L, and PRR. Lots of great photos, mostly from the 40s and 50s, including steam in color. Don’t expect to see many units in anything other than clean bright Cornell Red with three black stripes in this book (only three pages of 1960s – 1970s LV photos)!
Serensits, Jaime F.M.: Anthracite Classics – Photography of William R. McClellan, The Railroad Press, 2001. Photo coverage of the LVRR and CNJ, mostly in the late 1950s to early 1960s. Also covers PRR and RDG.
Steckler, Carl:Lehigh Valley Railroad Diesel Paint Schemes (1925-1976), Carl Steckler, 40 Simms Hill Rd, Dryden, NY 13053, 1993. A complete listing of all the color schemes used on LV diesels, with a painting history of each locomotive. Illustrated with b&w photos of one locomotive illustrating each color scheme. Reprints available from the author at this address, $30/copy including shipping.
Yanosey, Robert J: Lehigh Valley in Color, Morning Sun Books, 1989. Color photos with lots of good commentary, arranged along the main line traveling westward.
Yanosey, Robert J: Lehigh Valley in Color 2, Morning Sun Books, 1991. More color photos with good commentary. Arranged as volume 1, but contains more early photos.
Yungkurth, Chuck: The Steam Era of Lehigh Valley, Andover Junction Publications, 1991. High quality black & white photos, good narrative of the steam years, ending with the transition to diesels. Page 23 has a chart of all the classes of steam locomotives used, dates built, and period in service.
Yungkurth, Chuck:Trackside Around Scranton, PA, 1952-1976 with Edward S Miller, Morning Sun Books, 1999. A collection of the color photos of Pittston railfan Ed Miller, covering LV, E-L, D&H and others.