Salamanca - Early Conrail

So pre-1981/82 Conrail, I've seen photos of power stationed at Salamanca in the old Erie yard, near the coal tower, for example.

What was power stationed in that area for? Sometimes there is quite a bit. I thought freights on the main would have changed crew towards Meadville. I know they changed in Hornell. And CR had a yard in Olean.

An example is attached.

Thanks.

There continued to be interchange traffic between the B&O and CR into the early 80s, at least. That much power in Salamanca, at that date, might imply a coal train was expected in the near future. The old interchange track over to E. Salamanca was still active then.

JR

Erie/E-L also had trackage rights on the B&O via the Limestone connection off the Erie Bradford Division. I visited the area in the late 1970s and the branch was still in place, though little used judging by the rust conditions on the rails.

So Conrail may still have run coal traffic down into PA, using Salamanca as a base of operations.

There were still a few yard tracks left at Carrollton at that time.

Most of the Bradford Division was abandoned upon startup of Conrail on 1-Apr-76. The Brockway-area coal traffic was rerouted via former PC lines. The did retain a small bit of the former Erie trackage in the City of Bradford, and had several customers there, into the 1990s. So there may have been a Bradford engine at Salamanca, either on its way to Bradford, or possibly being serviced. But, as far as I know, there was very little (essentially zero) coal business on the Bradford Division after the startup of Conrail.
JR