Re: PC: Re: Penn Central Police patch

["Peter King" <fshobby@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Here's an auction for one of the patches that Ned is describing. (Not 
my auction, I just found it.)

http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1014904927

Peter King

--- Original Message ---
From: NES3524 -AT- aol.com
To: penn-central -AT- smellycat.com
Subject: Re: PC: Re: Penn Central Digest V1 #85

>The PCRR Police Department adopted a somewhat small patch in 1971, 
designed 
>by an Inspector Robert Steele, an ex-NYC RR man then in command at 
Penn 
>Station in New York, if memory serves; it had a small star 
representing each 
>state (and province, I believe) served by the PC.  The only wording 
was 
>"POLICE" and it had green PC worms inside a white circle.  The rest 
of the 
>patch was gold embroidery on a dark blue background.   Incidentally, 
the 
>Conrail PD later adopted the same design, merely substituting the 
Conrail 
>logo for the PC worms.
>
>As far as I know, prior to 1971 the PC PD did not have a patch.  
>
>The only other authentic PC PD patch I am aware of is one that is 
virtually 
>impossible to find - it is a round yellow "Helicopter Surveillance" 
patch, 
>briefly used by a joint track patrol helicopter shared by the PC PD 
and the 
>Long Island Railroad PD in the New York City metropolitan area.  It 
bears the 
>old NY MTA "M" logo, but bears no mention of the name of either 
railroad.  I 
>only saw it once, in the early 1970s at the LIRR PD HQ; only an 
extremely 
>small number were made.
>
>There is, however, another PCRR PD patch floating around eBay these 
days.  It 
>is a larger, gold on black patch, with PENN CENTRAL POLICE fully 
spelled out. 
> The PC worms are white on red on a black circle inside a 16-pointed 
star or 
>sunburst design.  I did pick one up as a curiosity item.  What it 
really is 
>is open to question.  The one I received has a rather modern, iron-
on 
>background, rather than the cheesecloth or mesh backing found on 
patches from 
>the 1970s.     My guesses are that: (1) it is a reproduction of a 
prototype 
>that was never adopted, (2) is a reproduction of something used in a 
limited 
>geographical area, perhaps used unofficially, in order to look more 
like the 
>local police, or, (3) it is a complete fantasy item.
>
>Ned Schwartz
>
>