In 1906 a section of the New York Central "west shore" RR was electrified from Utica to Syracuse to provide service for both steam freight trains and electric interurban cars . The choice of a 3rd rail system used on this line was to provide for the eventual full electrification of steam operations(which never happened) and to prevent the coal exhaust from fowling any overhead trolley wires for the interurban cars .

The line operated electrically till the early 1930's when the interurban cars were removed from the system. the system construction was based on the underside feed system used in New York City . The West Shore Line was completely abandoned west of Utica, N.Y. in 1959-1961. The power for the interurban was provided by a 60kV 25 cycle steel tower transmission line insulated with Thomas M-4331 multiparts that were cemented to the steel pins of the towers. when the line was removed in the 1930's two of the four tower legs were cut with a cutting torch and the tower was pulled over by the conductor cables .

I am guessing several towers were pulled at once( maybe by a railroad engine). About 40 feet away from the tower base one finds pieces of three smashed insulators exactly in the pattern of the shape of the top of the tower. The hole is from where I hug the insulator from the left arm . The pieces on the right are from the insulator on the right arm. Clearly they took a sledge hammer and bashed the insulators in the crown wile on the tower .

The insulators were very pretty with yellowish mustard mahogany glazes . Tho not super valuable pieces, I decided I liked them enough to dig one up and try to repair it just to have one for my own collection... this is what the place I dug looked like ... insulator pieces where the tower fell. [id=281949050] to see 55 feet away from this dig, where one sees the old tower legs protruding from the muck