Abandoned Railroads

End of the track: West Shore south of Amsterdam, New York
Courtesy of Gino’s Railpage

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When was the West Shore abandoned?

Weehawken to Rotterdam Junction (RJ)	Always important, never abandoned. Tower “RJ”: mile marker 159.6; open day and night in 1961 but closed by 1965. Connection to New York Central mainline at Hoffmans. NYC continued to operate the West Shore as it was built until the early 20’s, when plans were made to construct a bypass around the difficulties of freight operation through Albany. The “Selkirk Bypass,” as it was called, incorporated a high steel bridge across the river, and a two-hump classification yard in the swampy area between Selkirk and South Bethlehem. This yard evolved into today’s modern Selkirk Yard. A piece of the original route between Feura Bush and Ravena through South Bethlehem was abandoned in sections over the years after Selkirk was originally built (1924) and when it was rebuilt (1967).
Rotterdam Junction (RJ) to South Amsterdam	Continued to South Amsterdam mile marker 165.9 At Cranesville (mile marker 161) on the stub of the old New York Central West Shore it served a large quarry (Cushing) and several other industries. This section was torn up in 2004 after being out of service for several years. The Surface Transportation Board issued the following: NEW YORK – NEW YORK CENTRAL LINES, LLC – To abandon and CSXT to discontinue service over approximately 6.3 miles of railroad from milepost QGW 159.6 to milepost QGW 165.9, between South Amsterdam in Montgomery County and Rotterdam Junction in Schenectady County, NY. Effective on April 24, 2003. (STB Docket Nos. AB A contractor scrapped the line from mile marker 165 or so back to mile marker 161 (Pattersonville) making this now end of track. At Cushing, there is an old model 40 EMC center cab switcher clearly visable from the highway. The connection to the NYC main at Hoffmans, as well as the reconfiguring and separation of grades between there and Fullers, were part of the Selkirk/Castleton bypass project.
South Amsterdam to Fort Plain	Torn up by Conrail when the Beech-Nut business in Canajoharie dried up. (Out of service in 1981) Canajoharie (mile marker 190.3) was the only station open on the line at the end. A twice-weekly freight from Selkirk ran to Fort Plain and laid over.
Fort Plain to Ilion/Herkimer	In the early 1970’s, the line had been cut between Fort Plain and Ilion (by Penn Central). The West Shore served the Ilion plant of Remington Arms, delivering coal for the power plant. This stopped in the late 50’s or early 60’s. The tracks came off the West Shore near East North Street and ran south, crossing East North and East Clark St (near the present day Crossway’s Tavern). They then turned west and ran down the middle of Main Street between the Remington factories that were on either side of the street. Just before Otsego Street the tracks turned south into the plant where the coal would be unloaded. I understand Remington had their own switcher to do this.
Herkimer to Harbor	Harbor (mile marker 226.2; connection to NYC mainline near Utica). Connection continued West of Harbor to serve industries on Broad Street industrial trackage in Utica. The Harbor connection (CP-24) lasted until at least 1987. It served both the Broad St. Industrial Track and the West Shore eastward to Frankfort, South Ilion, and Mohawk. Line was first cut back to Frankfort where the ex-West Shore RR shops were still standing, and some of the yard trackage was still there. CP-24 was always Harbor Connection to Tk. 2 only. No need for crossover to Tk. 1 as CP-25 was a universal plus access to the North Control Siding and Utica Yd. Double track connection to Utica Yard was via the overhead bridge at CP-24.
Harbor to South Utica	The line through South Utica to a junction with the NYC mainline at Harbor was cut after 1965. This section featured at least 16 unprotected grade crossings that required a flagman to cross. Industrial trackage which served the old textile mills in New York Mills left the West Shore. In 1949, this line was double tracked and had a 35 MPH speed limit. By 1961, it was single tracked and had a 15 MPH speed limit.
South Utica to Vernon	The line between South Utica and Vernon was cut between 1961 and 1965. 1961 employee timetable shows it open, 1965 timetable does not. The Rome Daily Sentinal from May 3, 1964 announced: “The New York Central Railroad is seeking permission to abandon a 12.3-mile section of its West Shore line from New York Mills to near Vernon. A 1969 publication of Waldo Nielsen’s “Guide to Abandoned Railroads” states that Vernon to Utica was abandoned in 1966. The only piece left is the 1/2 mile or so in New Hartford ( part of the NYS&W New York Mills Industrial)
Vernon to Canastota	Canastota was an interchange with the Lehigh Valley. NYC/PC left the main at Canastota on a switch back and ran east to Vernon 3 days a week in the 50’s. There was switching action at the Beacon Feed Mill, Dalton Lumber, Chapman Gas , coal for Oneida Ltd and a few customers (feed, grain, farm machinery) in Vernon.
Canastota to Kirkville Junction	Before 1961, the line between Canastota and Kirkville Junction was abandoned and connection to the main line was at Canastota. Kirkville Junction was the start of the Syracuse Division. “CONRAIL” by MBI publications, states that the New York Central cut it’s West Shore as a through route between Utica and Buffalo in the mid ’50’s.
Kirkville Junction to Buffalo	Now abandoned almost completely. The only portion still in use is west of Rochester.

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Places to find New/Recent Abandonment Proposals on the Internet

1) http://www.trainweather.com/aban.html Most STB (Surface Transportation Board) abandonment filings between 1999 and present are listed by year. You can then use the docket numbers or location information to search for additional information if needed, or find the full text of each abandonment from other web sites.

2) http://www.stb.dot.gov/decisions/readingroom.nsf/WebServiceDate?openform Enter a railroad company, county name, city name, etc. in the search box to list abandonment documents for that location/company. I do not know the exact date range that this database covers, but it’s at least 1994 to present. Note that more than just abandonment filings are listed, so you may have to sift through the various documents that come up. Links to open each document are along the left-hand side of the page.

3) UNFINISHED RAILROADS OF NEW YORK STATE Photos, maps, and information regarding unfinished railroads across New York state.

4) RAILROAD MAPS OF NEW YORK STATE A collection of railroad maps documenting portions of several abandoned routes across New York state.

5) www.abandonedrails.com

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A New Hudson Bridge, Revived Beacon Line, HYPERLOOP and More

The Maybrook Line was a line of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad which connected with its Waterbury Branch in Derby, Connecticut, and its Maybrook Yard in Maybrook, New York, where it interchanged with other carriers.

If one looks at the most popular Pages on our WebSite, over half directly reference the Maybrook Line. Lot’s of folks have an interest in it. The “Maybrook Line” was important to New England before the advent of Penn Central and before the Poughkeepsie Bridge burned. This piece of the railroad carried freight from Maybrook Yard, across the Poughkeepsie Bridge to Hopewell Junction where it joined a line from Beacon. The railroad then went to Brewster, then Danbury, and finally to Cedar Hill Yard in New Haven.

WHY and How To Fix The “MAYBROOK LINE”?

Container port/intermodal facility/rail bridge

The construction of a railroad bridge between New Hamburg and Marlboro is likely the least expensive place to build a Hudson River crossing between Manhattan and Albany. The stone for ramps, sand and gravel for concrete and a steel beam assembly and storage area would be right on sight. All materials and equipment could be transported by barge or boat. The bridge itself would have only four or five piers (the most costly part to build) since the Hudson River is about the same width as it is in Poughkeepsie.

The Hudson River component connects Dutchess, Ulster and Orange counties to the world economy (finished goods, spare parts, components parts, raw materials, food stuffs) and the railroad and interstate road components connect these NY counties to the rest of North America (US, Mexico, Canada).

With the container port/intermodal facility/rail bridge, the flow in and out of raw materials, spare parts, partially finished goods, foodstuffs and components will allow for new industries and businesses to locate near this facility and add to the tax base of these three NY counties: Dutchess, Ulster and Orange counties.

Although the Dutchess County Airport is a tiny regional airport with a 5,000 foot runway, it has some big potential. The airport land extends a mile Northeast of the present runway end at New Hackensack Road and borders on the former New Haven Maybrook Line/Dutchess Rail Trail. As the NY Air National Guard gets crowded out by international air traffic at Stewart International Airport their operation could be moved over to Dutchess Airport without disrupting the lives of the guard members and their families through forced relocation.

Beacon itself is exploding with “developer” activity, and it needs a trolley or light rail for the city only to transform back into a pedestrian oriented city.

Other activities include: Solidization of rail links in Connecticut to handle increased traffic; a possible HYPERLINK for improved service along the Beacon Line and in/out of New York City

Now you are going to ask. What does the New York City Metropolitan Transportation Authority have to do with the “BEACON LINE”? IT OWNS IT! Must realize that NYCMTA is a “regional” organization. With all that went on with Penn-Central and CONRAIL somebody had to own it!

So what would a “revised” rail line look like?

To begin with, the line from Maybrook to the Hudson River is gone. Railroads that previously entered Maybrook can reach the Hudson River and head up the old West Shore to the proposed bridge at New Hamburg. But the old Poughkeepsie Bridge is no longer in service, as well as the tracks to Hopewell Junction. At Marlboro, trains would take the old New York Central Hudson Division to Beacon, New York. Yes, with both Metro North and Amtrak using the Hudson Line, it may require an additional track.

From Beacon trains would travel the Beacon Line over the Housatonic Railroad to Derby-Shelton, Connecticut. Trains would go to Cedar Hill Yard. Some traffic may go to Long Island. With traffic revitalized, other trains will even go to Waterbury!

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A great, great WebSite about HUDSON VALLEY RAILROADS

No, it is not ours! It is very comprehensive and professional.

http://www.hudsonrivervalley.org/library/pdfs/Railroads.pdf

It is written by professionals, not railfans. Lots of really neat stories about the old railroads. Lots of great links too!

http://walkway.org

All about the Walkway Over The Hudson (old bridge from Maybrook to Beacon)

http://web.mta.info/mnr

All about Metro-North Railroad

From their biblioraphy:

“New York Central Railroad and New York State Railroads.” GOURMET MOIST / Kingly Heirs. Web. 13 Oct. 2010. . This website talks about the different railroads that eventually merged to form the New York Central Railroad. It also discusses where the railroads runs to and from.”

Since 2010, it has become a part of our WebSite:

https://penneyandkc.wordpress.com/new-york-state-railroads-and-ny-central-railroad/

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Important Link: “What Railroads Connected At Maybrook?“

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Tyler City Station: WebSite about abandoned rail in Western Connecticut

Tyler City Station
a pleasant and informative cyber-destination and a starting point for those interested in the history of railroads. The focus will be on those in southwestern Connecticut, but we may take a side track into other local historical topics spinning off from railroads in this and possibly in other geographic areas as well. The important role that the railroad played in the development of this state and this country can hardly be overestimated.

Here is an idea of the contents: Track 1. Tyler City – Railroad Boom Town; Track 2. The New Haven and Derby Railroad, 1864-1941; Track 3. New Haven and Derby Extra: Locomotive roster, statistics, officials; Track 4. New Haven and Derby Mainline: Tour from New Haven to Ansonia; Track 5. New Haven and Derby Extension: Tour from Derby Jct. to Botsford; Track 6. The Iron Horse in New Haven, 1838-1920; Track 7. New Haven Extra – Photo and archival materials; Track 8. West Haven: Railroads and Orphans; Track 9. Brookfield and its Railroads, 1840-1941; Track 10. Danbury and its Railroads, 1850-1920; Track 11. Bridgeport; Track 12. Waterbury; Track 13. Terryville; Track 14. Middletown; Track 15. Hartford.

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Other Abandonments in New York State

Line Name	Segment	Railroad	Miles	Prior Company	Date
Chateguay Branch	Plumadore to Lake Clear Jct	D&H	22		1940
Sackets Harbor branch	Sackets Harbor to Watertown	NY Central	11		1949
Cape Vincent Branch	Limerick to Cape Vincent	NY Central	16		1952
Adirondack Division	Malone to Gabriels	NY Central			1961
Ogdensburg Branch	Ogdensburg to River Gate	NY Central	42		1962
St. Lawrence Division	Watertown to Roots	NY Central	8		1963
St. Lawrence Division	Lyons Falls to Lowville	NY Central	13		1964
Adirondack Division	Gabriels to Lake Clear Junction	NY Central	5		1965
Chateguay Branch	Lyon Mt to Dannemora	D&H	16		1966
Carthage Branch	Watertown to Great Bend	NY Central	10		1967
Carthage Branch	Great Bend- Carthage	NY Central	7		1970
Adirondack Division	Snow Junction to Lake Placid	PC	110	New York Central	1972
Clayton Branch	Clayton to Philadelphia	PC	22	New York Central	1973
Harlem Division	Millerton to Chatham	Conrail	35	New York Central	1976
Cape Vincent Branch	Watertown to Limerick	Conrail	8	New York Central	1976
Gouverneur & Oswegatchie Branch	Emeryville to Edwards	Conrail	6	New York Central	1978
Adirondack Division	Malone to Huntingdon	Conrail	56	NY Central	1980, 1983
Harlem Division	Wassaic to Millerton	Conrail	11	New York Central	1980
Chateguay Branch	Dannamora to Otis Jct	D&H	20		1981
Aqueduct Branch	CP9-Aqueduct	Conrail	3.8	New York Central	1983
Camden Secondary	Rome to McConnellsville	Conrail	10.1	New York Central	1983
Dolgeville Branch	Little Falls-Dolgeville	New York Central	9.9	New York Central	1964
Adirondack Division	Herkimer-Poland	Penn Central	16.5	New York Central	1972
Adirondack Division	Prospect Junction to Poland.	New York Central	?	New York Central	1943
Maybrook Branch	Maybrook-Highland (Either side of the Poughkeepsie Bridge)	Conrail	21.2	New Haven	1983
Poughkeepsie Secondary Track	Poughkeepsie-Hopewell Jct	Conrail	11.6	New Haven	1983
Wallkill Valley	Kingston-New Paltz	Conrail	?	New York Central	1977
Wallkill Valley	Walden-New Paltz	Conrail	38.8	New York Central	1983
Complete list of NYC’s Putnam Division abandonments

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Other railroad abandonments interesting to me because they relate to areas I have written about. Courtesy of trainweather.com

Delaware & Hudson Troy Branch: NEW YORK: DELAWARE AND HUDSON RAILWAY COMPANY, INC, dba CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY COMPANY – To abandon a 1.3 mile line of railroad known as the Troy Branch extending from milepost T1.81 at Green Island to milepost T3.11 at Cohoes, in Albany County, NY. Effective on March 19, 2004. (STB Docket No. AB-156 (Sub-No. 24X, decided February 9, served February 18, 2004) Poughkeepsie Hospital Branch: NEW YORK: NEW YORK AND EASTERN RAILWAY, LLC/CSX/ NEW YORK CENTRAL LINES, LLC â€“ For NY&E and CSXT to discontinue service over and for NYC to abandon an approximately 4.7-mile line of railroad between milepost QCO 0.0 and milepost QCO 3.2 and between milepost QCK 29.5 and milepost QCK 31.0, in the City and Town of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess County, NY. A final decision will be issued by October 15, 2004. (STB Docket No. AB-873X, AB-55 (Sub-No. 652X), AB-565 (Sub-No. 17X, decided July 13, served July 19, 2004)
New York Central Putnam Division: NEW YORK; NEW YORK CENTRAL LINES, LLC – To abandon and CSXT to discontinue service over an approximately 1.5-mile line of railroad between milepost QVP 0.0 at Melrose Avenue and milepost QVP 1.5 near the southernmost edge of the tunnel at Southern Boulevard in Bronx County, NY. Effective on April 17, 2003. (STB Docket Nos. AB-565 (Sub-No. 13X) and AB-55 (Sub-No. 628X, decided March 11, served March 18, 2003)
Delaware & Hudson Albany Main: NEW YORKDELAWARE AND HUDSON RAILWAY CO. INC., D/B/A CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY COMPANY – To abandon a 9.14+/- mile portion of railroad known as the Albany Main or the Voorheesville Running Track, between milepost 10.94+/- and milepost 1.8+/- in Albany County, NY. Effective on July 16, 2003. (STB Docket No. AB-156 (Sub-No. 23X, decided June 9, served June 16, 2003)
Long Island Garden City branch: GARDEN CITY, NEW YORK – LONG ISLAND RAILROAD CO. – To discontinue service over a line of railroad between milepost 18.8 in Garden City and milepost 21.0 in Garden City, Nassau County, NY, a distance of 2.2 miles. A final decision will be issued by September 6, 2002. (STB Docket No. AB-837X, decided June 5, served June 10, 2002)
South Shore Branch: INDIANA – CHICAGO SOUTHSHORE & SOUTH BEND RAILROAD – To abandon a line from a connection at the east end of CSS’s Lincoln Yard near Second Street to the end of the line at the facility of the Pioneer Lumber Company, a distance of less than 1/2 mile in Laporte County, Indiana. This line may have been a part of another carrier’s main line years ago. Final decision by November 16, 2001. (STB Docket No. AB-344, Sub No. 1X, decided August 14, served August 20, 2001)
New York City Cross Harbor Railroad: NEW YORK – NEW YORK CROSS HARBOR RAILROAD, INC – Asked to authorize the abandonment by New York Cross Harbor Railroad, Inc. (NYCH), of the Bush Terminal Yard (a/k/a “First Avenue Yard”) and the Harborside Industrial Center (a/k/a “Brooklyn Army Terminal”) (jointly the Tracks and Facilities), in New York, Kings County, NY. (STB Docket No. AB-596, decided December 14, served December 21, 2001)
Boston & Maine Watertown Branch: MASSACHUSETTS – BOSTON & MAINE – To abandon the Bemis Branch from m.p. 8.83 to m.p. 10.94, 2.11 miles, in Waltham and Watertown, MA. Written comments due by June 12. (STB Docket No. AB-32, Sub No. 89, decided May 15, served May 18, 2000)

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Tracking Abandoned Railroad Mileage

See an extensive database of railroad mileage

Source for mileage and owner road marks:
*****************************************************
* National Transportation Atlas Databases, 1999 *
* National Rail Network 1:100,000 *
* Bureau of Transportation Statistics (comp.) *
* U.S. Department of Transportatation *
* Washington, DC *
*****************************************************

The data covers the 48 contiguous states plus Hawaii.
The mileage was derived by computing the length of each line and summing by owner mark and status. This process may have resulted in significant cumulative errors. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK.

Copyright 1999 James R. Irwin
Permission is granted to copy and distribute this listing provided that this notice, the citations, and the copyright are included.

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Removing the Maybrook Line tracks in 1983

Photo by the late Austin McEntee

Nine years after the big bridge in Poughkeepsie burned the tracks of the Maybrook Line were removed. This photo shows the last train on the line picking up the sections of rail as they were torn up. The rails were in section as much as a quarter mile long. They were winched onto a set of special train cars with racks to fit the rails. This was the very last train to pass over the Maybrook Line. When it was gone there were no more rails.

A group of dedicated rail fans were braving the winter cold to witness the sad events. After 90 years of service the Maybrook Line will fade into the history books. There will be no more trains but Dutchess County purchased the abandoned roadbed with the intention of building a north south highway but those plans did not work out. Instead the County will use the property as a utility corridor and bury water lines under the old ballast. The plan also includes paving it to form a hiking and bicycling “rail trail” for public use. The scene in this photo will be the Hopewell Junction end of the rail trail with a parking area. The depot in the distance is being restored to become a museum and educational facility for the town. There may not be any more trains on the Maybrook Line but a bit of Hopewell Junctions railroad history will be preserved in the old depot.

Click here to see more on the Central New England Railroad in Hopewell Junction

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Canal Line today through New Haven

Connecticut’s Farmington Canal was converted to a railroad by 1848. The road was named the New Haven & Northampton, but has always been called the Canal Line. The road’s first terminal in New Haven was between Temple Street and Hillhouse Avenue.

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The Richfield Springs branch of the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railway extended through Bridgewater, where it connected with the Unadilla Valley Railroad, a shortline that served Edmeston and New Berlin to Richfield Springs on Canadarago Lake, once a rather fashionable resort. Here, from 1905 until 1940, the DL&W had a passenger and freight connection with the Southern New York Railway, an interurban to Oneonta. Milk and light freight were the chief sources of revenue on this branch. Delaware Otsego subsidiary Central New York Railroad acquired this branch from Richfield Jct. to Richfield Springs, 22 miles, in 1973. Enginehouse was at Richfield Springs. Became part of NYS&W northern division after NYS&W bought the DL&W Syracuse & Utica branches from Conrail in 1982. Traffic on line gradually dropped off. Line east from Bridgewater embargoed in 1990. Abandoned and track removed in 1995, westerly 2-3 miles left in place for stone trains. In 2009: This old railroad is now owned by the Utica, Chenango and Susquehanna Valley LLC in Richfield Springs. They also own the 1930 Newark Milk and Cream Company creamery in South Columbia.

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Abandonments of New York Central “Hojack” Lines

Contributed by Richard Palmer

List is based on mileage in in employee timetables

Lewiston Branch

Suspension Bridge 0 – Abandoned 1950
Lewiston 5.38*
Lewiston-Lewiston Jct. 3.60- Abandoned 1895
*(former connection with Lewiston & Youngstown Frontier RR)

Ontario Secondary

MILEPOSTS FROM BUFFALO
Buffalo NYC Terminal 0
Niagara Falls 25.07
Suspension Bridge 26.90
Model City 34.29
Ransomville 39.95
Elberta 42.54
Wilson 42.65
Slash Road 47.05
Beebe Road 49.04
Burt 51.59
Appleton 54.80
West Somerset 57.13
Barker 59.74
Millers 64.05
Lydonville 68.08
Ashwood 72.04
Waterport 75.17
Carlton 78.10
Brice 80.72
West Kendall 83.82
Kendall 85.74
Morton 88.04
Hamlin 92.16
Walker 95.14
Collamer 97.47
Hilton 98.57
Greece 101.83
Charlotte 108.48
Barnard 111.36
Otis 114.89
Rochester 117.85

MILEPOSTS FROM ROCHESTER TERM.
Windsor Beach 10.59
Sea Breeze 13.36
Forest Lawn 15.49
Webster 19.99
Union Hill 22.86
Fruitland 24.68
Ontario 27.47
Williamson 32.30
East Williamson 34.49
Sodus 38.51
Wallington 41.50
Alton 43.43
North Rose 48.54
Wolcott 53.16
Red Creek 58.92
Sterling 63.63
Crocketts 66.84
Hannibal 69.38
Metcalf 72.06
Furniss 74.95
Oswego 79.47

Oswego to Hannibal abandoned 1978, now hiking trail.

Hannibal to Red Creek (Conrail) 1980 (OMID had been designated operator).

Hannibal to Webster sold to Ontario Midland, Oct. 15, 1979.

Webster to Windsor Beach abandoned 1978 Charlotte to Barker abandoned 1978 Barker to Suspension Bridge 1979

(Portion from Suspension Bridge at Niagara Falls to â€œRiverviewâ€ north of Niagara

University campus dismantled in the late 1960s by Penn-Central.
Had not been used since construction of Niagara Power Project)

Rochester to Windsor Beach abandoned 1978

Through passenger service, Oswego to Rochester and Suspension Bridge, discontinued Feb. 2, 1935

Passenger service discontinued, Oswego to Pulaski, Sept. 25, 1947

Cape Vincent Branch

C. Vincent – now marina 0
Rosiere 4.38
Three Mile Bay 7.72
Chaumont 11.16
Limerick 16.04
Dexter Junction 17.9
Brownville 19.86
Main St., Watertown 23.31 C. V.
C. V. Wye 22.89
Coffeen St. 24.06
Watertown Station 24.68

Limerick to Cape Vincent Abandoned 1952

Watertown to Limerick Abandoned 1976

Passenger service discontinued March 14, 1936

Sackets Harbor Branch

Sackets Harbor 0
Chamberlainâ€™s 2.00
Campâ€™s Mills 3.39
Alversonâ€™s 5.62
Greenâ€™s Corners 6.13
East Hounsfield 7.51
Watertown Junction 11.04

Abandoned 1949.

Passenger service discontinued Sept. 30, 1934.

Utica Branch

Lyons Falls 0
Glenfield 6.65
Martinsburg 10.18
Lowville 13.94

Abandoned 1964

Passenger service, Utica to Massena, discontinued May 21, 1961 (RDC)

Watertown Passenger Train Cutoff

Watertown 0
Pamelia 5.39
Calcium 8.18
Roots 8.68

Abandoned 1963

Carthage Branch

Mileposts from Sackets Harbor

Watertown 12.00
Black River 18.45
Felts Mills 20.66
Great Bend 22.91
Carthage 29.68

Watertown – Great Bend abandoned 1967

Great Bend- Carthage abandoned 1970

Trackage in Watertown, Abandoned 1970

Passenger service, Utica to Watertown, this route, abandoned Nov. 3, 1958 (RDC)

Carthage & Adirondack Branch

Newton Falls – Clifton Mines 10.04 1955

Passenger service, Carthage to Newton Falls, discontinued June 7, 1942

Clayton Branch

Clayton 0
LaFargeville 8.77
Orleans Corners 5.55
Stroughâ€™s 12.17
Rivergate 15.88
Shurtleff 17.75
Philadelphia 21.7

Abandoned 1973 Passenger service discontinued April 29, 1951

Ogdensburg Branch

Ogdensburg 0
Shipyard 0.84
Terrace Park 9.52
Morristown 10.67
Brier Hill 16.8
Hammond 21.43
Oakvale 25.49
Redwood 33.19
Theresa 39.32
Rivergate 41.82

Passenger service discontinued Oct. 28, 1956

Abandoned 1962

Ogdensburg Branch (2)

Dekalb Junction 0
Rensselaer Falls 6.73
Heuvelton 11.77
Ogdensburg 18.91

Abandoned 1979

Passenger service discontinued Nov. 9, 1958, Utica to Ogdensburg

Canadian Pacific car and passenger transfer – Ogdensburg to Prescott, Ont., abandoned 1971

Gouverneur & Oswegatchie Branch

Gouverneur Jct. 0
Hailesboro 3.26
York 5.94
Emeryville 7.72
Hyatt 10.37
Talcville 11.32
Edwards 13.82

Abandoned Emeryville – Edwards Jan. 1, 1978

Passenger service discontinued June 26, 1932

Syracuse Northern

Pulaski-Lacona 7.09 miles

Abandoned 1878

Miscellaneous Notes

Antwerp to Jefferson Iron Mine 2 miles Abandoned pre-1900

The Mohawk, Adirondack & Northern operates from Carthage to Lowville (17.2 miles); Carthage to Newton Falls, 45.7 miles (out of service, 1996, up for abandonment); Utica to Lyons Falls, 45 miles; also trackage and rights at Utica and Rome. All remaining portions of the St. Lawrence Division formerly operated by Conrail were transferred to CSX in 1999.

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End of the track: West Shore south of Amsterdam, New York Courtesy of Gino’s Railpage

When was the West Shore abandoned?

Weehawken to Rotterdam Junction (RJ)

Rotterdam Junction (RJ) to South Amsterdam

South Amsterdam to Fort Plain

Fort Plain to Ilion/Herkimer

Herkimer to Harbor

Harbor to South Utica

South Utica to Vernon

Vernon to Canastota

Canastota to Kirkville Junction

Kirkville Junction to Buffalo

Places to find New/Recent Abandonment Proposals on the Internet

WHY and How To Fix The “MAYBROOK LINE”?

Container port/intermodal facility/rail bridge

Now you are going to ask. What does the New York City Metropolitan Transportation Authority have to do with the “BEACON LINE”? IT OWNS IT! Must realize that NYCMTA is a “regional” organization. With all that went on with Penn-Central and CONRAIL somebody had to own it!

So what would a “revised” rail line look like?

From Beacon trains would travel the Beacon Line over the Housatonic Railroad to Derby-Shelton, Connecticut. Trains would go to Cedar Hill Yard. Some traffic may go to Long Island. With traffic revitalized, other trains will even go to Waterbury!

A great, great WebSite about HUDSON VALLEY RAILROADS

Important Link: “What Railroads Connected At Maybrook?“

Tyler City Station: WebSite about abandoned rail in Western Connecticut

Other Abandonments in New York State

Other railroad abandonments interesting to me because they relate to areas I have written about. Courtesy of trainweather.com

Tracking Abandoned Railroad Mileage

Removing the Maybrook Line tracks in 1983

Canal Line today through New Haven

Abandonments of New York Central “Hojack” Lines

Lewiston Branch

Ontario Secondary

Cape Vincent Branch

Sackets Harbor Branch

Watertown Passenger Train Cutoff

Carthage Branch

Carthage & Adirondack Branch

Clayton Branch

Ogdensburg Branch

Ogdensburg Branch (2)

Gouverneur & Oswegatchie Branch

Syracuse Northern

>>>DL&W Railroad, Erie Lackawanna and Lackawanna Cutoff

End of the track: West Shore south of Amsterdam, New York
Courtesy of Gino’s Railpage