A CNE train at the new Beacon station.
Beacon Historical Society collection
The new road bridge is in use and the old road bridge is gone. The fence in the center shows where the old bridge was. The new steel bridge will also be replaced in later years. The ferry lunch seems to be back in business just to the right of the ferry building.
There is a CNE train backed up to the new station. You can see a wisp of steam from the locomotive just to the right of the road bridge. To the right, behind the tree, between the platforms there is also a NYC train in the station.
The white building at left that used to be the Hammond building now has a new sign. It is now The National Oven Company, manufacturers of baker’s ovens. I wonder what happened to all the paint and insecticide that used to be in that building. Even though the ferry has moved away from the point, that road still seems to be in use at the upper left.
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New NYC main line alignment.
Beacon Historical Society collection
By early 1915 the new alignment for the New York Central main line was well underway. In this photo you can see the old line at left and the construction on the new at right. In the background you can see the new higher road bridge and the old road bridge still in use. If you look carefully you can see a horse on the old road bridge at the far left.
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Beacon Newburgh ferry
Beacon Historical Society collection
Judging by the wake, the ferry boat at left has just left Beacon headed for Newburgh.
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Aerial photo of the Fishkill Landing yard
Beacon Historical Society collection
NYC freight cars are in the yard area and construction materials are stacked along the lower part of the photo.
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Road bridge to Beacon.
Beacon Historical Society collection
Teams of horses coming off the ferry had to face a tough climb up the hill to Beacon. Animal rights groups were active in trying to get the owners to lighten the loads instead of beating the horses. In the lower right corner you can see the stub of the trolley tracks that used to go out to the old ferry landing on the point.
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The frame of the new station is up.
Beacon Historical Society collection
The new combined NYC and CNE station took shape in the summer of 1915 even before the tracks were re-aligned. I would bet that this yard was a muddy mess during any summer rain storms.
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The new station takes shape in 1915.
Beacon Historical Society collection
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The new road bridge is in use by August 1915.
Beacon Historical Society collection
The trolley tracks have been moved to the new road bridge.
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New track alignment construction.
Beacon Historical Society collection
Scaffolding around the new station shows progress on the building. The new track alignment construction also seems to be going well. The old section of Fishkill Landing is still in use for passenger and freight service.
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Real horse power does much of the work.
Beacon Historical Society collection
The platforms in front of the station are beginning to take shape.
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Steam power on the new tracks.
Beacon Historical Society collection
The new tracks are in good enough condition to start using steam engines for part of the work.
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A view from the hill.
Beacon Historical Society collection
A view from the hill shows a crew working on the roof of the new station. At far left there is activity in the old NY&NE yard now occupied by the CNE. There was no more car ferry service but there was a dock for river boats and barges.
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At least three tracks are in place.
Beacon Historical Society collection
Loads of ballast are being brought in by train for the three new tracks.
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Four tracks in place.
Beacon Historical Society collection
There are now four tracks in place and the platforms are growing. The station building looks to be almost completed.
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The platform gets a canopy.
Beacon Historical Society collection
Work is underway to build the canopy over the platform.
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The second platform is well underway.
Beacon Historical Society collection
With an October chill in the air, the second platform takes shape. In the background you can see the new road bridge but the old road bridge is now gone.
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The platforms look to be completed.
Beacon Historical Society collection
In this view from the hill the platforms and canopies look to be completed but the CNE tracks to the station are not yet in place.
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Work is progressing on the CNE tracks.
Beacon Historical Society collection
On a sunny day in November 1915 the CNE tracks to the station are being built. At lower left you can see the extension of the CNE tracks from the old yard area.
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The CNE platform is being built.
Beacon Historical Society collection
At lower left work is progressing on the CNE platform. There are people standing on the new NYC platform. Perhaps it is already is use.
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The CNE tracks and platform are completed.
Beacon Historical Society collection
The new station complex looks to be completed but there are no people in the picture.
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Map of Fishkill Landing after the reconstruction.
Sanborn map Company
The new road bridge crosses the NYC main line in the center. Just above the road bridge is the station area with the CNE tracks ending at the building. To the left of the station is the double ferry dock. The old ferry dock on the point is still in place but not used. In the lower left corner is the former NY&NE dock area used for river boat and barge freight.
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The new station area seems to be completed.
Beacon Historical Society collection
Just above the station roof and a bit to the right, you can see the outline of Dennings Point. The town of Dutchess Junction is just past Dennings Point. Farther south on the horizon you can see the gap in the mountains leading to Breakneck Ridge, Peekskill and New York City.
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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!
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Go To World’s Greatest WebSite
>>> New York Subways
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About Our Great WebSite
>>>>>>About Troop Trains
>>>Metro North Railroad
>>>A Collection of Short Stories about Railroads – Book One
>>>>>>Buffalo Creek Railroad
>>>A Collection of Short Stories about Railroads – Book Two
>>>>>>Troy & Greenbush Railroad
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>>>Ontario & Western Railroad
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>>>Union Pacific Railroad-established by Abraham Lincoln to span the continent
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>>>New York State Railroads, and NY Central Railroad
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>>>Boston & Maine Railroad
>>>The Four Railroads of Utica
>>>>>>Gulf Curve, April 1940 New York Central Accident
>>>>>>New York Mills Branch On The West Shore
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>>>My last ride on the JFK Express subway in April 1990
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>>>Van Sweringen Brothers, Nickel Plate and Other Ohio Railroads
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>>>Tahawus: Railroad to a Mine
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>>>Joint Winter Olympics for Montreal and Lake Placid
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>>>>>>Putnam Division Abandonments
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>>>Benton Harbor – Once A Rail Center
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Central New England Railway
>>>>>>The Central New England In Connecticut
>>>>>>New York and New England Railroad
>>>>>>1937 Fan Trip
>>>Central New England Railway In New York State
>>>The Railroads Of Pine Plains
>>>CNE in Hopewell Junction
>>>>>>Hopewell Junction Restoration
>>>The Maybrook Line Across Dutchess County
>>>The Great Bridge At Poughkeepsie
>>>Poughkeepsie Bridge After The Fire
>>>The Rhinebeck & Connecticut Railroad
>>>Central New England Railway Connecticut Connection
>>>Maybrook Yard
>>>>>>Maybrook Yard 1940’s (Maybrook Journal)
>>>Newburgh, Dutchess and Connecticut Railroad (ND&C)
>>>>>>CNE/NDC Dutchess Junction and Matteawan
>>>>>>CNE/NDC Glenham to Hopewell Junction
>>>>>>CNE/NDC Hopewell Junction to Millbrook
>>>>>>CNE/NDC Bangall and Pine Plains
>>>>>>CNE/ND&C between Pine Plains and Millerton
>>>Fishkill Landing
>>>>>>The First Phase Of The NYC Rebuilding At Fishkill Landing
>>>>>>The Second Phase Of The NYC Rebuilding At Fishkill Landing
>>>>>>The Final Phase Of The NYC Rebuilding At Fishkill Landing
>>>Poughkeepsie & Eastern in the Poughkeepsie Area
>>>Poughkeepsie & Eastern North from Poughkeepsie
>>>One of the railroads that made up the CNE Railway was the Poughkeepsie & Connecticut
Environment
>>>WEATHERTOPIA
Supply Chain Management
>>>Supply Chain Synchronization
Vacation French Riviera
>>>Castillon
>>>Menton
New Haven Railroad
>>>George Alpert, Last New Haven President
>>>Essex Steam Train
>>>Newport and Rhode Island Railroads
>>>Railroads To Cape Cod
>>>Cedar Hill Railroad Yard In New Haven
>>>Housatonic Railroad
>>>Manufacturers Street Railway in New Haven
>>>Train Stations Of Connecticut
>>>Boston and New England Railroads
>>>New Haven RR Signal Stations
>>>Connecticut Railfan
>>>Connecticut Freight Railroads
>>>Shoreline Bridges Of The New Haven Railroad
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>>>The Shepaug Valley Railroad
Penney Vanderbilt and KC Jones: All About Railroads 
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