Forgotten Lands, Places and Transit

In 1828, state-of-the-art transportation technology would come to the Pennsylvania mountains in the form of the Mauch Chunk and Summit Railroad . It was built to transport coal from the top of the mountains to the canal below. It was not the first railroad in the United States, but it existed at a time when many railways were still experimental in nature, and the industry was taking baby steps into becoming the modern form of transportation of the day, and displacing the canal, which was still king. The story actually begins in 1792, when Anthracite coal was first discovered in the area. In attempting to bring the coal to Philadelphia markets, 100 miles away, Josiah White and Erskine Hazard purchased land at Mauch Chunk. "They built first a road, then a gravity railroad, to bring the coal down from Summit Hill to their new village of Mauch Chunk. Here shallow boats were loaded with 8 to 10 tons of coal. The boats went down the Lehigh through a series of low dams with gates that c...

The Cincinnati and Muskingum Valley Railroad connected Trinway, OH with Morrow, OH. At Trinway, it seamlessly connected to Cleveland Akron & Columbus Railroad , of whom both lines were part of the Pennsylvania Railroad System . Cincinnati and Muskingum Valley Railroad Station in Circleville. Incorporated in 1851, the road began construction from Morrow and reached Zanesville five years later, reaching its full extent in 1870. After an 1863 foreclosure, it was reorganized as the Cincinnati & Zanesville Railroad, only for the Pennsylvania to assume control of the line seven years later, when it was extended to Trinway. It formally merged with the aforementioned CA&C Railroad in 1911. Right of way at the red arrow. Image: Map showing the route and connections of the Bellaire, Zanesville and Cincinnati Railway . Library of Congress The line continued to operate under Pennsylvania's control in its entirety until the 1950's, when passenger service was abolished. But by th...

The Baltimore Chesapeake & Atlantic Railway was a combined railway and steamship operator in the Delmarva region, operating a route from Balitmore, MD to Ocean City, MD, using ferries from Baltimore to Claiborne, MD, and using a railway from Claiborne to Ocean City, MD. ( Right of way ) Commercial, Anon. - Standard & Poor 1906, digitized by Library of Congress The line was the successor to the Baltimore & Eastern Shore Railroad , who in 1889 began constructing the route between Claiborne (on the Chesapeake Bay) and Salisbury, MD, 30 miles south. In 1890, they purchased the Wicomico & Pocomoke Railroad to reach Ocean City. Image via Star Democrat By 1902, the Pennsylvania Railroad became the majority owner of the company, but it nonetheless operated separately from the rest of the PRR system.  During the 1920's, the railroad grew unprofitable, and faced with insurmountable debts, attempted to reorganize to no avail. In 1928, the name was reverted to the Baltimore...

It’s Groundhog Day ! And of course, Punxsutawney, PA has some forgotten railroad history. The North Western Railroad of Pennsylvania was envisioned as a connection between Pittsburgh and Altoona, PA, first proposed in the 1880’s. The line never made it to either of its proposed endpoints, but was constructed between Fordham in the west, and McGees Mills in the east, and thus passing through Punxsutawney, for about 21 miles in length. The line was acquired by the Pennsylvania Railroad , becoming one of the over 2,000 companies that were part of its system. Passenger service along the line ended in 1940, but freight continued up until the 1980’s along the line. Punxsutawney, PA Station . Railroad Station Database After its closure, most of the line was sold to private parties, but a 4 mile stretch was saved as the Mahoning Shadow Trail .

Scarchitecture , is a combination of the word scar and architecture, which refers to the remnants of former roads and railways hidden in today's cities, most easily identified in satellite imagery, thanks to the magic of Google Maps . I've already discussed examples in both Chicago and its suburbs . For today's blog, we're going all across the US in search of other examples of scarchitecture left behind by the days of railroading in major cities. Keep in mind that there are usually many examples of scarchitecture in cities both large and small, and I'm only going to show one for each city, so go and search for others yourself, and let me know in the comments of any interesting examples you find! 1) New York City - Lansing Ave & Edgewood Ave in Queens (40.66426, -73.7475) There are dozens of examples of scarchitecture in the Big Apple, and this one is of the most visually striking, given the grid system that exists to the southwest of here. Lansing Av...

Much like the town of  Anthony, KS , North Judson, IN is another town that once was a junction between multiple railroads, today all of which are long gone, save for one huge difference, which is the subject of today's blog. Source: 1959 USGS North Judson Map At this intersection today, the railroad history of North Judson is preserved with the Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum , which does a great job of taking the complicated rail network of yesteryear, and paying homage to the bygone days of each line. Today's blog will show images from what the lines look like today, in and around North Judson, as well as shots from my visit to the museum. North Judson is one of the two places in northwest Indiana we've discussed where more than three railroads intersected, with the other being the huge railroad intersection in Griffith, IN . North Judson, IN Today: North Judson on our  Abandoned Railroad Rights-of-Way Map The ties from the NYC Kankakee Belt Route are...