Lehigh and Hudson River Railway
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Lehigh and Hudson River Railway | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Reporting marks | LHR |
| Locale | Easton, PA to Maybrook, NY |
| Dates of operation | 1862–1976 |
| Successor line | Conrail, NYS&W, Norfolk Southern |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm) (standard gauge) |
| Headquarters | Warwick, NY |
The Lehigh and Hudson River Railway (L&HR) was the smallest of the six railroads that were merged into Conrail in 1976. It was a bridge line running northeast-southwest across northwestern New Jersey, connecting the line to the Poughkeepsie Bridge at Maybrook, New York with Easton, Pennsylvania, where it interchanged with various other companies. It status was diminished as the Interstate Highway system was developed, and as its connecting railroads entered bankruptcy. The final straw came with the burning of the decking of the Poughkeepsie Bridge in 1974.
[edit] History
The Warwick Valley Railroad was organized March 8, 1860 as a branch of the New York and Erie Rail Road, branching from it at Greycourt southwest to Warwick, New York. It opened in 1862 and was operated by the Erie.
The Pequest and Wallkill Railroad was chartered by 1870 to build an extension in New Jersey, running from Belvidere on the Delaware River and Belvidere Delaware Railroad northeast to the New York state line. The Lehigh and Hudson River Railroad was chartered later as a competitor, planning to build from Belvidere to McAfee, with the Wawayanda Railroad running the rest of the way to the state line. In April or May 1881 the three companies merged to form a new Lehigh and Hudson River Railroad, and on April 1, 1882 the Warwick Valley Railroad joined, forming the Lehigh and Hudson River Railway.
In the meantime, the Sussex Railroad had built a branch from Hamburg to South Vernon (McAfee); the L&HR bought this around 1881. The Warwick Valley Railroad had built an extension southwest to McAfee in March 1880, and the full line opened August 14, 1882, connecting Belvidere, New Jersey to Greycourt, New York.
The Orange County Railroad was chartered November 28, 1888 and opened in 1889, extending the line northeast from Greycourt to Maybrook. At Maybrook the line junctioned with the Central New England Railway, continuing east via the Poughkeepsie Bridge over the Hudson River to New England. Trackage rights were obtained over a short piece of the New York, Ontario and Western Railway from the junction at Burnside west to the major junction at Campbell Hall.
The South Easton and Phillipsburg Railroad was organized July 25, 1889 to build a bridge over the Delaware River between Easton, Pennsylvania and Phillipsburg, New Jersey. Earlier that year the L&HR obtained trackage rights over the Pennsylvania Railroad's Belvidere Delaware Railroad between Phillipsburg and Belvidere, and once the bridge was completed, the L&HR had a continuous line from Maybrook to Easton. At Easton interchange could be made with the Central Railroad of New Jersey and Lehigh Valley Railroad.
The L&HR eventually obtained trackage rights over the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad's Sussex Railroad from the junction at Andover south to Port Morris, where it interchanged with the main line of the DL&W.
The Mine Hill Railroad was the only branch built. It ran south from a junction at Franklin, New Jersey to the mines of the New Jersey Zinc Company at Sterling Hill. On May 23, 1907 the L&HR absorbed the Orange County Railroad, and on April 2, 1912 the South Easton and Phillipsburg and Mine Hill Railroads were merged into it.
For some time the L&HR hosted through passenger trains on the Poughkeepsie Bridge Route, especially prior to the completion of the Hell Gate Bridge in New York City.
The L&HR filed for Chapter 77 bankruptcy on April 19, 1972, partly due to Penn Central's decision to prefer other routes over the Poughkeepsie Bridge. [1]
In 1976 the L&HR was merged into Conrail; since then it has been largely abandoned. Portions in New York and northern New Jersey continue to be used by Norfolk Southern and the New York, Susquehanna & Western.
[edit] External links
- A Lehigh and Hudson River Railway Scrapbook
- Black Diamonds to Tidewater - Lehigh & Hudson River Railway
