North Pennsylvania Railroad: Difference between revisions
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==History== |
==History== |
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{{North Pennsylvania Railroad}} |
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The company incorporated on April 8, 1852, as the '''Philadelphia, Easton and Water Gap'''. Construction began on June 16, 1853; the company changed its name to the North Pennsylvania Railroad on October 3 that year. The railway opened between Front and [[Willow Street, Philadelphia|Willow Street]]s, Philadelphia and [[Lower Gwynedd Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania|Gwynedd]] on July 2, 1855, a distance of {{convert|18+1/2|mi}}.<ref>{{Harvnb|Poor|1860|p=467}}</ref> |
The company incorporated on April 8, 1852, as the '''Philadelphia, Easton and Water Gap'''. Construction began on June 16, 1853; the company changed its name to the North Pennsylvania Railroad on October 3 that year. The railway opened between Front and [[Willow Street, Philadelphia|Willow Street]]s, Philadelphia and [[Lower Gwynedd Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania|Gwynedd]] on July 2, 1855, a distance of {{convert|18+1/2|mi}}.<ref>{{Harvnb|Poor|1860|p=467}}</ref> |
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Revision as of 12:30, 23 August 2016
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (September 2014) |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Dates of operation | 1852–1976 |
| Successor | |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) |
The North Pennsylvania Railroad was a railroad company which served Philadelphia, Montgomery County, Bucks County and Northampton County, Pennsylvania. It was formed in 1852 and began operation in 1855. The Philadelphia and Reading Railway, predecessor to the Reading Company, leased the North Pennsylvania in 1879. Its tracks were transferred to Conrail and the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) in 1976.
History
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The company incorporated on April 8, 1852, as the Philadelphia, Easton and Water Gap. Construction began on June 16, 1853; the company changed its name to the North Pennsylvania Railroad on October 3 that year. The railway opened between Front and Willow Streets, Philadelphia and Gwynedd on July 2, 1855, a distance of 18+1⁄2 miles (29.8 km).[1]
In 1856, the company suffered its first accident in The Great Train Wreck of 1856. The following year, a branch was built from Lansdale to Doylestown and during the 1860s another extension was built to Sellersville, running parallel to Bethlehem Pike. This railroad was eventually completed to Bethlehem, and later became the Reading Company's Bethlehem Branch, a two-track main line, with one portion near Telford being three-tracked. A single-track tunnel is in Perkasie.
The company built, with the Delaware and Bound Brook Railroad, a line from Jenkintown to Bound Brook, New Jersey, creating a new line between Philadelphia and New York. This opened on May 1, 1876, and later became the New York Branch of the Reading Company.[2]
The Reading Company leased North Pennsylvania Railroad on May 14, 1879, which later led to the eventual demise of NPR due to the bankruptcy of the Reading Company and subsequent merger into Conrail.
As of 2011, the line is owned by SEPTA, which only operates its electric commuter trains as far north as Lansdale, where the Lansdale/Doylestown Line continues on a branch line to Doylestown. Freight trains are operated on the portion from Lansdale to Quakertown by Pennsylvania Northeastern Railroad and East Penn Railroad.
The former Jersey City main line of the Reading branches just north of the Jenkintown/Wyncote station, although SEPTA only operates the West Trenton Line as far as Ewing, New Jersey.
A branch extends from Glenside to New Hope, although SEPTA only operates the Warminster Line as far as Warminster. The 17 miles (27 km) portion from Warminster north to New Hope is owned and operated by the New Hope & Ivyland Railroad.
North of Quakertown, the double-track line is out of service. Until 2008, most of the rail infrastructure was intact except for a cut made near DeSales University to extend Preston Lane. In addition, the northernmost section between Bethlehem and Hellertown including Saucon Yard, which is owned by freight operator Norfolk Southern Railway, was removed.
None of the former stations remain north of Quakertown, and all of the block signals north of Lansdale have been destroyed by vandals, although many are still in place.
See also
Notes
- ^ Poor 1860, p. 467
- ^ Warner 1957, pp. 53–54
References
- Holton, James L. (1989). The Reading Railroad: History of a Coal Age Empire : The Nineteenth Century. Vol. 1. Laury's Station, PA: Garrigues House. ISBN 0-9620844-1-7.
{{cite book}}: Invalid|ref=harv(help) - Poor, Henry Varnum (1860). History of Railroads and Canals in the United States. New York: J.H. Schultz & Co.
{{cite book}}: Invalid|ref=harv(help) - Warner, Paul T. (May 1957). "Eight-Wheelers Between New York and Philadelphia 1870-1900". The Railway and Locomotive Historical Society Bulletin (96): 44–62.
{{cite journal}}: Invalid|ref=harv(help)
External links
- Bids for track removal as proposed by SEPTA, 2008
- Finding aid for North Pennsylvania Railroad Company records at Hagley Museum and Library