Mapleton – Presque Isle railway line
| Mapleton ME - Presque Isle ME | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Route length: | 12.2 km | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gauge : | 1435 mm ( standard gauge ) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Dual track : | - | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Society: | MNR | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The railway Mapleton-Presque Isle is a railway line in Maine ( United States ). It is around 12 kilometers long and forms a branch of the Squa Pan – Stockholm railway line . The standard gauge line is operated by the Maine Northern Railway exclusively in freight traffic.
history
After the main lines of the Bangor and Aroostook Railroad (BAR) were completed in 1897, the area between these two lines running in north-south direction was still undeveloped. In order to connect this area to the railway network and at the same time to create a cross connection between the lines, which should enable faster freight traffic from Bangor to the northeast, the BAR planned the Washburn Extension , which also included a branch to Presque Isle.
On June 20, 1910, this branch was opened together with the subsequent route in Mapleton. Passenger traffic played only a subordinate role on the route and was discontinued around 1938, but resumed during the Second World War and only finally stopped in 1951. Freight traffic operated from 2003 on the Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway . On July 1, 2011, it was followed by the Maine Northern Railway. After the closure of the BAR main line between Houlton and Presque Isle, the line represents the only rail connection in the direction of Presque Isle and Caribou.
Route description
In Mapleton, the line branches off the Squa Pan – Stockholm railway line via a track triangle and leads eastwards through rolling hills through hilly countryside. It runs parallel to State Road 163 to the southern outskirts of Presque Isle, where the Presque Isle Stream is first crossed and the route then joins the BAR main line via a track triangle.
passenger traffic
The Mapleton – Presque Isle railway was primarily used for freight traffic. Only three pairs of trains running as mixed trains were available for passenger transport, and from around 1912 only two on working days . One of the train pairs ran through Mapleton to Ashland until 1912 .
The travel time between Mapleton and Presque Isle was 20 minutes according to the timetable of September 28, 1913 as well as the timetable of January 8, 1934.
After passenger traffic initially ended in 1938, it was resumed in the Second World War, but only with one pair of trains on weekdays that ran until 1951.
Sources and further reading
Individual evidence
- ^ Mike Walker: SPV's comprehensive Railroad Atlas of North America. New England & Maritime Canada. Steam Powered Publishing, Faversham 1999, ISBN 1-874745-12-9 .
- ↑ Article on progressiverailroading.com
- ↑ Official Guide of the Railways and Steam Navigation Lines of the United States, Porto Rico, Canada, Mexico and Cuba. Issued November 1913. Bangor & Aroostook RR. Page 149.
- ↑ Official Guide of the Railways and Steam Navigation Lines of the United States, Porto Rico, Canada, Mexico and Cuba. Edition February 1934. Bangor & Aroostook RR, Table 10. Page 64.
- ^ BAR timetables from 1911 to 1953.
literature
- Jerry Angier, Herb Cleaves: Bangor & Aroostook . Flying Yankee Enterprises, Littleton MA 1986, ISBN 0-96155-743-5 .
- George H. Drury: The Historical Guide to North American Railroads. 2nd edition. Kalmbach Publishing Co., Waukesha WI 2000, ISBN 0-89024-356-5 .
- Robert M. Lindsell: The Rail Lines of Northern New England. Branch Line Press, Pepperell MA 2000, ISBN 0-942147-06-5 .