The Delaware and Hudson Railway (D&H) is a railroad that operates in the
Northeastern United States
The Northeastern United States, also referred to as the Northeast, the East Coast, or the American Northeast, is a geographic region of the United States. It is located on the Atlantic coast of North America, with Canada to its north, the Southe ...
. In 1991, after more than 150 years as an independent railroad, the D&H was purchased by the
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...
(CP). CP operates D&H under its
subsidiary
A subsidiary, subsidiary company or daughter company is a company owned or controlled by another company, which is called the parent company or holding company. Two or more subsidiaries that either belong to the same parent company or having a s ...
Soo Line Corporation which also operates
Soo Line Railroad
The Soo Line Railroad is the primary United States railroad subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific Railway , one of seven U.S. Class I railroads, controlled through the Soo Line Corporation. Although it is named for the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sa ...
.
D&H's name originates from the 1823 New York state corporation charter listing "The President, Managers and Company of the Delaware & Hudson Canal Co." authorizing an establishment of "water communication" between the
Delaware River
The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock (village), New York, Hancock, New York, the river flows for along the borders of N ...
and the
Hudson River
The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...
.
Nicknamed "The Bridge Line to New England and Canada," D&H connected New York with
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
,
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
and New England. D&H has also been known as "North America's oldest continually operated transportation company."
On September 19, 2015, the
Norfolk Southern Railway
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (31 ...
completed acquisition of the D&H South Line from CP. The D&H South Line is 282 miles (454 kilometers) long and connects
Schenectady, New York
Schenectady () is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-largest city by population. The city is in eastern New Y ...
, to
Sunbury, Pennsylvania
Sunbury is a city and county seat of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located in Central Pennsylvania's Susquehanna Valley on the east bank of the Susquehanna River, just downstream of the confluence of its main and west ...
.
[Norfolk Southern completes acquisition of Delaware & Hudson South Line]
PRNewswire, September 18, 2015. The D&H South Line consists of two rail lines, the
Sunbury Line
The Sunbury Line (formerly known as Sunbury Subdivision) is a rail line owned and operated by Norfolk Southern Railway which in turn is owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. The line travels from Sunbury, Pennsylvania, to Binghamton, New Yo ...
and the Freight Line. The
Nicholson Cutoff
The Nicholson Cutoff (also known as Clark's Summit-Hallstead Cutoff) is a railroad segment of the Sunbury Line rail line and formerly a railroad segment of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad main line and the Delaware and Hudson Railwa ...
is located on the Sunbury Line, which was a former mainline of the
Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad
The Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (also known as the DL&W or Lackawanna Railroad) was a U.S. Class 1 railroad that connected Buffalo, New York, and Hoboken, New Jersey (and by ferry with New York City), a distance of . Incorporated in ...
.
History
By the 1790s, industrializing eastern population centers were having increasing troubles getting
charcoal
Charcoal is a lightweight black carbon residue produced by strongly heating wood (or other animal and plant materials) in minimal oxygen to remove all water and volatile constituents. In the traditional version of this pyrolysis process, cal ...
to fuel their growing kilns, smithies, and foundries. As local timber was denuded, efforts to find an alternative energy source began. During a fuel shortage in Philadelphia during the
War of 1812
The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...
, an employee at the direction of industrialist
Josiah White
Josiah White (1781–1850) was a Pennsylvania industrialist and key figure in the American Industrial Revolution.
Career
White began early factory-centered mill production in 1808 in water powered ironworks near Philadelphia, along with his part ...
conducted a series of experiments and discovered a number of ways that 'rock coal' or
anthracite
Anthracite, also known as hard coal, and black coal, is a hard, compact variety of coal that has a submetallic luster. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest energy density of all types of coal and is the hig ...
could be successfully ignited and burned.
The fuel, theretofore, had been seen more as a way to put out a fire, than a fuel to build one up, so its use also had to overcome prejudice,
["In the year 1806, William Turnbull had an ark constructed at the mouth of the ]Nesquehoning Creek
Nesquehoning Creek is an east flowing tributary of the Lehigh River in northeastern Pennsylvania in the United States.Gertler, Edward. ''Keystone Canoeing'', Seneca Press, 2004.
Nesquehoning Creek joins the Lehigh River 2 miles (3.2 ...
which took to Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
about three hundred bushels of coal. A portion of this cargo was sold to the managers of the water works, located in Center Square, where the city hall now stands. .e. 1884Upon trial there, it was deemed rather an extinguisher of fire than anything else, was rejected as worthless, and was broken up to be spread on the walks of the fake surrounding garden in place of gravel." (Brenckman, pp. 76-79) White and his partner
Erskine Hazard
Erskine Hazard (1790-1865), a younger son of the first U.S. Postmaster Ebenezer Hazard, became the partner of Josiah White about 1810 when around 19 years old. White and Hazard together established spearheaded efforts that enabled the Industrial R ...
founded the
Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company
The Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company (LCAN) (1988–2010) was a modern-day anthracite coal mining company headquartered in Pottsville, Pennsylvania. It acquired many properties and relaunched the Lehigh Coal Companies brand in 1988. The LCAN r ...
, creating the
Lehigh Canal
The Lehigh Canal, or the Lehigh Navigation Canal, is a navigable canal that begins at the mouth of Nesquehoning Creek on the Lehigh River in eastern Pennsylvania. It was built in two sections over a span of twenty years, beginning in 1818. The low ...
, and inspiring the exploitation of the anthracite deposits found by
William Wurts
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
around
Carbondale, Pennsylvania
Carbondale is a city in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, United States. Carbondale is located approximately 15 miles due northeast of the city of Scranton in Northeastern Pennsylvania. The population was 8,828 at the 2020 census.
The land area th ...
, which led to the development of
Scranton
Scranton is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, Lackawanna County. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U ...
. The mills of White and Hazard, and the regular large boatloads they proved they could supply, had tipped the prejudice against anthracite to a wary plausibility in Philadelphia by 1822-1824
[Brenckman (1884), History of Carbon County, general discussions point.] when the Lehigh was much damaged by flooding. The news of its rapid repair and restoration together with the fact anthracite stocks had for a time run down, but not out, establishing the reliable sourcing finished off the bias,
[ as did the beginning of mine output reaching the Delaware basin markets due to the long delayed completion of the Schuylkill Canal.
Wurts was a large thinker, and inspired his brothers to back forming a company to deliver the new fuel, anthracite, to New York City by building an ambitious canal to connect the Hudson River and the Delaware River, and both to the Coaldale coal deposits by chartering a Pennsylvania subsidiary corporation, the ]Delaware and Hudson Gravity Railroad
A predecessor to the Class I Delaware and Hudson Railway, the 1820s-built Delaware and Hudson Canal Company Gravity Railroad ''('D&H Gravity Railroad')'' was a historic gravity railroad incorporated and chartered in 1826 with land grant rights ...
, to bring coal to the Delaware and the new canal. This cable railroad
Cable may refer to:
Mechanical
* Nautical cable, an assembly of three or more ropes woven against the weave of the ropes, rendering it virtually waterproof
* Wire rope, a type of rope that consists of several strands of metal wire laid into a hel ...
would grow in importance and become the far-flung class I railroad, the Delaware and Hudson Railway.
Delaware and Hudson Canal Company
In the early 1820s, Philadelphia merchant William Wurts, who enjoyed walking about along Amerindian paths, and what today what is termed taking nature hikes, had heard of possible anthracite in the area, so took a trip to explore the sparsely settled regions of Northeastern Pennsylvania
Northeastern Pennsylvania (NEPA) is a geographic region of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania that includes the Pocono Mountains, the Endless Mountains, and the industrial cities of Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, Pittston, Hazleton, Nanticoke, and Carbon ...
. Finding coal outcrops, he immediately realized the value of the extensive anthracite deposits.
Returning to Philadelphia, he successfully interested his brothers in backing the idea of building a canal
Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flow un ...
to make easier transporting coal to New York City, which was still feeling the effects of the depletion of stands of woodlands providing heating and cooking firewood and also squeezed by continuing post-War of 1812
The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...
import restrictions on British bituminous coal
Bituminous coal, or black coal, is a type of coal containing a tar-like substance called bitumen or asphalt. Its coloration can be black or sometimes dark brown; often there are well-defined bands of bright and dull material within the seams. It ...
, on which it had once been relying. The canal he proposed (the first sections of the Erie Canal
The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east-west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, vastly reducing t ...
, opened in 1821, creating news coverage) would also tie the developing industries along the Delaware to the Hudson, which helped raise financing.
At the time, nearly all the eastern cities were experiencing energy cost increases and difficulty in getting large quantities of fuel, as most nearby timber stands had been used up, often for charcoal production enabling foundries
A foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal into a mold, and removing the mold material after the metal has solidified as it cools. The most common metals pr ...
to start up, which now needed fuel to stay in business. This general condition around most long established cities and towns in the United States is one reason so much venture capital was raised for coal and coal transportation projects after 1823 and into the early 1840s, once Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company
The Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company was a mining and transportation company headquartered in Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania, now known as Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania. The company operated from 1818 until its dissolution in 1964 and played an early and i ...
had blazed a way forward steadily increasing annual shipping to over a remarkable by 1825.
The Delaware and Hudson Canal Company originates from the 1823 New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
corporation charter listing the unusual name of "The President, Managers and Company of the Delaware & Hudson Canal Co." authorizing an establishment of "water communication" between the Delaware River
The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock (village), New York, Hancock, New York, the river flows for along the borders of N ...
and the Hudson River
The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...
. The D&H was chartered by separate laws in the states of New York and Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
in 1823 and 1826, respectively, allowing William Wurts and his brother Maurice to construct the Delaware and Hudson Canal and the gravity railroad that served it. In January 1825, following a demonstration of anthracite heating in a Wall Street coffeehouse, the D&H's public stock offering raised a million dollars. At the time, the Lehigh Canal had established a reliable flow of increasing annual tonnages,[ and the industrial and heating uses of 'rock coal' were well established.
Ground was broken on July 13, 1825, and the canal was opened to navigation in October 1828. It began at ]Rondout Creek
Rondout Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed October 3, 2011 tributary of the Hudson River in Ulster and Sullivan counties, New York, United States. It rises on Rock ...
at the location known as Creeklocks, between Kingston (where the creek fed into the Hudson River) and Rosendale. From there, it proceeded southwest alongside Rondout Creek to Ellenville
Ellenville is a village within the town of Wawarsing, Ulster County, New York, United States. Its population was 4,135 at the 2010 census.
Geography
The village of Ellenville is about 90 miles northwest of New York City and 90 miles southwest ...
, continuing through the valley of Sandburg Creek, Homowack Kill, Basha Kill, and Neversink River
The Neversink River (also called Neversink Creek in its upper course) is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Delaware River in southeastern ...
to Port Jervis
Port Jervis is a city located at the confluence of the Neversink and Delaware rivers in western Orange County, New York, United States, north of the Delaware Water Gap. Its population was 8,775 at the 2020 census. The communities of Deerpark, ...
on the Delaware River. From there, the canal ran northwest on the New York side of the Delaware River, crossing into Pennsylvania on Roebling's Delaware Aqueduct at Lackawaxen and running on the north bank of the Lackawaxen River
The Lackawaxen River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Delaware River in northeastern Pennsylvania in the United States. The river flows ...
to Honesdale
Honesdale is a borough in and the county seat of Wayne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The borough's population was 4,458 at the time of the 2020 census.
Honesdale is located northeast of Scranton in a rural area that provides many recrea ...
.
To get the anthracite
Anthracite, also known as hard coal, and black coal, is a hard, compact variety of coal that has a submetallic luster. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest energy density of all types of coal and is the hig ...
from the Wurts' mine in the Moosic Mountains
The Moosic Mountains is a mountain range in northeastern Pennsylvania that stretches from Scranton to Mount Pleasant Township, a distance of roughly 32 miles. The high point of the range is in Jefferson Township, at an elevation of above sea ...
near Carbondale to the canal at Honesdale, the canal company built the Delaware and Hudson Gravity Railroad
A predecessor to the Class I Delaware and Hudson Railway, the 1820s-built Delaware and Hudson Canal Company Gravity Railroad ''('D&H Gravity Railroad')'' was a historic gravity railroad incorporated and chartered in 1826 with land grant rights ...
. The state of Pennsylvania authorized its construction on April 8, 1826. On August 8, 1829, the D&H's first locomotive
A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the Power (physics), motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, Motor coach (rail), motor ...
, the ''Stourbridge Lion
The ''Stourbridge Lion'' was a railroad steam locomotive. It was the first foreign built locomotive to be operated in the United States, and one of the first locomotives to operate outside Britain. It takes its name from the lion's face painted ...
'', made history as the first locomotive to run on rails in the United States. Westward extensions of the railroad opened access to new mines at Archbald in 1843, Valley Junction in 1858, Providence
Providence often refers to:
* Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion
* Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in Christianity
* Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...
in 1860, and Scranton
Scranton is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, Lackawanna County. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U ...
in 1863. Passenger service began west of Carbondale in 1860.
The canal was a successful enterprise for many of its early years, but the company's management realized that railroads were the future of transportation, and began investing in stock and trackage. In 1898, the canal carried its last loads of coal and was drained and sold. The next year, the company dropped the "Canal" from its name. The remaining fragments of the canal were designated a National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...
in 1968.
Delaware and Hudson Company
As railroads grew in popularity, the canal company recognized the importance of replacing the canal with a railroad. The first step of this was the Jefferson Railroad Jefferson may refer to:
Names
* Jefferson (surname)
* Jefferson (given name)
People
* Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), third president of the United States
* Jefferson (footballer, born 1970), full name Jefferson Tomaz de Souza, Brazilian footb ...
, a line from Carbondale north towards New York, chartered in 1864, built by the Erie Railroad
The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in the northeastern United States, originally connecting New York City — more specifically Jersey City, New Jersey, where Erie's Pavonia Terminal, long demolished, used to stand — with Lake Erie ...
in 1869 and opened in 1872. This was a branch of the Erie, running south from the main line
Mainline, ''Main line'', or ''Main Line'' may refer to:
Transportation
Railway
* Main line (railway), the principal artery of a railway system
* Main line railway preservation, the practice of operating preserved trains on an operational railw ...
at Lanesboro to Carbondale. Also built as part of this line was a continuation from the other side of the D&H's gravity railroad at Honesdale southeast to the Erie's Pennsylvania Coal Company
Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Mary ...
railroad at Hawley. The Jefferson Railroad (and through it the Erie) obtained trackage rights
Railway companies can interact with and control others in many ways. These relationships can be complicated by bankruptcies.
Operating
Often, when a railroad first opens, it is only a short spur of a main line. The owner of the spur line may con ...
over the D&H between its two sections, and the D&H obtained trackage rights to Lanesboro.
The other part of the main line was the Albany and Susquehanna Railroad
The Albany and Susquehanna Railroad (A&S) was a broad gauge railroad from Albany to Binghamton, New York, operating 1851 to 1870. It was subsequently leased by the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company and later merged into the Delaware and Hudson ...
, which the D&H leased on February 24, 1870. The Delaware and Hudson already had a history of working with the Albany and Susquehanna, agreeing in 1866 to jointly build an extension to Nineveh and subsequently ship coal across the entire line. The two companies then entered into an arrangement whereby the Delaware and Hudson perpetually leased the Albany and Susquehanna for $490,000 per year.[Early Railroads of New York's Capital District] The connecting Lackawanna and Susquehanna Railroad, chartered in 1867 and opened in 1872, was also absorbed. The Albany and Susquehanna provided a line from Albany southwest to Binghamton
Binghamton () is a city in the U.S. state of New York, and serves as the county seat of Broome County. Surrounded by rolling hills, it lies in the state's Southern Tier region near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the conflue ...
, while the Lackawanna and Susquehanna split from that line at Nineveh
Nineveh (; akk, ; Biblical Hebrew: '; ar, نَيْنَوَىٰ '; syr, ܢܝܼܢܘܹܐ, Nīnwē) was an ancient Assyrian city of Upper Mesopotamia, located in the modern-day city of Mosul in northern Iraq. It is located on the eastern ban ...
, running south to the Jefferson Railroad at Lanesboro. Also leased in 1870 was the Schenectady and Susquehanna Railroad, connecting the Albany and Susquehanna at Duanesburg to Schenectady
Schenectady () is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-largest city by population. The city is in eastern New Y ...
, opened in 1872 (reorganized as the Schenectady and Duanesburg Railroad in 1873).
On March 1, 1871, the D&H leased the Rensselaer and Saratoga Railroad Company, which, along with its leased lines, provided a network stretching north from Albany and Schenectady to Saratoga Springs
Saratoga Springs is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area, which has made Saratoga a popular resort destination for over 2 ...
, and continuing northeast to Rutland, Vermont Rutland, Vermont may refer to:
*Rutland (city), Vermont
* Rutland (town), Vermont
*Rutland County, Vermont
*West Rutland, Vermont
West Rutland is a town in Rutland County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,214 at the 2020 census. The t ...
, as well as an eastern route to Rutland via trackage rights
Railway companies can interact with and control others in many ways. These relationships can be complicated by bankruptcies.
Operating
Often, when a railroad first opens, it is only a short spur of a main line. The owner of the spur line may con ...
over the Troy and Boston Railroad west of Eagle Bridge. The D&H also obtained a quarter interest in the Troy Union Railroad from this lease.
On March 1, 1873, the D&H got the New York and Canada Railroad chartered as a merger of the Whitehall and Plattsburgh Railroad and Montreal and Plattsburg Railroad
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-pe ...
, which had been owned by the Rutland Railroad
The Rutland Railroad was a railroad in the northeastern United States, located primarily in the state of Vermont but extending into the state of New York at both its northernmost and southernmost ends. After its closure in 1961, parts of the ...
. This provided an extension, completed in 1875, north from Whitehall
Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London. The road forms the first part of the A roads in Zone 3 of the Great Britain numbering scheme, A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea, London, Chelsea. It is the main ...
to the border with Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
; a branch opened in 1876 to Rouses Point
Rouses Point is a village (New York), village in Clinton County, New York, Clinton County, New York (state), New York, United States, along the 45th parallel north, 45th parallel. The population was 2,209 at the 2010 census. The village is named ...
. Lines of the Grand Trunk Railway
The Grand Trunk Railway (; french: Grand Tronc) was a railway system that operated in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario and in the American states of Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The rai ...
continued each of the two branches north to Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
.
The D&H obtained trackage rights over the Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad
The Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad is a defunct railroad that operated in eastern Pennsylvania during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The company was a subsidiary of the Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company (LC&N), but for much of its lifetim ...
in 1886, extending the main line southwest from Scranton to Wilkes-Barre
Wilkes-Barre ( or ) is a city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Luzerne County. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in the 2020 census. It is the secon ...
.
On July 11, 1889, the D&H bought the Adirondack Railway
The Adirondack Railway (originally Adirondack Company) was a railroad that connected Saratoga Springs to North Creek, New York, a distance of . Built by Dr. Thomas Clark Durant, vice-president of the Union Pacific Railroad, it was started in 186 ...
, a long branch line heading north from Saratoga Springs
Saratoga Springs is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area, which has made Saratoga a popular resort destination for over 2 ...
along the Hudson River.
Some company directors questioned the wisdom of acquiring extensive rail systems in northern New York. A direct line to Albany existed for many years through the canal and river system, so most of the coal markets in the area were already accessible. These concerns were overruled by the majority, who believed great benefit would accrue to having an all-rail route to Upstate New York
Upstate New York is a geographic region consisting of the area of New York State that lies north and northwest of the New York City metropolitan area. Although the precise boundary is debated, Upstate New York excludes New York City and Long Is ...
that was not nearly as vulnerable to winter weather as the canal. Avoiding situations in which the company would have to rely on other railroads to reach its markets also would be desirable. The effort was helped by a report that estimated necessary upgrades to the canal would cost $300,000, an expenditure that would not be needed if rail routes could be purchased or leased.
The canal was last used on November 5, 1891, and the gravity railroad closed January 3, 1899. On April 28, 1899, the name was changed to the Delaware and Hudson Company to reflect the lack of a canal, which was sold in June of that year. Between Port Jackson and Ellenville
Ellenville is a village within the town of Wawarsing, Ulster County, New York, United States. Its population was 4,135 at the 2010 census.
Geography
The village of Ellenville is about 90 miles northwest of New York City and 90 miles southwest ...
, the right-of-way
Right of way is the legal right, established by grant from a landowner or long usage (i.e. by prescription), to pass along a specific route through property belonging to another.
A similar ''right of access'' also exists on land held by a gov ...
for the canal was used by the Ellenville and Kingston Railroad, a branch of the New York, Ontario and Western Railway
The New York, Ontario and Western Railway, more commonly known as the O&W or NYO&W, was a regional railroad with origins in 1868, lasting until March 29, 1957 (the last train ran from Norwich to Middletown, NY on this date), after which it was or ...
, chartered in 1901 and opened in 1902.
In 1903, the D&H organized the Chateaugay and Lake Placid Railway as a consolidation of the Chateaugay Railroad Chateaugay may refer to:
* Chateaugay (village), New York
* Chateaugay (town), New York
* Châteaugay, a commune of the Puy-de-Dôme Départment in France
* Châteauguay, a city southwest of Montreal
* Chateaugay (horse) (1960–1985), American Th ...
, Chateaugay Railway, and Saranac and Lake Placid Railway Saranac may refer to a place name in the United States:
* Saranac, Michigan, a village
;New York
* Saranac, New York, a town in Clinton County
* Saranac Lake, New York, a large village in Franklin and Essex counties
* Upper Saranac Lake
* Middle S ...
. In conjunction with the Plattsburgh and Dannemora Railroad, which had been leased by the Chateaugay Railroad, this formed a long branch from Plattsburgh
Plattsburgh ( moh, Tsi ietsénhtha) is a city in, and the seat of, Clinton County, New York, United States, situated on the north-western shore of Lake Champlain. The population was 19,841 at the 2020 census. The population of the surrounding ...
west and south to Lake Placid.
In 1906, the D&H bought the Quebec Southern Railway and South Shore Railway
The Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad , also known as the South Shore Line, is a Class III freight railroad operating between Chicago, Illinois, and South Bend, Indiana. The railroad serves as a link between Class I railroads and loc ...
, merging them into the Quebec, Montreal and Southern Railway. This line ran from St. Lambert, a suburb of Montreal, northeast to Fortierville, most of the way to Quebec City
Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Communauté métrop ...
. The D&H sold that line to the Canadian National Railway
The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States.
CN i ...
in 1929.
The D&H incorporated the Napierville Junction Railway in 1906 to continue the line north from Rouses Point
Rouses Point is a village (New York), village in Clinton County, New York, Clinton County, New York (state), New York, United States, along the 45th parallel north, 45th parallel. The population was 2,209 at the 2010 census. The village is named ...
to St. Constant Junction near Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
, Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
, from which the D&H obtained trackage rights
Railway companies can interact with and control others in many ways. These relationships can be complicated by bankruptcies.
Operating
Often, when a railroad first opens, it is only a short spur of a main line. The owner of the spur line may con ...
over the Grand Trunk Railway
The Grand Trunk Railway (; french: Grand Tronc) was a railway system that operated in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario and in the American states of Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The rai ...
to Montreal. This line opened in 1907, forming part of the shortest route between New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
and Montreal.
In 1912, the D&H and the Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...
incorporated the Wilkes-Barre Connecting Railroad
Wilkes-Barre ( or ) is a city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Luzerne County. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in the 2020 census. It is the secon ...
, creating an interchange between the two lines at Hanover Township, Pennsylvania, thus avoiding going through downtown Wilkes-Barre. Opened in 1915, this line runs north 6.65 miles to the D&H main line at Hudson
Hudson may refer to:
People
* Hudson (given name)
* Hudson (surname)
* Henry Hudson, English explorer
* Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back
* Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudso ...
, crossing the Susquehanna River
The Susquehanna River (; Lenape: Siskëwahane) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, overlapping between the lower Northeast and the Upland South. At long, it is the longest river on the East Coast of the ...
twice.
On April 1, 1930, the property of the Delaware and Hudson Company was transferred to the Delaware and Hudson Railroad Corporation, incorporated December 1, 1928. In 1938, the D&H started to act as a bridge line, carrying large amounts of freight between other connecting lines.
After the Second World War the D&H, like all railroads in the United States, gradually curtailed passenger service. By 1957, the D&H had ended service between Albany and Lake George (via Fort Edward) and between Albany and North Creek (via Saratoga Springs) in the southeast part of Adirondack Park
The Adirondack Park is a part of New York's Forest Preserve in northeastern New York, United States. The park was established in 1892 for “the free use of all the people for their health and pleasure”, and for watershed protection. The park ...
. The D&H had also ended service on its branch between Plattsburgh and Lyon Mountain during this period. By 1960, service consisted of the following trains: the daytime '' Laurentian'' and overnight ''Montreal Limited'' between New York City and Montreal, unnamed local trains between Albany and Rouses Point and Albany and Binghamton, and a commuter train between Albany and Saratoga Springs. The D&H discontinued the Rouses Point locals in July 1960, the Albany–Saratoga commuter train in late 1962, and the Binghamton train on January 24, 1963. The ''Laurentian'' and ''Montreal Limited'' remained in operation through the 1960s until April 30, 1971, when Amtrak thereafter assumed most long-distance passenger-train service. Amtrak introduced the daytime '' Adirondack'' over the D&H line on August 6, 1974.
Delaware and Hudson Railway (1968–1988)
In 1964, Norfolk & Western wanted the Wabash & Nickel Plate Roads. The ICC at the time informed them that to get those two roads, they would also have to take the Erie Lackawanna
The Erie Lackawanna Railway , known as the Erie Lackawanna Railroad until 1968, was formed from the 1960 merger of the Erie Railroad and the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad. The official motto of the line was "The Friendly Service Route" ...
& D&H. The D&H company was reorganized as the Delaware and Hudson Railway, and both roads were placed into Dereco, a holding company
A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...
owned by Norfolk and Western Railway
The Norfolk and Western Railway , commonly called the N&W, was a US class I railroad, formed by more than 200 railroad mergers between 1838 and 1982. It was headquartered in Roanoke, Virginia, for most of its existence. Its motto was "Precisio ...
. After New York and Pennsylvania were hit by Hurricane Agnes
Hurricane Agnes in 1972 was the costliest hurricane to hit the United States at the time, causing an estimated $2.1 billion in damage. The hurricane's death toll was 128. The effects of Agnes were widespread, from the Caribbean to Canada, ...
in 1972, which destroyed part of the EL main line west of Binghamton, and following the bankruptcy of numerous northeastern U.S. railroads in the 1970s, including D&H and E-L, N&W lost control of Dereco stock. After several merger plans fell through, EL petitioned for and was included in the formation of the federal government's nascent Consolidated Rail Corporation
Conrail , formally the Consolidated Rail Corporation, was the primary Class I railroad in the Northeastern United States between 1976 and 1999. The trade name Conrail is a portmanteau based on the company's legal name. It continues to do busi ...
(Conrail). While D&H was technically still owned by N&W, they were given financial support and told to "sink or swim" as an independent railroad again. In 1980, Conrail sold the former DL&W main line from Binghamton to Scranton to the D&H; being a flatter, more direct route to Scranton, this acquisition allowed the D&H to abandon its famed Penn Division between Carbondale and the connection with the ex-Erie/EL at Jefferson Junction. The D&H was left out of Conrail to maintain a semblance of competition in the Northeast. While the success of this move has often been discredited, since the D&H was simply too small to compete with all of the markets served by Conrail, in fact the railroad doubled in size by being granted trackage rights over Conrail reaching Newark, Philadelphia, Buffalo, and Washington, DC. The remainder of the Penn Division from Lanesboro, Pennsylvania, to Nineveh, New York, was abandoned after the Belden Hill tunnel was enlarged in 1986.
In 1984, Guilford Transportation Industries
Guildford is a town in Surrey, England. It gives its name to the Borough of Guildford, the Diocese of Guildford and the Parliamentary constituency of Guildford.
Guildford, Guilford, or Gildford may also refer to:
Places
Australia
* Guildf ...
purchased the D&H as part of a plan to operate a larger regional railroad from Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...
and New Brunswick
New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...
in the east, to New York City and the Midwest in the west, Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
in the north, and the Philadelphia/Washington, DC, area in the south. For only $500,000, Guilford purchased the entire railroad. The price tag reflected the D&H's horrid financial shape and the poor condition of its physical plant. At the time of the purchase, the D&H had little freight traffic, relying on federal and state money to keep operating. Guilford's plans for expanded service did not come to fruition, and in 1988, after two intense labor strikes, Guilford declared the D&H bankrupt
Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debt ...
, abandoning its operation. Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, purchased the line south of Carbondale to Scranton and currently serves a growing number of industries in the valley under the auspices of the designated operator Delaware Lackawanna Railroad
The Delaware-Lackawanna Railroad is a shortline railroad operating in Northeastern Pennsylvania, especially the Scranton area.
DL began service in August 1993 and is the designated operator for of trackage in Lackawanna, Wayne, Northampton, a ...
.
With the D&H in limbo, the federal government ordered the New York, Susquehanna & Western Railway to operate the D&H without subsidy until such time as a buyer could be found. Guilford claimed that the D&H had assets of $70M at the time of the bankruptcy.
Canadian Pacific era (1991–present)
In 1991, the Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...
(CPR) purchased the D&H for $25M to give the CPR's transcontinental system a connection between Montreal and the New York City metropolitan area.
CPR assumed all operations of the D&H system and eventually phased out the use of the D&H name and logos on locomotives or rolling stock. Under CPR, the D&H trackage was upgraded and excess track was removed. Although successful for a short time, the D&H was soon in limbo again, and in 1996, CPR placed it and other money-losing trackage in the eastern U.S. and Canada into a separate operating company named St. Lawrence and Hudson Railway. In 2000, the St.L&H was merged back into CPR.
The D&H has been a difficult money-making venture for some time. As described above, it was originally constructed as a coal-hauling route, and when that business declined, turning a profit proved difficult. The D&H operates in some of the most rural areas of New York, and very few industrial customers between Binghamton and Rouses Point remain. The railroad's current prognosis is arguably better than it has been in a long time. Along with the NYC connection, haulage agreements with other railroads are greatly increasing traffic. CPR has been steadily using their high-power alternating current
Alternating current (AC) is an electric current which periodically reverses direction and changes its magnitude continuously with time in contrast to direct current (DC) which flows only in one direction. Alternating current is the form in whic ...
traction locomotives on their road trains on the D&H line, instead of their aging SD40-2
The EMD SD40-2 is a C-C diesel-electric locomotive built by EMD from 1972 to 1989.
The SD40-2 was introduced in January 1972 as part of EMD's '' Dash 2'' series, competing against the GE U30C and the ALCO Century 630. Although higher-horsepowe ...
models. This is an indication of the increasing importance of reliable service. Also, major signal and track projects are underway to modernize the former D&H lines.
In 2010, Canadian Pacific still had three of the former D&H's (ex-Lehigh Valley) EMD GP38-2s, 7303, 7304, and 7312 in their famous Delaware & Hudson "Lightning Stripe" paint scheme and had designated the 7312, nicknamed the "B.C. O'Brien" after the longest-running engineer on the D&H, as its heritage locomotive. However, in July 2013, the 7312 was sent to National Railway Equipment in Silvis, Illinois, for a complete rebuild and repaint. When 7312 emerged from the paint booth, it had been painted into Canadian Pacific's candy apple red paint. The 7303 and 7304 were scheduled for the same, but as of May 2019, that has not happened.
As of 2012, various trackage and haulage rights have been assigned to Norfolk Southern Railway
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (31 ...
(NS) over the D&H between Sunbury and Mechanicville, New York, and a connection to Canadian National
The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I railroad, Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern United States, M ...
via Rouse Point, New York. NS has incorporated the former bridge-line route into their "Patriot Corridor", and currently the majority of the traffic on the D&H is that of the NS.
In 2017, CPR finished installing an updated signaling system on the line. In 2018, CPR started doing extensive work on the line, possibly in preparation for increased traffic.
Partial purchase by Norfolk Southern
In October 2014, Canadian Pacific's Delaware & Hudson put a portion of their lines south of CP's Mohawk Yard in Glenville, New York, to Sunbury, Pennsylvania, and the former Albany Main from Delanson, New York, to Voorheesville, New York, up for sale. Voorheesville Track is operated under contract by SMS Rail Services. Under the purchase agreement, CPR D&H would retain the lines from Mechanicville, New York, to Mohawk Yard and Rouses Point, New York, to Albany, to retain lucrative Bakken crude-oil traffic. The majority of the current traffic on the offered routes already consisted of NS Intermodal Containers and Auto Rack trains bound for Ayer, Massachusetts
Ayer () is a New England town, town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. Originally part of Groton, Massachusetts, Groton, it was incorporated February 14, 1871, and became a major commercial railroa ...
, via Pan Am Southern
Pan Am Southern, LLC is a freight railroad jointly owned by Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) and CSX Corporation subsidiary Pan Am Railways (PAR). After the June 2022 acquisition of PAR by CSX, PAS will be independently operated by the Berkshire ...
. On November 17, 2014, NS acquired the Schenectady, New York, to Sunbury, Pennsylvania, and Delanson to Voorheesville, New York, segments for $217 million. On September 19, 2015, NS assumed ownership and operations of their newly purchased portion of the old D&H mainline.
Legacy
The Delaware and Hudson was one of (if not the) longest-operating class I railroads in American history. While in independent operation, the railroad was well managed. In the 1930s, during the Great Depression, D&H President L.F. Loree ordered many of the railway's larger locomotives to be taken off the main line and serviced with the sole reasoning being to keep men working so they did not lose their jobs. Most of these engines were in excellent condition and did not need repairs. Also in 1939, the railroad experimented with welded rail before many other railroads.
The branch of the D&H that ran between Lake George and Glens Falls, New York, was converted to the Warren County Bikeway in several phases, starting in 1978 and finishing in 2000.
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
's '' Adirondack'' and ''Ethan Allen Express
The ''Ethan Allen Express'' is a daily passenger train operated by Amtrak in the United States between New York City and Burlington, Vermont, via Albany, New York. One daily round trip is operated on a north-south route with a 7 hour 35 min ...
'' trains also operate over former D&H trackage.
The Lyon Mountain Railroad Station at Lyon Mountain, New York
Lyon Mountain is a hamlet and census-designated place located in the town of Dannemora in Clinton County, New York, United States. The population was 423 at the 2010 census.
The northern slopes of Lyon Mountain are in the southern part of the co ...
, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 2002 and the Mediterranean Revival
Mediterranean Revival is an architectural style introduced in the United States, Canada, and certain other countries in the 19th century. It incorporated references from Spanish Renaissance, Spanish Colonial, Italian Renaissance, French Colonia ...
style Delaware and Hudson Passenger Station
Lake George station is a historic train station located at Lake George in Warren County, New York. It was built between 1909 and 1911 by the Delaware and Hudson Railway, and is a one-story Mediterranean Revival style stuccoed frame building with ...
(1909-1911) at Lake George, New York, was listed in 2013.
The city of Delson, Quebec
Delson is an off-island suburb ( South shore) of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is situated 8 mi/13 km SSE of Montreal within the regional county municipality of Roussillon in the administrative region of Montérégie. The population as o ...
, was named in honor of the D&H, which runs through the town. The origin of the name Delson comes from a contraction of "DELaware and HudSON".
The Village of Delanson, New York, through which the D&H's Susquehanna Division ran, was also named in honor of the D&H. The name was coined by D&H Supt. C.D. Hammond around 1890 from the railroad's name DELaware ANd hudSON.
Branches
* Baltimore Coal & Union Railroad
* Northern Coal & Iron Company
* Plymouth & Wilkes-Barre Railroad and Bridge
Locomotives
Company officers
* Philip Hone
Philip Hone (October 25, 1780 – May 5, 1851) was Mayor of New York City from 1826 to 1827.Minutes of the Common Council of the City of New York, 1784-1831. Volume XV, November 10, 1825 to December 25, 1826'. New York: City of New York, 1917. p. ...
: 1825-1826
* John Bolton: 1826-1831
* John Wurts: 1831-1854
* George Talbot Olyphant: 1858-1869
* Thomas Dickson: 1869-1884
* Robert M. Olyphant: 1884-1903
* David Wilcox: 1903-1907
* Leonor F. Loree: 1907-1938
* Thomas L. Hunter: 1938-1941
* Joseph Nuelle: 1941-1954
* William White: 1954-1967
* John P. Hiltz Jr.: 1967
* Frederick C. Dumaine Jr.: 1967-1968
* Frank W. McCabe: 1968
* John P. Fishwick: 1969-1970
* Gregory W. Maxwell: 1970-1972
* Carl B. Sterzing Jr.: 1972-1977
* Selig Altschul: 1977
* Charles E. Bertrand: 1977-1978
* Kent Shoemaker: 1978-1982
* Timothy Mellon
Timothy Mellon (born July 22, 1942) is an American businessman, and the chairman and majority owner of Pan Am Systems, a Portsmouth, New Hampshire-based transportation holding company. He is a grandson of Andrew W. Mellon and an heir to the Mell ...
: 1984-1988 (Guilford Transportation Industries ownership)
* Walter Rich: 1988-1991 (Federally Designated Operator: Delaware Otsego Corp/NYS&W)
* Robert J. Ritchie: 1991-2006 (Canadian Pacific Ownership)
* Fred Green: 2006-2012 (CP)
* Stephen C. Tobias: (Interim) 2012 (CP)
* E. Hunter Harrison: 2012–2017 (CP)
* Keith E. Creel: 2017-Today (CP)
See also
* Delson, Québec
* Delaware and Hudson Rail Trail
* Lacolle railway station
* Delaware Canal
The Delaware Division of the Pennsylvania Canal, more commonly called the Delaware Canal, runs for parallel to the right bank of the Delaware River from the entry locks near the mouth of the Lehigh River and terminal end of the Lehigh Canal at E ...
- A sister canal from the mouth of the Lehigh River and canal terminus, feeding urban Philadelphia connecting with the Morris and Lehigh Canals at their respective Easton terminals.
* Delaware and Raritan Canal
The Delaware and Raritan Canal (D&R Canal) is a canal in central New Jersey, built in the 1830s, that served to connect the Delaware River to the Raritan River. It was an efficient and reliable means of transportation of freight between Philadel ...
– A New Jersey canal connection to the New York & New Jersey markets shipping primarily coal across the Delaware River. The D&R also shipped Iron Ore from New Jersey up the Lehigh.
* Chesapeake and Delaware Canal – A canal crossing the Delmarva Peninsula
The Delmarva Peninsula, or simply Delmarva, is a large peninsula and proposed state on the East Coast of the United States, occupied by the vast majority of the state of Delaware and parts of the Eastern Shore regions of Maryland and Virginia ...
in the states of Delaware
Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...
and Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
, connecting the Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula (including the parts: the ...
with the Delaware Bay
Delaware Bay is the estuary outlet of the Delaware River on the northeast seaboard of the United States. It is approximately in area, the bay's freshwater mixes for many miles with the saltwater of the Atlantic Ocean.
The bay is bordered inlan ...
.
* Delaware and Hudson Canal - Another early built coal canal as the American canal age began; contemporary with the Lehigh and the Schuylkill navigations
Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flo ...
.
* Lehigh Canal
The Lehigh Canal, or the Lehigh Navigation Canal, is a navigable canal that begins at the mouth of Nesquehoning Creek on the Lehigh River in eastern Pennsylvania. It was built in two sections over a span of twenty years, beginning in 1818. The low ...
– the coal canal along the Lehigh Valley that fed the United States early Industrial revolution energy needs directly and via the Delaware Canal businesses all along the forty miles to Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
from Easton, Pennsylvania
Easton is a city in, and the county seat of, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city's population was 28,127 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Easton is located at the confluence of the Lehigh River, a river tha ...
.
* Pennsylvania Canal System
The Pennsylvania Canal (or sometimes Pennsylvania Canal system) was a complex system of transportation infrastructure improvements including canals, dams, locks, tow paths, aqueducts, and viaducts. The Canal and Works were constructed and assemb ...
- ambitious collection of far flung canals, and eventually railroads authorized early in 1826.
* Schuylkill Canal - Navigation joining Reading, PA
Reading ( ; Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Reddin'') is a city in and the county seat of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city had a population of 95,112 as of the 2020 census and is the fourth-largest city in Pennsylvania after Philadel ...
and Philadelphia.
Notes
Footnotes
References
*
*
Further reading
* L. Lowenthal, ''From the Coalfields to the Hudson: A History of the Delaware & Hudson Canal'', Purple Mountain Press, 2009.
* T. Starr, ''Golden Age of Railroads in New York's Capital District'', Timothy Starr, 2012.
External links
D&H Historical Society
D&H Penn Division
D&H Canal Historical Society
Carbondale Historical Society and D&H Transportation Museum
D&H 4-8-4s
D&H 4-6-6-4s
D&H Virtual Museum
Norfolk Southern Railway
{{DEFAULTSORT:Delaware Hudson Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway subsidiaries
Companies based in New York (state)
Companies operating former Boston and Maine Railroad lines
Companies operating former Delaware and Hudson Railway lines
Companies operating former Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad lines
">Companies operating former Pennsylvania Railroad lines
Defunct Maryland railroads
Defunct Vermont railroads
Defunct Virginia railroads
Defunct Washington, D.C., railroads
Former Class I railroads in the United States
Former regional railroads in the United States
History of Orange County, New York
History of Ulster County, New York
New Jersey railroads
New York (state) railroads
Pan Am Railways
Pennsylvania railroads
Predecessors of the Canadian Pacific Railway
Railway companies established in 1968
Transportation in Sullivan County, New York
American companies established in 1899
Railway companies established in 1899
American companies established in 1968