The Warminster Branch is a railway line in the state of

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, ...

. It runs from a junction with the

SEPTA Main Line The SEPTA Main Line is the section of the SEPTA Regional Rail system from the Zoo Interlocking in West Philadelphia to Lansdale Station in Lansdale, Pennsylvania. The line is long, and serves all 13 SEPTA Regional Rail lines. Current service ...

just north of to , where it meets the

New Hope Railroad The New Hope Railroad , formerly and colloquially known as the New Hope and Ivyland Railroad, is a shortline and heritage railroad located in New Hope, Pennsylvania. Today, the railroad operates both steam and diesel powered locomotives and is ...

. It was originally built by the North East Pennsylvania Railroad, a subsidiary of the

North Pennsylvania Railroad The North Pennsylvania Railroad was a railroad company which served Philadelphia, Montgomery County, Bucks County and Northampton County in Pennsylvania. It was formed in 1852 and began operation in 1855. The Philadelphia and Reading Railway, ...

, between 1872 and 1874. It was part of the

Reading Company The Reading Company ( ) was a Philadelphia-headquartered railroad that provided passenger and commercial rail transport in eastern Pennsylvania and neighboring states that operated from 1924 until its 1976 acquisition by Conrail. Commonly called ...

system from 1879 until 1976. Today it is owned by

SEPTA The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) is a regional public transportation authority that operates bus, rapid transit, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolleybus services for nearly 4 million people in five coun ...

and hosts

Warminster Line The Warminster Line is a route of the SEPTA Regional Rail commuter rail system. It serves stations between its namesake town, Warminster (SEPTA station), Warminster, and Center City, Philadelphia. Half of the route is shared by other lines, incl ...

commuter rail service. A later extension of the branch to

New Hope, Pennsylvania New Hope is a borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. The population was 2,612 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. New Hope is located approximately north of Philadelphia, and lies on the west bank of the Delaw ...

is now the New Hope Railroad heritage railway.

History

The North East Pennsylvania Railroad was incorporated on December 14, 1870, to build northeast 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 Glenside to Hatboro. The line was completed to the

Bucks Bucks may refer to: Places * Buckinghamshire, England, abbreviated Bucks * Bucks, Alabama, United States, an unincorporated community * Bucks, Illinois, United States, an unincorporated community * Bucks, Michigan, an unincorporated community ...

/ Montgomery county line on December 18, 1872, a distance of . A further extension to

Hartsville, Pennsylvania Hartsville is a populated place situated at the crossroads of Bristol Road and the Old York Road, straddling Warminster and Warwick Township in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States. It has an estimated elevation of above sea level. It is s ...

, opened on November 9, 1874. The

Philadelphia and Reading Railroad The Reading Company ( ) was a Philadelphia-headquartered railroad that provided passenger and commercial rail transport in eastern Pennsylvania and neighboring states that operated from 1924 until its 1976 acquisition by Conrail. Commonly called ...

leased the North Pennsylvania Railroad on May 14, 1879. Under Reading control, the line was extended to New Hope on March 29, 1891. Under the Reading the line was known as the New Hope Branch. The Reading electrified the portion between Glenside and on July 26, 1931. The North East Pennsylvania Railroad was one of twelve railroads merged into the

effective December 31, 1945. Passenger service beyond Hatboro ended on June 7, 1952. The

New Hope and Ivyland Railroad The New Hope Railroad , formerly and colloquially known as the New Hope and Ivyland Railroad, is a shortline and heritage railroad located in New Hope, Pennsylvania. Today, the railroad operates both steam and diesel powered locomotives and is a ...

purchased the section of the branch between Ivyland and New Hope on June 20, 1966, with the intention of running steam excursion service. The Reading, with SEPTA's support, extended electrification from Hatboro to on July 29, 1974. With the Reading's final bankruptcy in 1976, the New Hope and Ivyland acquired the section of the New Hope Branch between Ivyland and Warminster, while the Glenside–Warminster section was conveyed to

Conrail 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 busin ...

. Conrail conveyed the line to SEPTA in 1979.

Notes

References

* * * * * * * {{Commons category-inline SEPTA Regional Rail lines Railway lines opened in 1872 Rail infrastructure in Pennsylvania Reading Company lines