The Syracuse and Utica Direct Railroad, chartered in 1853, a rival company to the Syracuse and Utica Railroad, threatened to build a line from

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, Yonkers, and Rochester. At the 2020 census, the city' ...

to Utica by a more direct route, by way of Vernon. This reduced the total travel time from four hours to three and one-half hours. The road consolidated with the

New York Central Railroad The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Mi ...

in 1853.

History

The Syracuse and Utica Railroad was chartered in 1836 and opened in 1839, extending the line further to Syracuse via

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

(and further to Auburn via the already-opened

Auburn and Syracuse Railroad The Auburn and Syracuse Railroad was incorporated on May 1, 1834, to provide easy access between Syracuse, New York, and the Erie Canal. Construction was begun in 1835, but was delayed during the Panic of 1837. Although the economic downturn linger ...

). This line was not direct, going out of its way to stay near 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 ...

and serve

, and so the Syracuse and Utica Direct Railroad was chartered January 26, 1853, although nothing of this line was ever built because the

West Shore Railroad The West Shore Railroad was the final name of a railroad that ran from Weehawken, New Jersey, on the west bank of the Hudson River opposite New York City, north to Albany, New York, and then west to Buffalo. It was organized as a competitor ...

served the same purpose.

Company management

In 1853, directors of the company were John Wilkinson, Oliver Teall, Holmes Hutchinson, Joseph Battell, Joel Rathbone, Hamilton White, E. W. Leavenworth, D. Wager, Samuel French, George Barnes and Horace White. Charles Stebbens was president of the company.

New York Central railroad

The road consolidated with the

in 1853.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Syracuse and Utica Direct Railroad Predecessors of the New York Central Railroad Defunct railroads in Syracuse, New York Defunct New York (state) railroads Railway companies established in 1853 Railway companies disestablished in 1853