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==External links==
==External links==
* http://www.silverlakeview.com/br&p/br&p.htm
* http://www.silverlakeview.com/br&p/br&p.htm
* http://wnyrails.org/railroads/brp/brp_home.htm
* http://www.wnyrails.net/railroads/brp/brp_home.htm
* http://wnyrails.org/railroads/brp/brp_roster_caboose.htm
* http://www.wnyrails.net/railroads/brp/brp_roster_caboose.htm
* http://orion.math.iastate.edu/jdhsmith/term/slusbrp.htm
* http://orion.math.iastate.edu/jdhsmith/term/slusbrp.htm
* http://books.google.com/books?id=ZI4-xleAptoC&pg=PA82&lpg=PA82&dq=br%26p+route&source=bl&ots=uRJpmWwF4a&sig=n2fJS3j-1HSI12bFTrhr00i8Hm8&hl=en&ei=bH-TSZbcEoOftweIhsnfCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=5&ct=result
* http://books.google.com/books?id=ZI4-xleAptoC&pg=PA82&lpg=PA82&dq=br%26p+route&source=bl&ots=uRJpmWwF4a&sig=n2fJS3j-1HSI12bFTrhr00i8Hm8&hl=en&ei=bH-TSZbcEoOftweIhsnfCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=5&ct=result

Revision as of 02:54, 20 September 2013

Buffalo, Rochester and Pittsburgh Railway
BR&P system map, circa 1907
Overview
HeadquartersRochester, New York
Reporting markBR&P
LocaleNew York
Pennsylvania
Dates of operation1869–1932
SuccessorBaltimore & Ohio Railroad
Technical
Length602 miles (969 kilometres)

The Buffalo, Rochester and Pittsburgh Railway (reporting mark BR&P)[1] was a former Class I railroad that operated in the northeastern United States. It operated independently until 1932, when it was acquired by the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad.

History

In 1869, Rochester, New York had a well-developed flour-milling industry. The Genesee River furnished power to drive the mills; wheat came from the fertile Genesee Valley south of Rochester in boats on the Genesee Valley Canal. To provide better grain transportation and, more important, to bring coal from Pennsylvania, the Rochester & State Line Railroad (R&SL) was incorporated in 1869 to build up the valley of Genesee to the Pennsylvania state line — the destination was later changed to the town of Salamanca, New York.[2][3] The railroad was completed in 1878. Most of its stock was owned by Cornelius Vanderbilt, of the New York Central Railroad (NYC). However, Vanderbilt lost interest in the railroad about the time it began having financial difficulties, and he sold his stock to a New York syndicate.[4]

The R&SL was reorganized as the Rochester & Pittsburgh Railroad (R&P) in 1881.[5] It extended its line south to Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, and contracted with the Pennsylvania Railroad for access to Pittsburgh. At the same time the Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburgh Railroad was organized to build a branch to Buffalo, New York, and several other railroads were chartered.[6][4]

In 1884 the R&P was sold to Adrian Iselin, a New York financier also connected with the Mobile & Ohio Railroad.[7] After some corporate manipulations he consolidated the railroads as the Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburgh Railway (BR&P) in 1887. The BR&P built branches into the coalfields of western Pennsylvania and constructed a line north from Rochester to the shore of Lake Ontario to connect with a car ferry to Cobourg, Ontario.[8] In 1893 a branch was opened to Clearfield, Pennsylvania, where it connected with the NYC and, via the NYC, the westernmost part of the Reading Railroad (RDG). In 1898 the Allegheny & Western Railroad was incorporated to extend the BR&P from Punxsutawney west to Butler, Pennsylvania, and a connection with the Pittsburgh & Western Railroad, then owned by the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad (B&O). Trackage rights from Butler to New Castle and Pittsburgh were included in the arrangement with the B&O. The new line was opened in 1899, and the BR&P finally linked the cities of its name.[4][9]

BR&P developed into a well-run coal hauler. After the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) merger plan of the 1920s was published, both Delaware & Hudson Railway and B&O petitioned for control of BR&P; the ICC approved B&O's application in 1930. Meanwhile the BR&P was sold to the Van Sweringen brothers (who owned the Nickel Plate and controlled the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway [C&O]) in 1928. B&O still wanted to BR&P, and the Van Sweringens wanted the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway, in which B&O held a minority interest. They traded, and on January 1, 1932, B&O acquired the BR&P.[4]

B&O wanted to assemble a Chicago-New York shortcut (a railroad equivalent of Interstate 80) that would use BR&P from Butler to DuBois, the Buffalo & Susquehanna Railroad to Sinnemahoning, and a new line connecting with the RDG west of Williamsport. The Great Depression was not the time for such plans, and the project was shelved.[4]

C&O created the Chessie System in 1973, who then sold the Rochester branch to the Genesee & Wyoming Railroad (G&W) in 1986 to become the Rochester & Southern Railroad, and in April 1988 the remainder of the BR&P became the Buffalo & Pittsburgh Railroad, also a G&W subsidiary. Except for several branches, the lines of the BR&P of 1930 remain intact.[4]

Historic sites

The following BR&P stations are listed on the National Register of Historic Places:

Gallery

  • R&P 4-4-0 ‘’American’’ at the Mumford station
    R&P 4-4-0 ‘’American’’ at the Mumford station
  • R&P 2-8-0 locomotive, the ‘’Carrollton’’, on the Salamanca turntable
    R&P 2-8-0 locomotive, the ‘’Carrollton’’, on the Salamanca turntable
  • R&P #2, the ‘’Salamanca’’, originally built in 1873 for R&SL Rochester and State Line, circa 1881
    R&P #2, the ‘’Salamanca’’, originally built in 1873 for R&SL Rochester and State Line, circa 1881
  • 1874 R&SL station in Scottsville. The siding in the back served local feed mills and coal yards
    1874 R&SL station in Scottsville. The siding in the back served local feed mills and coal yards
  • New BR&P station in Scottsville, circa 1911. This replaced the older station, seen here north of the new one
    New BR&P station in Scottsville, circa 1911. This replaced the older station, seen here north of the new one
  • Dedication ceremony, Scottsville, 1911
    Dedication ceremony, Scottsville, 1911
  • Passenger service in Scottsville, prior to 1953
    Passenger service in Scottsville, prior to 1953
  • BR&P Rochester terminal on Main Street West at Oak Street
    BR&P Rochester terminal on Main Street West at Oak Street
  • BR&P Rochester terminal; currently used for the Nick Tahou restaurant.
    BR&P Rochester terminal; currently used for the Nick Tahou restaurant.
  • Passes issued by the R&P and BR&P
    Passes issued by the R&P and BR&P
  • Freight station in Rochester
    Freight station in Rochester
  • BR&P line crossed Black Creek between Lincoln Park and Scottsville
    BR&P line crossed Black Creek between Lincoln Park and Scottsville
  • BR&P trestle crossing Black Creek in Chili, March 23, 1903
    BR&P trestle crossing Black Creek in Chili, March 23, 1903
  • Mumford Station, currently used as an herb store
    Mumford Station, currently used as an herb store
  • Genesee Coal Dock, looking toward Lake Ontario
    Genesee Coal Dock, looking toward Lake Ontario
  • BR&P timetable, June 4, 1893
    BR&P timetable, June 4, 1893
  • Mikado B&O locomotive
    Mikado B&O locomotive
  • This train hit an improperly set switch in the East Salamanca yard, October 16, 1917
    This train hit an improperly set switch in the East Salamanca yard, October 16, 1917
  • A tree that fell on the tracks due to a storm, June 8, 1906 north of Pavilion, New York
    A tree that fell on the tracks due to a storm, June 8, 1906 north of Pavilion, New York
  • The explosion of a car carrying dynamite in Ridgway, Pennsylvania on November 4, 1906
    The explosion of a car carrying dynamite in Ridgway, Pennsylvania on November 4, 1906
  • Accident at Silver Springs Junction
    Accident at Silver Springs Junction
  • Rear-end collision at Mumford, New York, August 21, 1911
    Rear-end collision at Mumford, New York, August 21, 1911
  • Bridge collapse over Great Valley Creek, September 20, 1912
    Bridge collapse over Great Valley Creek, September 20, 1912
  • Collision on September 12, 1920 in East Bradford
    Collision on September 12, 1920 in East Bradford
  • BR&P locomotive 801 after falling off the tracks in Johnsonburg, Pennsylvania, April 19, 1918
    BR&P locomotive 801 after falling off the tracks in Johnsonburg, Pennsylvania, April 19, 1918
  • Fatal car accident in Spencerport, New York, involving the BR&P, October 20, 1917
    Fatal car accident in Spencerport, New York, involving the BR&P, October 20, 1917

References

  1. ^ ’’Railway Equipment and Publication Company’’ The Official Railway Equipment Register, June 1917, p. 404
  2. ^ http://www.gribblenation.com/papics/eng/kinzua.html
  3. ^ http://www.post-gazette.com/localnews/20021006kinzua7.asp
  4. ^ a b c d e f Drury, George H. (1994). The Historical Guide to North American Railroads: Histories, Figures, and Features of more than 160 Railroads Abandoned or Merged since 1930. Waukesha, Wisconsin: Kalmbach Publishing. pp. 44–46. ISBN 0-89024-072-8. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  5. ^ Buffalo Rochester & Pittsburgh Railway, Paul Pietrak, 1992
  6. ^ A History of Railroads in Western New York, Edward T Dunn, Canisius College Press, 2000, p.88
  7. ^ http://www.mcintyrepa.com/AIselin.htm
  8. ^ cobourghistory.ca
  9. ^ A History of Railroads in Western New York, Edward T Dunn, Canisius College Press, 2000, p.89
  10. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.

External links

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