The Railroad Journal

Tracking Railroad News in the Greater Bethel area from 1886 onwards.

The Bethel Journals

Posted: September 9, 2007

INTRODUCTION: Railroading – western Androscoggin River area - 1886 to 2006.

Two Railroad Systems: Grand Trunk (Canadian National) and Portland and Rumford Falls (Maine Central)

During this period, Oxford County railroading took the shape of two neighboring systems: the Canadian Grand Trunk / Canadian National Railway that served two main customers: Canada and the port of Portland, Maine. This system appeared first and basically all at once.

The second system began as a single small railroad that connected Buckfield with Mechanic Falls. From a short, inter-town railroad, the Buckfield Branch R.R. was extended year by year so that just before 1890, it had reached Rumford Falls, only 20 miles from Bethel. Eventually the “new” system became part of the Maine Central Railroad. The main purpose of this railroad was to serve the Rumford Falls paper manufacturing industries, their suppliers and customers. It was a part of the Hugh Chisholm plan for the industrial development of Rumford Falls’ water power and timber resources.

The track system of the Grand Trunk/Canadian National Railways coming from Montreal via Island Pond, Vt., entered Maine at Gilead then followed a path to Bethel, South Paris, Mechanic Falls, and Danville Junction and ended at the waterfront on India Street in Portland (near the Customs House and Casco Bay Lines ferry terminal). Grand Trunk had an engine round house and freight yard in the Deering section of Portland, along Presumpscot Street, that was north of the Back Cove Bridge within sight of the Burnham & Morrill plant. Canadian grain was the chief commodity that passed over this system. Railroads would replace canals as the shipping medium.

The Rumford Falls railway system that was merged into Maine Central R.R. eventually ends at the huge Rigby yard in South Portland. (This yard is reported to be the largest yard in New England. It is located, in 2006, directly east of the Maine Mall and east of U.S. Route 1. The Rumford Branch of the Maine Central R.R. followed a path from Rumford Falls to Canton and Jay crossed the Androscoggin River at Livermore Falls and continued to Leeds Junction. From Leeds Junction the rail line proceeds to Lewiston and Danville Junction. This line (Guilford Transportation 1981 until 2006 when it was renamed Pan Am Railways) follows a path west of the Grand Trunk, now St. Lawrence & Atlantic, coming into Portland near Woodford’s Corner then past the H.P. Hood plant and by the shopping mall that stands on the site of the Portland Union Station then a short distance south to the Rigby Yard.

Danville Junction provides an interchange point for both lines.

This journal will hopefully cover railroad events and changes of these two systems as they occurred after 1886.

Early History: The Railroader Advocates’ Challenge: Montreal to Boston or Montreal to Portland?

On May 24, 1895, the Oxford County Advertiser published an article about the early history of the Grand Trunk railroad that had been written by R. K. Dunham formerly a station agent at Island Pond, Vermont. Dunham had been station agent there since 1851. He also had been at Bryant’s Pond ever since the railroad had reached that point. The Advertiser goes on to say that Dunham had originally written the article for the Eastern Daily Argus. Mr. Dunham says:

In 1846, when this railroad between Portland and Montreal was first talked of, the distance was estimated to be 300 miles. It was to be built by two companies, one of which was to begin at Portland and build half way, the other to begin at Montreal and meet the eastern division half way. This arrangement brought the Portland division to Island Pond, Vt., 15 miles east of the Canadian line, or 149.42 miles from Portland; the distance from Montreal to Island Pond was 147.83 miles, making a total of 297.25 miles of railroad as surveyed. This end of the road was to be called the Atlantic & St. Lawrence and the Montreal end the St. Lawrence & Atlantic.

It seems there was a question as to whether Portland or Boston should be the Atlantic coast terminus, which was settled by two mail teams, one from Boston and one from Portland. The Portland mail arrived in Montreal four hours ahead of its rival, winning for Portland the eastern terminus. The driver on this famous race for the eastern end was Orin Hobbs, an old stage driver of ante-railroad times and one of the first conductors on the road. His part of the trip was 100 miles with relays of horses every few miles. He passed over Ricker Hill, through Poland, over Pigeon Hill through Welchville over Shaker Hill to Paris and so on. Mr. Dunham says he broke down on Shaker Hill and had to return to Welchville for a new outfit. The last 100 miles was driven by Grover G. Waterhouse, well remembered in this vicinity, with four milk white horses.

The first officers of the Atlantic & St. Lawrence Railroad were J.S. Little, president; S.T. Courser, superintendent; W.S. Eaton, general ticket and freight agent; C.E. Barrett, treasurer; St. J Smith, W.P. Preble, J.B. Brown, all of Portland, and, Ezra F. Beals of Norway, directors. Work on the road was begun July 4, 1847, with appropriate ceremony, W.P. Preble shoveling the first earth with a silver plated spade into a wheel-barrow to be dumped into the roadbed by Ex-Gov. Parris with a wheelbarrow on ground near the old log fort of 1812 at Fish Point. The road was first surveyed by a Mr. Hall of Portland was by the way of Norway, Bryant’s Pond and Andover to Dixfield (Dixville) Notch, (NH). This route was given up and a survey was made by a son of C.E. Barrett through to Island Pond. The grading and building from Portland to Island was let to John W. Wood of New York.

Mr. Dunham gives the date of its completion to various points and finished through to Island Pond in April 1853.

The names of the first locomotives will be remembered by the elder and middle-aged people along the line, such as Pathfinder, Machigoune (maybe this should have read, Montreal?), Oxford Railway King, etc. The first regular passenger train left Portland March 10, 1851 under the charge of Conductor G.G. Waterhouse and, engineer J.H. Nichols. The first train to reach Island Pond was on April 4, 1853.

In June 1853, the St. Lawrence & Atlantic Railway Co., of Canada, made an offer to lease the Atlantic & St. Lawrence Railroad for 999 years from the first of January 1854. The offer was accepted and the new company was named the Grand Trunk Railway Company of Canada.

What is now (1895?) known as the Canadian Express was at first known as the British & North American Express.

The first carload of flour went through from Montreal in September, 1853. In those days freight was reckoned in pound, shillings and pence. The Canadian currency was changed to dollars and cents shortly after the road was put through.

The rails of the road were laid on the (gauge) of 5 feet, 6 inches and so remained until Saturday, September 26, 1874. The entire distance between Montreal and Portland was on that day changed to the standard gage of 4 feet 8 ½ inches from daybreak to 9 a. m.

In Canada, the formation of the Grand Trunk Railway occurred between 1846 and 1853 through a series of “buy-outs” of smaller railroads located along the planned route of the Grand Trunk. Canadian politics was tightly involved in this railway plan as it was also part of the means to connect Canada’s separate colonies into a unified confederation. (But that is another story.)

Another story about how Canadian officials decided on Portland as their American seaport terminal was told by Rumford Point railroad historian, John Davis, and reported in the Lewiston Daily Sun by Crystal Trundy in the edition printed June 29, 1981. Possibly the reader can merge parts of these stories into a believable whole.

There were two champions of the Portland to Montreal system. John Alfred Poor of Andover saw the line running from Portland through Vermont to Sherbrooke, Quebec to Montreal. Poor also envisioned the line passing through Andover and Dixville Notch but that plan failed to gain support.

In Sherbrooke, Alexander Galt strenuously organized support for the Portland to Montreal line. Galt went to Kingston, Ontario, then the seat of Canada’s government and lobbied effectively for the Portland terminal. Galt’s plan for a line to Portland was an important issue in the 1844 general elections. But Boston sent a delegation to Montreal’s Board of Trade in February 1845 to press the Boston case.

On hearing about the Boston delegation being in Montreal, as Davis account goes, Poor battled through the worst storm on record to reach Montreal and defend the Portland plan. Poor’s persuasiveness won a delay from the board making a decision. Ten days later, Judge Previe arrived with a State of Maine charter for the Atlantic & St. Lawrence Railway. The board voted unanimously in favor of Portland and soon had chartered the St. Lawrence and Atlantic as the Canadian segment of the new future rail system.

Davis says that it was estimated the Maine line would cost $2,225,000 and the Canadian line, $2.4 million. Seen as primarily a Canadian railway, the gauge chosen was the British standard of 5 feet 6 inches. (This broad track gauge lasted until 1874 when it was changed to the American standard of 4 feet 8 and 1/2 inches.) Work on building the railroad began on July 4, 1846 (presumably this date was for the Portland end of the line).

Railroad arrives in Bethel: The train that reached Bethel Hill on March 9, 1851, according to Davis, was a contractor’s train headed by locomotive Jenny Lind pulling cars over untested rails from South Paris. This train carried additional pieces of heavy equipment for a temporary turntable to be installed at Bethel. Along the way many youngsters were invited to climb aboard. On March 10, the Atlantic & St. Lawrence engine, Montreal, “entered Bethel with the regular morning train from Portland to commence regular service between the two points.”

The Journal

3-1-1886 Oxford County Advertiser:

During the weekend and starting on Friday, February 26, 1886, a severe blizzard had battered the greater Bethel area. Only limited movement on foot was possible for a number of days.

Near Locke Mills – Monday morning about 10 o’clock there was a very bad accident on the railroad 1 ½ miles north of Locke’s Mills. Two engines with a snow plow were preceding the passenger train, when at the crossing at Walker’s Mills the plow left the rails and went end over end and bottom side up in the ditch. One of the engines was thrown from the track and badly damaged. There were eight men in the snow plow; five of them were hurt very badly. A physician was on the train and did all that could be done for them.

Another accident occurred about 5 o’clock three-fourths of a mile south of Locke’s Mills. Two engines with snow plow were preceding passenger train. The snow being so hard the rails spread and both engines were thrown from the track. One went on its side in the ditch. The fireman jumped and was caught by the top of the cab and was struck in the middle of the back, his hip dislocated and other injuries inflicted. He was struck in the hip and his abdomen crushed. He was taken back to Bryant’s Pond by passenger train where he was attended by two physicians. The man whose name was N.D. Martin died about 3 o’clock Tuesday morning.

July 23, 1886 Oxford County Advertiser

“The Language of the Train” To sit on your seat and put your feet on another signifies, “I am not accustomed to upholstered furniture at home.” To occupy four seats on one ticket means, “I am a hog.” To lean half way out of the window in order to see the country means, “there are no glazed windows in my home. To turn a front seat and ride backwards, staring the whole car in the face means, “I may not be pretty, but I think I am.” To expectorate on the car floor means: “I have no carpets at home.” To say of the station that: “you cannot see the town for the house” signifies “I have never been anywhere before.” To drink all the water in the tank and go to sleep before 8 o’clock in the morning means: “I was out with the boys last night.” To be bounced off the train means: “I’m dead broke.” Burdette

Oxford Advertiser, 10-29-1886

Norway Branch Railroad – New Time Table. “Arrangements have been made for the running of trains over the Norway Branch Rail Road which will greatly faclitate travel between this point (Norway town center) and the East. The new schedule calls for a morning train leaving here at 6:20 a.m. arriving at Lewiston at 7:40 and Portland at 8:20 a.m. Under the new schedule mails and passengers from Portland will arrive in Norway at 9:10 a.m. instead of 11:15. The Norway Branch Railroad connected to the Grand Trunk Railroad in South Paris. Its tracks in the vicinity of its Route 26 crossing were removed only in the 1990’s. “

The Norway Branch Railroad, a short (1.45 mile) line from South Paris to Norway village, was opened for traffic on December 30, 1879. This branch line was reduced to about half its length in August 1983, with the remainder serving a spur to Wilner Wood Products Co. The line was closed completely after Wilner ceased operations in 1991, but the section nearest South Paris was reopened in 1997 to form a siding at the New England Public Warehouse. Trains entering the Norway town center area were pulled by an engine that had a special muffler installed on the smoke stack to cut down on noise complaints from residents and businesses located along Main Street. This information was provided by Randall Bennett, Bethel Historical Society.

In the summer of 1888, work began on a new depot and freight house for the Norway Branch a few rods west of the old one at the Pleasant Street crossing.

The Norway Branch Passenger train was taken off the timetable in September 1925. But in the summer of 1926 service was restored by backing the mainline passenger train in or out of Norway. (Davis 1981 lecture)

GRAND TRUNK RAILROAD TIMETABLE

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Grand Trunk Railroad

Schedule effective on and after May 15, 1887

Schedule in effect on May 15, 1887

Station	Mixed	Pass.	Pass.
Montreal to Portland
Gorham	5:10 AM	8:45 AM	3:00 PM
Gilead	5:24	9:10	-
W. Bethel	5:45	9:22	3:21
Bethel	5:53	9:31	3:28
Locke Mills	6:08	-	3:43
Bryant Pond	6:10	9:41	3:52
W. Paris	6:20	10:02	4:03
S. Paris	6:28	10:20	4:18
Portland	8:25	12:05	5:45
Portland to Montreal
Portland	9:30 AM	1:50 PM	5:27 PM
Bryant Pond	11:33	4:29	7:25
Locke Mills	11:40	-	7:41
Bethel	11:48	4:40	7:50
W. Bethel	11:56	4:50	7:59
Gilead	12:08