New York, Ontario and Western Railway
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| New York, Ontario and Western Railway | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Reporting marks | OW |
| Locale | North Jersey, Upstate New York and Northeastern Pennsylvania |
| Dates of operation | 1884 – 1957 |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm) (standard gauge) |
| Headquarters | Middletown, New York |
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 when it was ordered liquidated by a US bankruptcy judge.
The railroad began life as the New York and Oswego Midland Railroad, organized by Dewitt C. Littlejohn in 1868.
The railroad's mainline ran from Weehawken, New Jersey in the greater New York City area to Oswego, New York, a port city on Lake Ontario. It had branch lines to Scranton, Pennsylvania, Kingston, New York, Port Jervis, New York, Utica, New York and Rome, New York. The part south of Cornwall, New York was operated over the New York Central Railroad's West Shore Railroad via trackage rights.
[edit] History
In 1880 O&W inherited the Oswego - New York corridor as well as the branches to Ellenville, Delhi and New Berlin, NY from the New York & Oswego Midland, which had constructed the lines. O&W improved the line by providing a new entrance to Gotham from Middletown, NY which ran to Cornwall on the Hudson river and then to Weehawken, NJ. This development was made possible by negotiating rights of way from the New York, West Shore & Buffalo Railway, later New York Central.
In 1886 the O&W acquired th operations of both the Utica, Clinton & Binghamton and the Rome & Clinton railroads from the Delaware & Hudson Canal Company. By acquisition of these assets and construction of a new line to Sylvan Beach on the east shore of Oneida, O&W extended its operations into new market areas and the Sylvan Beach Loop became a seasonally significant corridor by providing transportation to central New York's recreational resort area. By 1889, the O&W added two new branches, New Berlin to Edmeston, and Port Jervis, Monticello, connecting to the main line at Summitville, NY.
The most significant addition came in 1890 when the O&W constructed a 54 mile branch from Cadosia, NY to Scranton, PA through the rich anthracite coal reserves in Pennsylvania's Lackawanna Valley. Revenues from this Scranton division strengthened O&W's revenues and provided the means for future improvements to the railroad.
[edit] External links
| Current (operating) Class I railroads of North America |
|---|
| United States: AMTK, BNSF, CSXT, GTW, KCS, NS, SOO, UP - Canada: CN, CP, VIA - Mexico: FXE, TFM, KCSM See also: List of USA/Canada/Mexico Class I Railroads, List of USA/Canadian Class II Railroads, Class III railroad, Class 2 Railroads in Canada, Short-line railroad, List of United States railroads, List of Canadian railroads, list of Mexican railroads |
 |
This United States rail-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
