Events in West Shore History
2/16/1867- Hudson River and West Shore Railroad Company incorporated
3/31/1868- West Shore Hudson River Railroad Company
7/21/1877- New York West Shore and Chicago Railroad
2/18/1880- First corporation bearing the name New York West
Shore and Buffalo Railway Company
5/5/1881- New York West Shore and Buffalo Railroad Company
Chartered
1882- Building commences
6/4/1883- First Passenger run from Jersey City, NJ to Newburgh,
NY
7/1883- Construction finished between Kingston and Albany
10/1883- Construction through heavy rock in Little Falls, NY
10/1883- Construction to Syracuse, NY
1884- Construction to Buffalo, NY
1884- The NYWS&B
goes bankrupt
7/1885- NYWS&B merged into
The New York Central and Hudson River Railroad. The West Shore Railroad keeps
it’s corporate identity.
1907- A portion of the West Shore between Utica and Syracuse
is electrified for the New York State Electric Railroad trolley line. It is
abandoned in the early 1930’s.
1952- The New York Central System assumes control of the West
Shore
1959- Frankfort Freight House Closes
1971-1973- Track is abandoned between Ilion and Fort Plain. Track remains
open from Utica yard to Ilion until 1982 for storage of Conrail trailer cars.
Track is ripped up from Utica to Ilion.
1976- Penn Central seeks to abandon trackage between Amsterdam
and Fort Plain. New York State forces it into Conrail.
1979- New York State DOT upgrades the Mohawk Division from Rotterdam Jct. To Fort Plain
1981- Conrail Plans to abandon trackage from Cranesville to
Fort Plain, says business at Beech-Nut in Canajoharie not enough. The B&M
makes it known that it has interest in running the line, but Conrail blocks
them from interchanging at Rotterdam Jct. The Mohawk Transportation Company
tries to aquire the line, but the price is too steep.
12/1981- The line from Cranesville to Fort Plain is abandoned.
1982-1984- Track is removed from
South Amsterdam to Fort Plain
2002- New York Senator Chuck Shumer discusses restoring rail
service to Beech-Nut in Canajoharie. He didn’t realize the closest connections
were across the Mohawk River in Nelliston and down the abandoned ROW in Cranesville.
1999- CSX assumes control of Conrail, discontinues using ballast
from Cushing Stone.
6/2003- CSX abandons track from Rotterdam Junction to Cranesville. Conrail had been using Cushing Stone Industries for their ballast.
10/2004- Track removal begins
near the end-of-track in Cranesville heading East
Notes:
NYWS&B shops were located at Frankfort, New York. The
shops were moved to Buffalo after it was merged into the New York Central
System.
A gas electric car was used for passenger service between Ravena, NY
and Utica, NY until 1930.
Locomotive #260 located at Cushing Stone Quarry is an EMD
Model 40 locomotive. EMD produced only 11 of these between 1940
and 1943.
