Maine Central Railroad Mountain Division

The Mountain Division, later the Mountain Subdivision, was a railroad line operated by the Maine Central Railroad from the Atlantic Ocean through the White Mountains of Maine and New Hampshire into Vermont's Northeast Kingdom. The line stretched from Portland, Maine to St. Johnsbury, Vermont and was originally built as the Portland and Ogdensburg Railroad until its acquisition by the Maine Central.

History

The railroad initially provided convenient transportation for summer visitors to large wooden Victorian hotels including the Mount Washington Hotel and Crawford House in Crawford Notch and the Bay of Naples Inn reached by connection with Sebago Lake steamboats. The cool, clean air of the White Mountains and Sebago Lake was a refreshing escape from the smoky heat and humidity of 19th century cities. Autumn foliage and winter skiing extended the tourist season. The Flying Yankee train-set operated as the "Mountaineer" from Boston to Crawford Notch via Intervale Junction during World War II, [Johnson P.139] but passenger service had been reduced to a single daily round-trip between Portland and St. Johnsbury by the 1930s. The train between Portland and St. Johnsbury usually consisted of a RPO-express car, a baggage car and a single coach after the 1920s; and substitution of a stainless steel combination for the coach and baggage car reduced the train to two cars for the last several years before the end of passenger service in 1958. [Johnson P.149]

This line was the shortest route from Portland, Maine to points west of Chicago. It saw relatively heavy through freight traffic from termination of the joint operating agreement with Boston & Maine Railroad in 1953 until abandonment in 1983 when Guilford Transportation Industries ownership again favored Boston & Maine routing. The westbound grade was 2.2% for 18.5 miles from Bemis (Notchland) to the summit at Crawford Notch. [Johnson P.13&54] Maine Central operated 2-6-6-2 Mallet locomotives #1201-1204 on the Mountain Division from 1911 through the 1920s. The mallets had been built for the Boston and Maine Railroad Hoosac Tunnel in 1910; and were sold to Maine Central when Hoosac Tunnel was electrified the following year. The Mallets were built to burn oil, but were converted to burn coal after local fire departments had difficulty extinguishing oil fires. [Johnson P.67] Two large firemen were required to hand fire the coal-burning Mallets westbound. [Johnson P.70] One Mallet was stationed in Portland, another at Lancaster on the Beecher Falls Branch, and a third at the Bartlett helper wye, while the fourth Mallet was undergoing maintenance.

USRA Light Mikados (Maine Central class S) handled freight trains on the Mountain Division after the last Mallet was retired in 1931; and class O 4-6-0s handled local trains and (often in tandem) provided helper service. EMD F3s and GP7s replaced steam locomotives in 1950. [Johnson P.223] Four or five diesel locomotives were typical head-end power for diesel-era freight trains; and a pair of EMD SW7s or non-dynamic-braked GP7s often provided helper service westbound. First generation diesels were replaced by similar numbers of EMD GP38s and GE U18Bs. Helpers were less common with these second generation diesels.

Today

The Conway Scenic Railroad currently operates summer and fall excursion trains on the portion of the old Mountain Division between North Conway, Crawford Notch, and Faybans.

The portion of the line from Westbrook, Maine to the Maine–New Hampshire border is owned by the Maine Department of Transportation and is currently inactive, although MDOT has longterm plans to reactive the line for freight and commuter rail service.

Maine Central's parent company, Pan Am Railways, retains ownership of the section of the line from Milepost 0 to Westbrook, which it operates as the "Mountain Branch."

Route mileposts

Milepost 0: Portland interchange with Boston and Maine Railroad and Grand Trunk Railway operated by Portland Terminal Company.

Milepost 5.4: Cumberland Mills S. D. Warren Paper Mill and junction with Boston and Maine Railroad Worcester, Nashua & Portland Division operated by Portland Terminal Company. Agent's station closed 1983.

Milepost 10.8: South Windham agent's station closed 1981.

Milepost 12: Newhall agent's station closed 1932.

Milepost 13.6: White Rock agent's station closed 1921.Milepost 16.7: Sebago Lake Station connection with Sebago Lake steamboats. Queen Anne style agent's station built 1890 and closed 1935. Turntable and 2-stall enginehouse built in 1890.

Milepost 24.6: Steep Falls privately built depot with dance hall upstairs dismantled 1961.

Milepost 26.4: Mattock's agent's station closed 1933.

Milepost 31.7: Cornish agent's station closed 1962.

Milepost 33.4: West Baldwin agent's station closed 1930.

Milepost 36.3: Bridgton Junction interchange with narrow-gauge Bridgton and Saco River Railroad. Agent's station closed 1930.

Milepost 36.8: Hiram agent's station closed 1949.

Milepost 43.3: Brownfield agent's station closed 1935.

Milepost 49.8: Fryeburg, Maine agent's station closed 1971.

Milepost 54.3: Conway Center, New Hampshire agent's station closed 1933.

Milepost 56.9: Redstone large granite quarry. Agent's station closed 1935.

Milepost 59.3: North Conway agent's station closed 1952.

Milepost 61.4: Intervale Junction with Boston and Maine Railroad to Rochester, New Hampshire. Agent's station closed 1958.

Milepost 64.8: Glen agent's station closed 1950.

Milepost 70.5: Bartlett helper terminal for the westbound grade up through Crawford Notch. Agent's station closed 1962, then reopened 1981-1984.

Milepost 74.8: Sawyer's River junction with Sawyer River Railroad. Agent's station closed 1921.

Milepost 76.6: Bemis flag stop renamed Notchland in 1931.

Milepost 78.2: Carrigain junction with Saco Valley Railroad. Agent's station closed 1898.

Milepost 79.5: Frankenstein Trestle

Milepost 80.8: Willey House section foreman's house.

Milepost 83.5: Mount Willard section foreman's house.

Milepost 85: Crawford Notch agent's station closed 1955 and sold to Appalachian Mountain Club.

Milepost 88.3: Bretton Woods junction with Boston and Maine Railroad to Mount Washington. Agent's station closed 1958.

Milepost 93.6: Twin Mountain

Milepost 99.5: Quebec Junction with Maine Central Quebec Division (later Beecher Falls branch) to Lime Ridge, Quebec (operated as the North Stratford Railroad after 1976.)

Milepost 103.6: Whitefield junction with Boston and Maine Railroad to Berlin, New Hampshire.

Milepost 106.8: Scott, New Hampshire, junction with Boston and Maine Railroad to Groveton, New Hampshire. Agent's station closed 1931.

Milepost 109.1: Lunenburg, Vermont agent's station closed 1924.

Milepost 111.5: Gilman paper mill agent's station closed 1983.

Milepost 113.5: Mayo agent's station closed 1932.

Milepost 116.4: Miles Pond agent's station closed 1921,

Milepost 119.7: Essex agent's station closed 1932.

Milepost 123.5: Concord agent's station closed 1949.

Milepost 127.2: Griswold agent's station closed 1932.

Milepost 131.4: St. Johnsbury interchange with Boston and Maine Railroad (became Canadian Pacific Railway in 1926) and St. Johnsbury and Lamoille County Railroad.

Notes

References

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