B&H Rail Corporation
| Reporting mark | BH |
|---|---|
| Locale | New York |
| Dates of operation | 1872– |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge |
| Previous gauge |
|
| Headquarters | Cohocton, New York |
B&H Rail Corporation (reporting mark BH), formerly the Bath & Hammondsport Railroad, is a Class III shortline railroad. Initially the line served the communities of Bath, New York and Hammondsport, New York. In Bath, the railroad connected with the Erie Railroad and the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. In 1996, the railroad was leased by the Livonia, Avon and Lakeville Railroad.
History
It was chartered in 1872 as a 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge railroad running from the Erie and Delaware, Lackawanna and Western railroads' interchange in Bath, New York, to Hammondsport, New York. In Hammondsport, passengers could continue North via a ferry on Keuka Lake. The railroad was converted to 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge in 1889.[1] The line eventually came under control of the Erie Railroad. Passenger service ended in 1917, when 'Steamer' service on Keuka Lake was discontinued. The Erie Railroad disowned the line in 1937. The last B&H steam locomotive was #11, was built by Alco at its Cooke Locomotive and Machine Works in Paterson, NJ for a sugar railway in Cuba, but the order was never fulfilled. It was sold to the Narragansett Pier Railroad, before being sold to the Bath & Hammondsport. The B&H sold #11 to Rail City Railroad Museum's Sandy Pond & Lake Ontario, after Rail City closed was sold back to the Narragansett Pier Railroad, to be used in an excursion service, which never occurred. It was sold to the Middletown & New Jersey (M&NJ).
The B&H dieselized with two GE 44 tonners which were eventually replaced with two Alco S1s.
1960 saw the merger of the Erie and the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western railroads with the formation of the Erie Lackawanna. On April 1, 1976, the Erie Lackawanna became part of Conrail. That same year, Conrail sold the DL&W line between Bath and Wayland to the Steuben County Industrial Development Agency (SCIDA). The county operated the line with the nickname of 'The Champaign Route'.
In May 1996, shortline Livonia, Avon and Lakeville Railroad (LAL) assumed operation[2] of the county-owned trackage, including the original B&H. These operations were transferred to subsidiary Conhocton Valley Railroad in 2001, and later that year this company was renamed B&H Rail Corporation and assumed a long-term lease of Norfolk Southern Railway trackage between Wayland, Bath and Painted Post.[3] At this time, the LAL embarked on an aggressive track rehab program, replacing many ties. The track to Hammondsport remains out of service, but is not abandoned.
As of August 2008, the B&H sees regular service between Cohocton and Painted Post. About half of a mile of the Hammondsport branch line being used as a siding. The line continues to be very well maintained, and some new construction is occurring on the main line from Bath to Painted Post just past the junction where dirt embankments have been built up as if additional sidings were going to be added.
References
- Livonia, Avon & Lakeville History
- Livonia, Avon & Lakeville Railfan Network
- The Greater Rochester Railfan page
- ↑ Hilton, American Narrow Gauge Railroads,1990, Stanford Univ. Press
- ↑ STB Notice: 22 May 1996 - FD_32941_0
- ↑ STB Notice: 13 November 2001 FD_34123_0