The Mont Alto Rail Road was a railroad in

Franklin County, Pennsylvania Franklin County is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 155,932. Its county seat is Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, Cha ...

, originally built to connect the

blast furnace A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally pig iron, but also others such as lead or copper. ''Blast'' refers to the combustion air being supplied above atmospheric pressure. In a ...

s of the Mont Alto Iron Company to the

Cumberland Valley Railroad The Cumberland Valley Railroad was an early railroad in Pennsylvania, United States, originally chartered in 1831 to connect with Pennsylvania's Main Line of Public Works. Freight and passenger service in the Cumberland Valley in south central P ...

. It was later extended south to reach Waynesboro.

History

Incorporated as the Scotland and Mont Alto Railroad on May 3, 1864, it was proposed to run from the Cumberland Valley Railroad near

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

to the iron company's furnaces near Mont Alto. Renamed the Mont Alto Rail Road on November 22, 1871, it opened from

Chambersburg Chambersburg is a borough in and the county seat of Franklin County, in the South Central region of Pennsylvania, United States. It is in the Cumberland Valley, which is part of the Great Appalachian Valley, and north of Maryland and the Ma ...

to Mont Alto in October 1872. In 1875, the iron company opened Mont Alto Park on its property, and the railroad began carrying picnickers to the park. In May 1878, the company began extending a new line south from Ledy, near Mont Alto, to Waynesboro. This was done in part to interfere with the

Harrisburg and Potomac Railroad Harrisburg ( ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,099 as of 2020, Harrisburg is the ninth-most populous city in Pennsylvania. It is the larger of the two pr ...

. The new line was completed in April 1879, and the Mont Alto Rail Road was leased to the Cumberland Valley Railroad. However, it continued to operate its own

locomotive A locomotive is a rail transport, rail vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. Traditionally, locomotives pulled trains from the front. However, Push–pull train, push–pull operation has become common, and in the pursuit for ...

s until 1894. In 1891, the short-lived Chambersburg and Gettysburg Railroad opened from a connection with the Mont Alto RR at Conococheague Junction, near

Fayetteville Fayetteville may refer to: *Fayetteville, Alabama *Fayetteville, Arkansas ** The Fayetteville Formation *Fayetteville, Georgia *Fayetteville, Illinois *Fayetteville, Indiana *Fayetteville, Washington County, Indiana *Fayetteville, Missouri *Fayette ...

. The

iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the f ...

and

lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...

it hauled proved insufficient to sustain it, and it ended operations in 1893. On April 27, 1901, the Mont Alto Rail Road was sold at foreclosure, and reorganized on June 7, 1901 as the Cumberland Valley and Waynesboro Railroad. Mont Alto Park was turned over to the

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Maryland to its south, West ...

in 1902. The new company was sold to the Cumberland Valley Rail Road on June 30, 1906. The Cumberland Valley was itself merged into the

Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad ( reporting mark PRR), legal name as the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, also known as the "Pennsy," was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At its ...

on 1919; the bulk of the Cumberland Valley & Waynesboro became the Waynesboro Branch, and the spur from Ledy to Mont Alto Park the Mont Alto Park Track. The PRR List of Stations and Sidings (CT 1000) from 1923 reveals a mostly rural branch, with little industry online except for sand mining at Pond Bank and manufacturing in the town of Waynesboro.C. T. 1000 E ''Pennsylvania Railroad System List of Stations and Sidings and Instructions for Making Reports to the Superintendent Car Services'' (1923) Passenger service on the Waynesboro and the Mont Alto Park Track ended June 28, 1933. The 1945 CT 1000 shows a picture not dissimilar to that of 1923. The sand companies at Pond Bank had disappeared and an

elevator An elevator (American English) or lift (Commonwealth English) is a machine that vertically transports people or freight between levels. They are typically powered by electric motors that drive traction cables and counterweight systems suc ...

company opened in East Fayetteville, but the branch was still essentially rural, except for the industries it served at Waynesboro.C. T. 1000 E ''Pennsylvania Railroad System List of Stations and Sidings and Instructions for Making Reports to the Superintendent Car Services'' (1945) The Mont Alto Park spur was the first part to be dismantled; then in 1972, the entire railroad from Chambersburg to Waynesboro was abandoned by

Penn Central The Penn Central Transportation Company, commonly abbreviated to Penn Central, was an American class I railroad that operated from 1968 to 1976. Penn Central combined three traditional corporate rivals, the Pennsylvania, New York Central and the ...

. After a brief revival of service in 1975, it was permanently abandoned in 1976 on the formation of

Conrail Conrail , formally the Consolidated Rail Corporation, was the primary Class I railroad in the Northeastern United States between 1976 and 1999. The trade name Conrail is a portmanteau based on the company's legal name. It continues to do busine ...

Stations

Waynesboro Branch Mont Alto Park Track

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mont Alto Railroad Defunct Pennsylvania railroads Predecessors of the Pennsylvania Railroad Transportation in Franklin County, Pennsylvania Railway companies established in 1871 Railway companies disestablished in 1901