MaineCentralRailroadBlueMountainBranchLines1917

The

Maine Central Railroad The Maine Central Railroad Company was a U. S. Class I railroad in central and southern Maine. It was chartered in 1856 and began operations in 1862. By 1884, Maine Central was the longest railroad in New England. Maine Central had expanded to w ...

Rumford Branch is a railroad line in

Maine Maine () is a U.S. state, state in the New England and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and territories of Canad ...

now operated as part of the

Pan Am Railways Pan Am Railways, Inc. (PAR) is a subsidiary of CSX Corporation that operates Class II regional railroads covering northern New England from Mattawamkeag, Maine, to Rotterdam Junction, New York. Pan Am Railways is primarily made up of former Cl ...

system. The Rumford Branch leaves the mainline at Leeds Junction and continues northwest up the Androscoggin River valley, passing through Livermore Falls and terminating at

Rumford Rumford may refer to: People * William Byron Rumford (1908–1986), California politician * Sir Benjamin Thompson, Count Rumford (1753–1814), American-British-German inventor, scientist, soldier, and official * Kennerley Rumford (1870–1957), ...

. The branch comprises the remaining trackage of three earlier branches: * The first 20.1 miles are the former

Farmington Farmington may refer to: Places Canada *Farmington, British Columbia *Farmington, Nova Scotia (disambiguation) United States * Farmington, Arkansas *Farmington, California * Farmington, Connecticut *Farmington, Delaware * Farmington, Georgia ...

Branch from Crowley's Junction on the Lewiston Branch through Leeds Junction and Livermore Falls to Wilton and

. * The next 11 miles are the former Livermore Falls Branch from

Canton Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and ent ...

to Livermore Falls. * The last 16.1 miles are the former Rangeley Branch from Rumford Junction on the Maine Central Back Road through

and

to Kennebago north of Rangeley Lake. Traffic over the Rangeley branch decreased after adjacent timberlands had been harvested. Summer passenger trains between Oquossoc and Kennebago were replaced in 1933 by a

railbus A railbus is a lightweight passenger railcar that shares many aspects of its construction with a bus, typically having a bus (original or modified) body and four wheels on a fixed base, instead of on bogies. Originally designed and developed ...

built in the Sandy River and Rangeley Lakes Railroad shops. The Rangeley branch north of Rumford was abandoned and dismantled following damage in the 1936 flood. The southern end of the Farmington branch from Leeds Junction to Crowley Junction on the Lewiston lower branch was dismantled in 1938. The southern end of the Rangeley branch from Rumford Junction to Canton was dismantled in 1952. The last passenger train to Farmington was in 1957.

Route mileposts

* Milepost 0: Leeds Junction on the Maine Central Back Road * Milepost 7.3: Leeds Center * Milepost 20.1: Livermore Falls former junction with the

Branch north to the narrow-gauge Sandy River and Rangeley Lakes Railroad interchange at

* Milepost 24.8: Riley's large paper mill originating or terminating 17,000 annual carloads in 1973. * Milepost 31.1:

former junction with the Rangeley Branch south through

Mechanic Falls Mechanic Falls is a town in Androscoggin County, Maine, United States. The population was 3,107 at the 2020 census. It is included in both the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan statistical area and the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan N ...

to Rumford Junction on the Maine Central Back Road near Auburn. * Milepost 47.2:

and Rumford Mill originating or terminating 11,000 annual carloads in 1973.

History

The Androscoggin Railroad was chartered in 1848 to build a Portland gauge railroad to

Farmington, Maine Farmington is a New England town, town in and the county seat of Franklin County, Maine, Franklin County, Maine, United States. As of the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census, its population was 7,592. Farmington is home to the University of Ma ...

from Leeds Junction on the Portland gauge Androscoggin and Kennebec Railroad. The railway was completed to Livermore Falls in 1852, and to Farmington in 1859. The railway was then extended south from Leeds Junction to Brunswick to connect with the standard gauge Kennebec and Portland Railroad in 1861. Conversion of the Androscoggin Railroad to standard gauge that year initiated a series of court battles ultimately eliminating Maine's Portland gauge rail network. Maine Central leased the Androscoggin Railroad in 1871, and converted its own line to standard gauge in 1873. The southern end of the Androscoggin Railroad adjacent to the Androscoggin River from Brunswick to Crowley Junction became the Lewiston branch of the Maine Central, while the remainder of the line to Farmington became the Farmington branch.

Farmington Branch

* Milepost 0: Crowley's Junction with the Maine Central Lewiston Lower Branch * Milepost 4.3:

Sabattus Sabattus is a town in Androscoggin County, Maine, United States. The population was 5,044 at the 2020 census. It is included in both the Lewiston- Auburn, Maine Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine Metropolitan New Engl ...

* Milepost 11.2: Leeds Junction with the Maine Central Back Road * Milepost 13: Highmoor * Milepost 15.6: Curtis Corner * Milepost 18.5: Leeds Center * Milepost 21.3: North Leeds * Milepost 23.5: Strickland * Milepost 26.2: East Livermore * Milepost 31.3: Livermore Falls junction with the Maine Central Livermore Falls Branch * Milepost 33.5: Jay * Milepost 37: North Jay * Milepost 40.6: Wilton * Milepost 42.9:

East Wilton East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...

* Milepost 47.1: West Farmington * Milepost 47.8:

interchange with the Sandy River and Rangeley Lakes Railroad

Lewiston Branch

* Milepost 0: Brunswick on the Maine Central Lower Road * Milepost 4.6: Pejepscot Mills * Milepost 8: Lisbon Falls * Milepost 11.7: Lisbon * Milepost 14.8: Crowley's Junction with the Maine Central Farmington Branch * Milepost 19.6: Lewiston Lower Station The Buckfield Branch Railroad was chartered in 1847 to build a Portland gauge railroad to Buckfield from

on the

Grand Trunk Railway The Grand Trunk Railway (; french: Grand Tronc) was a railway system that operated in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario and in the American states of Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The rai ...

. The railway was completed to Buckfield in 1849 and reorganized as the Portland and Oxford Central Railroad in 1857. The railway was extended to

in 1870 and reorganized as the Rumford Falls and Buckfield Railroad in 1874. The railway went into receivership in 1878 and was converted to standard gauge. The railway was reorganized by

Hugh J. Chisholm Hugh Joseph Chisholm I (; May 2, 1847 – July 1, 1912) was a Canadian industrialist who later became a citizen of the United States. He was born in Chippawa, Ontario, to parents of Scottish ancestry. His early years as an entrepreneur in the ne ...

in 1890 as the Portland and Rumford Falls Railway. The Portland and Rumford Falls Railway was extended north to Rumford Falls in 1892 and south to connect with the Maine Central Railroad at Rumford Junction near Auburn in 1893. A branch line was completed from Canton to Chisholm in 1897 and extended to a connection with the former Androscoggin Railroad at Livermore Falls in 1899. The Portland and Rumford Falls Railway chartered a subsidiary Rumford Falls and Rangeley Lakes Railroad in 1894 to access aboriginal forests north of Rumford. The Rumford Falls and Rangeley lakes reached Oquossoc in 1902. Maine Central leased the entire line from Rumford Junction to Oquossoc in 1907, and extended it to Kennebago. This line became known as the Rangeley branch when formally merged into the Maine Central in 1914. The branch from Canton to Livermore Falls was designated the Livermore Falls branch. Rangeley Lake

Rangeley Branch

* Milepost 0: Rumford Junction on the Maine Central Back Road * Milepost 4.1: Elmwood * Milepost 5.9: Riccars * Milepost 8:

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...

* Milepost 11.6:

interchange with the

* Milepost 16.1: West Minot * Milepost 20.2: East Hebron * Milepost 24.8: Buckfield * Milepost 29.5: East Sumner * Milepost 31.5:

Hartford Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since ...

* Milepost 36.6:

* Milepost 37.3: junction with the Maine Central Livermore Falls Branch * Milepost 38.3: Gilbertville * Milepost 43: East Peru * Milepost 44.8:

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

* Milepost 48.2: Dixfield * Milepost 52.7:

* Milepost 58.5: Frye * Milepost 62.2:

Roxbury Roxbury may refer to: Places ;Canada * Roxbury, Nova Scotia * Roxbury, Prince Edward Island ;United States * Roxbury, Connecticut * Roxbury, Kansas * Roxbury, Maine * Roxbury, Boston, a municipality that was later integrated into the city of Bosto ...

* Milepost 66.6:

Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and has been regarded as among the ...

* Milepost 70.5: Houghton * Milepost 79.3: Bemis * Milepost 86.1: South Rangeley * Milepost 88.6: Oquossoc * Milepost 99.4: Kennebago

Livermore Falls Branch

* Milepost 0:

on the Maine Central Rangeley Branch * Milepost 6.3: Riley's * Milepost 8.4: Jay Bridge * Milepost 11: Livermore Falls on the Maine Central Farmington Branch

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rumford Maine Central Railroad Maine logging railroads Pan Am Railways Rumford, Maine