Atlantic City Railroad

Atlantic City Railroad
Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Railroad
Predecessor	Southern New Jersey railroads unified under Atlantic City Railroad banner by Philadelphia and Reading Railway
Founded	April 1, 1889; 137 years ago
Defunct	1933
Fate	Merged into Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines
Headquarters	New Jersey
Area served	Southern New Jersey
Parent	Philadelphia and Reading Railway

The Atlantic City Railroad functioned as a subsidiary of the Philadelphia and Reading Railway before its integration into the Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines in 1933. As of late 1925, it managed of mainline track across of total trackage, reporting freight ton-miles of 43 million alongside passenger-miles reaching 204 million during that year.

History

Starting on 1 April 1889, the Philadelphia and Reading Railway unified its Southern New Jersey railroads under the Atlantic City Railroad banner.

Speed records

On 20 July 1904, train number 25, traveling from Kaighn's Point (Camden) to Atlantic City, established a new speed benchmark. The locomotive, a Philadelphia and Reading Railway class P-4c 4-4-2 No.334 hauling five passenger cars, completed the journey of in just 43 minutes, averaging . The portion between Winslow Junction and Meadows Tower was traversed in 20 minutes at an average speed of , with peak velocities reaching up to between Egg Harbor and Brigantine Junction.

Camden, Gloucester and Mount Ephraim Railway

Founded on 17 June 1873 by investors from Gloucester City, this railway aimed to link the Kaighn's Point ferry terminal in Camden with Gloucester City's industrial district located away, subsequently extending another to Mount Ephraim Borough.

Due to tight curves along city streets, the line was constructed as a narrow gauge. Construction commenced in January 1874, with the segment from Kaighn's Point to Gloucester City opening on 14 February 1874. The extension to Mount Ephraim became operational by May 1876. Control passed to the Philadelphia and Reading Railway in November 1884, which then converted the tracks to standard gauge in 1885.

Philadelphia and Atlantic City Railway

In 1875, a group of four directors from the Camden and Atlantic Railroad (C&A), led by Samuel Richards, initiated plans for a second rail connection between Camden, New Jersey and Atlantic City via Clementon. Incorporated on 24 March 1876, this line was built using a narrow gauge to minimize operating expenses. Construction began in April 1877 and concluded within ninety days. The railway opened on 7 July 1877 but declared bankruptcy by mid-July the following year. On 20 September 1883, it was jointly acquired for $1 million by the CNJ and Philadelphia and Reading Railway. Renamed Philadelphia and Atlantic City Railroad on 4 December 1883, the route was converted to standard gauge by 5 October 1884, with full ownership transferring to Philadelphia and Reading Railway on 4 December 1885.

Williamstown and Delaware River Railroad

Established in 1883 to reorganize the insolvent Williamstown Railroad, this company operated between Williamstown, New Jersey and Atco, New Jersey. It extended the Williamstown Branch first to Glassboro during 1883–1884 and later to Mullica Hill in 1888, covering a total distance of .

Cultural context

By the closing decades of the nineteenth century and into the early twentieth century, railroads played a crucial role in providing access to New Jersey’s shorelines. Philadelphia and Camden passengers frequently relied on PRR lines for travel to beach destinations.

Railroads acquired in 1901

On 14 June 1901, the Atlantic City Railroad was reestablished through a consolidation with several other railroads...

Camden County Railroad

The Camden County Railroad was formed on 17 September 1889 with the purpose of extending the Atlantic City Railroad's Gloucester Branch from the Camden, Gloucester & Mt Ephraim Railway, connecting Mount Ephraim, New Jersey to Spring Mills—where Bateman Manufacturing operated two agricultural equipment factories. By the close of 1890, five miles of track had been completed southward from Mt. Ephraim. The final segment of 2.19 miles, finished by 10 May 1891, linked Spring Mills (later renamed Grenloch) to stations at Bellmawr, Runnemede, Glendora, Chews Landing (previously South Glendora), Blenheim, Blackwood, and Grenloch itself. Upon completion, this line was leased to the Atlantic City Railroad. The earliest timetable indicating service on the Gloucester Branch between Mt. Ephraim and Grenloch took effect on 14 April 1892.^[1]

ACRR Gloucester Branch
P-RSL Grenloch Branch

Cape May, Delaware Bay and Sewell's Point Railroad

Operating from 1863 through the 1920s, this railroad ran a route beginning at Sunset Beach in Lower Township, curving around the Point to South Cape May (currently South Meadows), then into Cape May City, continuing out to Sewell's Point (present-day Coast Guard Training Center), and returning to Schellenger's Landing where passengers could transfer to trains bound for Philadelphia.

Ocean City Railroad

This line connected Ocean City Junction directly with Ocean City.

Seacoast Railroad

The Seacoast Railroad operated a route from Winslow Junction extending to Tuckahoe, Sea Isle City, and terminating at Cape May.

Stone Harbor Railroad

Purchased in April 1932, the Stone Harbor Railroad ran between Cape May Court House and Stone Harbor. This line was merged into the PRSL in 1936.

Wildwood and Delaware Bay Short Line Railroad

Acquired in July 1930, this railroad connected Wildwood Junction with Wildwood. It was consolidated with the Atlantic City Railroad (later PRSL) in 1934.

Pleasantville & Ocean City Railroad

Incorporated on 9 June 1880 with William Massey serving as president, this narrow-gauge railroad commenced operations on 26 October between Pleasantville and Somers Point, New Jersey. It was managed by the Philadelphia & Atlantic City Railway and provided steamboat connections to Ocean City. In May 1882, Massey sold the company to the West Jersey and Atlantic Railroad which leased it starting 1 June and soon initiated conversion to standard gauge.

Brigantine Railroads

The Brigantine Beach Railroad was incorporated on 7 August 1889 to construct a line from Pomona on the Camden and Atlantic Railroad to Brigantine Island. The Pomona Beach Railroad followed incorporation on 21 April 1890 to link the Brigantine Beach Railroad with the Atlantic City Railroad at Pomona; both lines were leased by August 1890 to the Atlantic City Railroad.

On 27 January 1891, Pomona Beach Railroad merged with Brigantine Beach Railroad forming a continuous route of approximately 13.9 miles from Brigantine Beach to Brigantine Junction. In 1893, the Brigantine Transit Company launched an electric trolley system along Brigantine Beach covering about 6.25 miles.

Following foreclosure in June 1895, George H. Cook acquired Brigantine Beach Railroad which was reestablished as Philadelphia & Brigantine Railroad in April 1896 under Cook’s presidency; this new entity also leased the Brigantine Transit Company. However, Atlantic City Railroad terminated its lease of Philadelphia & Brigantine Railroad in September 1897.

A severe storm in September 1903 destroyed the trestle leading to Brigantine Island; consequently, service was discontinued by October of that year.

Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines

On November 2, 1932, the southern New Jersey rail operations of the Pennsylvania Railroad and Reading Company were consolidated to form the Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines. In this joint venture, the Pennsylvania Railroad possessed a two-thirds ownership share, while the Reading Company held the remaining one-third.

Subsequently, on July 15, 1933, the Atlantic City Railroad took over the West Jersey & Seashore Railroad through a lease agreement and adopted the Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines name.

References

External links

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