Central New England Railway
| Company type | Railroad company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Rail transport |
| Founded | January 12, 1899 |
| Defunct | January 1, 1927 |
| Fate | Merged into New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad |
| Headquarters | United States |
Area served | Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York |
| Products | Rail transport services |
The Central New England Railway operated a route extending westward from Hartford, Connecticut and Springfield, Massachusetts through northern Connecticut, crossing the Hudson River via the Poughkeepsie Bridge to Maybrook, New York. It formed a component of the Poughkeepsie Bridge Route, a coordinated network that offered passenger connections between Washington, D.C. and Boston, Massachusetts. After its acquisition by the New Haven in 1904, the CNE continued functioning as an independent company until its merger in 1927. By the mid-20th century, most of its lines were discontinued; however, certain segments remain in operation today under the management of the Central New England Railroad and Housatonic Railroad.
Westward growth from Hartford: 1868–1889
The Connecticut Western Railroad was chartered on June 25, 1868, with the objective of linking Hartford to the New York state boundary near Millerton, New York, where it would connect with the Dutchess & Columbia Railroad. This line was completed by December 1871 and included leasing a portion of the Dutchess & Columbia to reach the New York & Harlem Railroad at Millerton. In 1874, a branch line extending to Collinsville, Connecticut, was constructed. After declaring bankruptcy in 1880, the company reorganized in 1881 under the name Hartford & Connecticut Western Railroad.
Concurrently, on June 29, 1870, New York authorized the Rhinebeck & Connecticut Railroad to build eastward from Rhinecliff on the Hudson River toward the Connecticut border; this segment opened up to Boston Corners by April 1875. The company utilized trackage rights over the Poughkeepsie & Eastern Railroad between Boston Corners and the state line.
On July 1, 1882, the Hartford & Connecticut Western acquired control of the Rhinebeck & Connecticut Railroad, thereby extending its line from Hartford all the way to the Hudson River. Following the bankruptcy of the Poughkeepsie, Hartford & Boston Railroad during the 1880s, H&CW purchased its eastern division outright on January 26, 1884, consolidating vital rail corridors under its operation.
The Poughkeepsie Bridge era: 1871-1899
Efforts to establish a permanent Hudson River crossing south of Albany culminated with the chartering of the Poughkeepsie Bridge Company in June 1871. The bridge was completed with its inaugural train crossing on December 29, 1888, eliminating reliance on less efficient car float transfers. To integrate this bridge into existing rail networks, two connecting lines were chartered: the Hudson Connecting Railroad heading southwest in 1887 and the Poughkeepsie & Connecticut Railroad (P&C) extending northeastward. When acquiring the Poughkeepsie, Hartford & Boston Railroad proved unfeasible, a parallel route terminating at Silvernails, NY was constructed instead. These various lines combined in 1889 to form the Central New England & Western Railroad (CNE&W), which then leased the Hartford and Connecticut Western Railroad. This arrangement created a continuous route from Hartford across the Hudson to Maybrook and Campbell Hall—an important interchange point for several railroads transferring freight cars to CNE&W.
In April 1890, CNE&W established the Dutchess County Railroad to build a connection from Poughkeepsie southeast to Hopewell Junction where it linked with the New York & New England Railroad (NY&NE). This segment opened in May 1892 and provided NY&NE with access to cross via the bridge. The Reading Company (RDG) acquired both CNE&W and the Poughkeepsie Bridge Company in January 1892 as part of expanding its presence into New England through control of Pennsylvania’s Poughkeepsie & Boston Railroad. The merged entity was named Philadelphia, Reading & New England Railroad (PR&NE) in August 1892 but defaulted on financial obligations by May 1893. Ultimately, reorganization efforts resulted in forming the Central New England Railway (CNE) on January 12, 1899.
Central New England Railway: 1899-1927
Starting in 1899, the Central New England Railway (CNE) extended its lines with a branch running from Tariffville, Connecticut, to Springfield, Massachusetts. Following legal disputes initiated by the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad (NH), CNE established the East Granby and Suffield Railroad in 1901 to circumvent contested territories. This branch became operational in September 1902, and by March 1903, CNE had secured a more direct route after acquiring the previously disputed land. In 1904, NH obtained financial control over CNE, primarily to secure strategic access to the Poughkeepsie Bridge and Maybrook junction. Between 1905 and 1907, NH transferred leases of important subsidiaries—including the Dutchess County Railroad—to CNE, thereby consolidating routes extending southwest from Millerton to Beacon and parallel lines converging into Poughkeepsie.
By 1915, former NY&NE lines stretching from Hopewell Junction to Danbury were reassigned to CNE. In 1910, CNE discontinued its original main line in favor of parallel routes inherited from its subsidiaries. Although NH maintained control, integration of east-west passenger services remained limited through the early 1920s. The Massachusetts portion of the Springfield Branch was abandoned in 1921, with additional segments of former lines discontinued by 1925. Consequently, only select routes—such as the original Poughkeepsie and Connecticut Railroad—continued to serve as connections between Pine Plains and Connecticut.
New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad and successors: 1927-
On January 1, 1927, the Central New England Railway was fully merged into the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad. That same year, NH terminated most passenger operations on former CNE lines except for the stretch from Copake, New York to Poughkeepsie, which remained active until at least January 1932.
Among NH’s east-west corridors, CNE featured the steepest gradients; consequently, most bridge traffic was redirected via the former NY&NE route to Hopewell Junction. In 1932, NH abandoned the section of the former Rhinebeck & Connecticut Railroad running southeast from Copake to the state boundary, effectively dividing CNE’s network. Track removal between Waterbury and Southbury occurred in 1937, disrupting a vital east-west link connecting the mid-Hudson Valley with eastern Connecticut.
Additional abandonments took place in 1938: the main line segment between East Canaan and Tariffville was closed alongside the Springfield Branch. Furthermore, portions northeast and east of Poughkeepsie and Rhinecliff, as well as parallel lines and the main line segment from the state border to Lakeville, were also discontinued. The main line from East Canaan to Canaan ceased operations in 1940; later, the Lakeville-Canaan portion was abandoned in 1965.
The Hartford & Connecticut Western Railroad (H&CW), owned by NH through CNE, remained distinct during NH’s bankruptcy in the 1930s. After reorganization efforts beginning in 1937, H&CW was merged into NH on September 18, 1947—along with other subsidiaries such as the Providence, Warren and Bristol Railroad and Old Colony Railroad—by which time most H&CW lines had already been abandoned.
By the time NH merged into Penn Central in 1969, only two original CNE segments remained: a westernmost portion extending from Maybrook across the Poughkeepsie Bridge southeast along the Dutchess County Railroad toward former NY&NE lines; and an eastern segment north of Bloomfield, Connecticut. The western segment formed part of the Maybrook Branch, continuing eastward to Derby. After closure of the Poughkeepsie Bridge on May 8, 1974, abandonment followed for sections west of Hopewell Junction on the Maybrook Branch. Remaining lines were incorporated into Conrail in 1976. Subsequently, these assets were acquired by the Connecticut Department of Transportation, which facilitated operations starting January 1999 by the Central New England Railroad on an 8.7-mile stretch known as the Griffins Industrial Track. The Housatonic Railroad currently operates a short original CNE segment at Canaan serving a limestone quarry and preserving the historic Canaan Union Depot.
References
- Philip C. Blakeslee, A Concise History of Lines West of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad Company (1953)
- Lyndon A. Haight, Pine Plains and Its Railroads (1976)
- Surface Transportation Board – Exemption for Central New England Railroad, Inc. to Operate Line Owned by Connecticut Department of Transportation
- PRR Chronology
External links
- Articles with short description
- Central New England Railway
- Defunct Connecticut railroads
- Defunct Massachusetts railroads
- Defunct New York (state) railroads
- Companies affiliated with the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad
- Former Class I railroads in the United States
- Predecessors of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad
- Railway companies established in 1899
- Railway companies disestablished in 1927
- American companies established in 1899
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- Companies of the United States by year of establishment