Crane Railroad
| Company type | Railroad branch line |
|---|---|
| Industry | Rail transport |
| Founded | 1914 |
| Fate | Abandoned (1990s) |
| Headquarters | Catasauqua , United States |
| Products | Rail freight transport |
The Catasauqua Branch was a brief rail segment situated within Lehigh and Northampton Counties in Pennsylvania. As a component of the Lehigh and New England Railroad, this line extended from an area south of Bath to Catasauqua, where it linked with the Central Railroad of New Jersey and the Lehigh Valley Railroad. Established in 1914, portions were abandoned in 1961 following the L&NE's insolvency, with the remaining section discontinued by Conrail during the 1990s.
History
The origins of the Catasauqua Branch trace back to the Lehigh Crane Iron Company, which commenced its operations in Catasauqua in 1840. The firm possessed rail infrastructure surrounding its plant sites, including a bridge spanning the Lehigh River to West Catasauqua. This facilitated connections with the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad (which later became part of the Reading Company) and the Lehigh Valley Railroad. Additionally, after 1867, it linked to the Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad (which subsequently integrated into the Central Railroad of New Jersey).
In 1899, ownership transferred to the Empire Steel and Iron Company, which in 1905 established the Crane Railroad to oversee industrial track operations within Catasauqua. Between 1911 and 1912, a branch line was constructed heading eastward from Catasauqua to a slag disposal area in Kurtz' Valley, incorporating a tunnel measuring 735 feet in length. The Lehigh and New England Railroad (L&NE) built a 5.43-mile link connecting its Bethlehem Branch to the eastern terminus of Crane Railroad’s tracks, completed on April 1, 1914. Subsequently, on September 23, 1914, L&NE acquired the Crane Railroad and redesignated it as the Catasauqua Branch.
Following World War II, diminishing coal shipments combined with a transition of cement transport to trucking caused L&NE to halt operations on October 31, 1961. The Central Railroad of New Jersey responded by forming the Lehigh and New England Railway, which purchased select L&NE lines including approximately 4.4 miles of the Catasauqua Branch; meanwhile, the segment from Catasauqua to Schoenersville was abandoned. The retained portion catered primarily to an industrial park located in Schoenersville.
During financial difficulties in the 1970s, Lehigh and New England Railway became part of Conrail in 1976. Conrail operated this stretch under the name Schoenersville Industrial Track, but all service ceased by 1991, leading to complete abandonment of the line.
References
- Kulp-Lehigh and New England
- United States Railway Association, Official Errata Supplement to the Final System Plan for Restructuring Railroads in the Northeast and Midwest Region Pursuant to the Regional Rail Reorganization Act of 1973, 1975, Washington, DC