Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad
| Company type | Railroad |
|---|---|
| Industry | Rail transport |
| Predecessor | Quakake Railroad |
| Founded | 1862 |
| Defunct | 1866 |
| Fate | Merged into Lehigh Valley Railroad |
| Headquarters | United States |
Area served | Pennsylvania |
| Parent | Lehigh Valley Railroad (from 1866) |
The Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad, initially known as the Quakake Railroad (pronounced quake-ache), was a railway line that linked Black Creek Junction in Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley area with the towns of Quakake, Delano, and Mount Carmel. The segment from Black Creek Junction to Quakake commenced operations in 1858, with an extension reaching Mount Carmel by 1860. This railroad played a crucial role in transporting anthracite coal and facilitating eastbound bridge traffic toward New York City. Following 1866, it was incorporated into the Lehigh Valley Railroad network as the Mahanoy Branch.
History
Established by charter on April 25, 1857, the Quakake Railroad was designed to connect the Beaver Meadow Railroad—which later became the Lehigh Valley Railroad's Hazleton Branch—at Black Creek Junction with the Catawissa, Williamsport and Erie Railroad along the stretch between Lofty and Ryan's Tunnels in Rush Township, Pennsylvania. The route repurposed an alignment originally graded by the Little Schuylkill and Susquehanna Railroad in 1840 but subsequently abandoned due to flood damage in 1841. Backed by the CW&E, Beaver Meadow, and Lehigh Valley Railroads, this completion allowed coal shipments from the CW&E to reach New York City via these railroads. Initial plans for an inclined plane were discarded in favor of relocating the junction southward to Quakake Junction near Tamanend. The entire line opened on August 25, 1858, with operations initially managed by CW&E.
A supplemental charter passed in March 1859 authorized expansions into the upper Mahanoy Creek region and allowed branches up to ten miles long to reach coal mines. By 1860, the railroad extended through Delano to Mount Carmel, establishing a connection with the Northern Central Railway’s Shamokin Valley and Pottsville Railroad. Another charter amendment permitted acquisition of its roadbed from CW&E amid its foreclosure restructuring as the Catawissa Railroad.
Entering foreclosure on September 30, 1862, the Quakake Railroad reorganized as the Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad on October 11. A branch line from Park Place to Mahanoy City was constructed in 1865. Subsequently, on June 30, 1866, it merged into the Lehigh Valley Railroad.
Under ownership of Lehigh & Mahanoy, construction was completed between Raven Run and Centralia in 1865 and extended further to Mount Carmel in 1866, connecting with Northern Central’s Shamokin Valley and Pottsville Railroad. In 1884, Lehigh Valley relocated the line higher up the mountainside to prevent Mine Run flooding issues. Several branches were developed: one ran east from Centralia to LV's Continental Colliery (which ceased operation after closing in 1954); another extended from Kohinoor Junction through Girardville to Ashland built in 1877; a two-mile switchback from Logan Junction served Germantown Colliery until its closure in 1960. Additional extensions linked Morris Ridge Junction to Midvalley No. 1 Colliery (1890) and Montana Junction to Midvalley No. 2 Colliery (1892), both abandoned by 1965 following mine shutdowns.
As coal mining waned, abandonment of various sections occurred progressively: the Ashland Branch was truncated between 1951 and 1953; portions of the Mahanoy City Branch were discontinued in 1957; the stretch from Delano to Gerhards was closed in 1963; reductions took place between Mt. Carmel and Raven Run from 1965 through 1971; ultimately, all remaining trackage was fully abandoned by 1976.
See also
References
- "Klein Township and East Union Township." History of Schuylkill County, PA. (New York: W. W. Munsell & Co., 1881).