St. Johnsbury and Lamoille County Railroad
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Railroad transportation |
| Predecessor | St. Johnsbury and Lake Champlain Railroad |
| Founded | 1948 |
| Defunct | 1973 |
| Successor | Lamoille Valley Railroad (operations started 1978) |
| Headquarters | St. Johnsbury, Vermont , United States |
Area served | Northern Vermont |
| Products | Freight rail services |
The St. Johnsbury and Lamoille County Railroad (StJ&LC) operated as a rail corridor in northern Vermont for more than 100 years until flooding and track degradation led to its shutdown in 1995. Spanning about 96 miles from St. Johnsbury to Swanton, this route is currently being transformed into the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail, which will become the longest rail trail in New England.
History
Construction commenced in December 1869 as part of the Vermont Division of the Portland and Ogdensburg Railway, with the objective of linking the Great Lakes region to the Port of Portland. The line was finalized in 1877, marked by Governor Horace Fairbanks driving the ceremonial silver spike. Initially terminating at Swanton, the railroad was extended in 1883 to Rouses Point to connect with the Ogdensburg and Lake Champlain Railroad, thereby improving access to Great Lakes markets.
In 1912, the eastern portion was leased to the Maine Central Railroad, while the remainder became a subsidiary under the Boston and Maine Railroad. After 1925, Boston & Maine managed their segment as the St. Johnsbury and Lake Champlain Railroad, which was reorganized in 1948 as the St. Johnsbury and Lamoille County Railroad.
The freight mix consisted of inbound goods (30%), outbound dairy products destined for Boston (20%), forest products (15%), minerals such as limestone, talc, and asbestos (25%), along with bridge line traffic (10%) supporting Maine Central's Mountain Division. The transition to diesel power introduced six 70-ton General Electric locomotives, replacing steam engines. Passenger services ceased by 1956; milk shipments declined by 1961 due to competition from trucking, but bridge line freight increased following Maine Central's operating agreement termination in 1953. Limitations like light rails and covered bridges initially prevented heavier cars until structural reinforcements allowed larger locomotives, although track conditions deteriorated under increased weights.
In 1973, Vermont acquired ownership from Samuel Pinsly. Operations were then managed by Morrison-Knudsen under the Vermont Northern Railroad name before local shippers established the Lamoille Valley Railroad in 1978. A Florida-based company leased operations starting in 1989 until severe floods in 1995 and 1997 caused damage beyond repair. Beginning in 2002, Vermont initiated railbanking efforts to convert the corridor into the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail, which was completed in May 2023.
Rail trail
The State of Vermont formed the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail Committee in 1997 to oversee converting the former rail corridor into a recreational path. In 2002, decommissioning of the right of way was approved by the federal Surface Transportation Board, with then-Congressman Bernie Sanders securing over $5 million in federal funding for trail construction. Work commenced in 2006 and advanced steadily despite challenges posed by funding constraints and labor-intensive restoration of stone supports and bridges. By 2023, the entire 93-mile trail stretching from downtown St. Johnsbury to Swanton was completed, tracing alongside the Lamoille and Sleepers Rivers.
Route and Station listing
68.81 Fletcher Fletcher 74.24 rowspan="2" |Fairfield East Fairfield 78.44 Fairfield 83.05 rowspan="2" |Sheldon Sheldon 84.56 Sheldon Junction 90.91 Highgate 94.73 rowspan="2" |Swanton East Swanton || || || |- |- || Swanton Covered Railroad Bridge || || Three-span covered bridge measuring 369 feet built in 1898 over the Missisquoi River; preserved due to rerouting trains over Central Vermont Railroad tracks. || |- |- |96.10 || || Swanton || Current station houses Swanton Historical Society || |- |- || || Fonda Junction || Swanton Lime Works and interchange with Central Vermont Railroad || |- |}Locomotives
| Milepost | Town / City | Station | Image | Note | Position | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.0 | St. Johnsbury | St. Johnsbury | Interchange with Maine Central Railroad and Canadian Pacific Railway. | |||
| 1.4 | Fairbanks Scales manufacturing facility | |||||
| 11.48 | Danville | Danville | ||||
| 14.85 | West Danville | |||||
| 16.30 | Joe's Pond | |||||
| 19.7 | Walden | Walden | ||||
| 23.87 | Dow | |||||
| 27.80 | Greensboro | Greensboro | Situated in Greensboro Bend; named for a significant track curve turning south alongside the Lamoille River. | |||
| 31.0 | Hardwick | East Hardwick | ||||
| 34.73 | Hardwick | Covered bridge constructed in 1909 over the Lamoille River was destroyed by fire in 1959. | ||||
| 35.7 | Granite Junction |
Junction with Hardwick and Woodbury Railroad. |
||||
| 39.0 | Wolcott | Fisher Covered Railroad Bridge | Preserved covered bridge spanning 90 feet built in 1908 over the Lamoille River; last covered railroad bridge operational after reinforcement in 1968. | |||
|
120-foot covered bridge built in 1909 replaced by steel bridge around 1917. |
||||||
| 41.03 | Wolcott | |||||
| 48.88 | Morrisville | Morrisville | ||||
| 51.56 | Hyde Park | Hyde Park | ||||
| 56.35 | Johnson | Johnson Railroad Depot | ||||
| 64.26 | Cambridge | Cambridge Junction |
Junction with Central Vermont Railroad. Covered bridge replaced by steel structure circa 1968. |
|||
| Junction with Missisquoi Railroad line | -
87.40 rowspan="2" |Highgate East Highgate |
|||||
| Number | Manufacturer | Configuration | Year | Serial number | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 2-6-0 | 1909 | 33394 | Originally Montpelier and Wells River Railroad #11; acquired in 1926 |
| 21 | ALCO Manchester | 0-6-0 | 1909 | 46339 | Formerly Boston and Maine Railroad #286; bought in 1947, dismantled in 1949 |
| 22 | ALCO Manchester | 0-6-0 | 1909 | 46338 | Previously Boston and Maine Railroad #285, then Montpelier and Wells River Railroad second #11; purchased in 1944 |
| 23 | ALCO Manchester | 0-6-0 | 1908 | 45125 | Ex-Boston and Maine Railroad #272, later Montpelier and Wells River Railroad second #9; acquired 1940, sold 1944 |
| 24 | ALCO Manchester | 0-6-0 | 1908 | 45131 | Former Boston and Maine Railroad #278; purchased 1930, scrapped 1949 |
| 25 | ALCO Manchester | 0-6-0 | 1908 | 45118 | Ex-Boston and Maine Railroad #265; bought in 1929, scrapped in 1941 |
| 26 | ALCO Manchester | 2-6-0 | 1906 | 38990 | Formerly Boston and Maine Railroad #1419; acquired 1929 |
| 1st #27 | ALCO Manchester | 2-6-0 | 1910 | 47629 | Ex-Boston and Maine Railroad #1485; obtained 1929 |
| 2nd #27 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 0-6-0 | 1923 | 56033 | Originally McKeesport Connecting Railroad #27; purchased 1949, scrapped 1955 |
| 28 | ALCO Manchester | 2-6-0 | 1910 | 48961 | Ex-Boston and Maine Railroad #1491; acquired 1929 |
| 30 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 0-6-0 | 1924 | "38990" | "Formerly McKeesport Connecting Railroad #30; bought in 1949, dismantled in 1953" |
| Number | Manufacturer | Configuration | Year | Serial number | Remarks |
|---|
| 31 | Schenectady Locomotive Works | 4-6-0 | 1899 | 5171 | Formerly Boston and Maine Railroad #2040; acquired 1929 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 32 | Schenectady Locomotive Works | 4-6-0 | 1898 | 4714 | Ex-Boston and Maine Railroad #2035; purchased 1930 |
| 33 | ALCO Schenectady | 2-8-0 | 1901 | 25052 | Originally Boston and Maine Railroad #2350; bought 1930, wrecked 1944 |
| 34 | ALCO Schenectady | 2-8-0 | 1911 | 49001 | Ex-Boston and Maine Railroad #2421; acquired 1930 |
| 35 | ALCO Schenectady | 2-8-0 | 1911 | 49007 | Formerly Boston and Maine Railroad #2427; purchased 1930, scrapped 1938 |
| 36 | ALCO Schenectady | 2-8-0 | 1910 | 47648 | Ex-Boston and Maine Railroad #2404; bought in 1932, dismantled in 1949 |
| 37 | ALCO Schenectady | 2-8-0 | 1911 | 49005 | Former Boston and Maine Railroad #2425; acquired 1932 |
| 38 | ALCO Schenectady | 2-8-0 | 1902 | 25073 | "Ex-Boston and Maine Railroad #2357; purchased 1934, wrecked in 1944 |
| -- Additional locomotives omitted for brevity -- |
| -- Selected later models emphasizing commercial transactions -- | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 46 | General Electric | "70-ton" | "1948" | "29297" | "Transferred to Montpelier and Barre Railroad in 1973" | ||
| -- Other General Electric units with transfer dates -- | |||||||
| -- EMD locomotives -- | |||||||
| "2nd #200" | " EMD" | "GP9" | "1956" | "20973" | "Former New York Central Railroad #5960; acquired 1967, sold in 1973" | ||
| "201" | "EMD" | "GP9" | "1957" | "23589" | "Ex-New York Central Railroad #6056; obtained 1967, sold 1973" | ||
| -- ALCO RS series with acquisition/disposal details -- | - | "202" | "American Locomotive Company" | "RS-3" | "1951" | "78937" | "Former [Reading Railroad] #523; purchased 1968, sold to Montpelier and Barre Railroad in 1973" |
| "203" | "American Locomotive Company" | "RS-3" | "1953" | "80498" | "Ex-Great Northern Railway #229; acquired 1968, sold Montpelier and Barre Railroad in 1973" | ||
| "204" | "American Locomotive Company" | "RS-3" | "1950" | "78292" | "Former Lehigh and Hudson River Railroad #4; purchased 1970" | ||
| "205" | "American Locomotive Company" | "RS-3" | "1950" | "78369" | "Ex-Lehigh and Hudson River Railroad #10; acquired 1971, sold to Montpelier and Barre Railroad (1973), later resold to Vermont Railway (1976) then Batten Kill Railroad (1984)" | ||
| "206" | "American Locomotive Company" | "RS-3" | "1952" | "80163" | "Former [Delaware and Hudson Railroad] #4073; purchased in 1972" |
References
- Hartley, Scott. New England ALCOS at Dusk. PTJ Publishing, 1984. ISBN 0-937658-10-3.
- Johnson, Ron. Railroads of New Hampshire and Vermont. Portland Litho, 1986.
- Lewis, Edward A. Covered Bridge Roads of Vermont. The Baggage Car, 1974.
- https://vtvast.org/flipbook/LVRT/History/?page=1
- https://railtrails.vermont.gov/trails/lamoille-valley-rail-trail/