United Railroad Historical Society of New Jersey

Last updated
Pennsylvania Railroad GG1 #4877 on display at the URHS facility PRR 4877.JPG
Pennsylvania Railroad GG1 #4877 on display at the URHS facility

The United Railroad Historical Society of New Jersey, Inc. (or URHS of NJ) is a non-profit educational organization directed at supporting the preservation of New Jersey's historical railroad equipment and artifacts for the proposed New Jersey Transportation Heritage Center or in its absence, another railroad museum in New Jersey.

Contents

In order to coordinate resources, representatives from most of New Jersey's major railroad-interest organizations formed the URHS of NJ in 1987. URHS of NJ has been working toward rescuing potential items from scrapping and has been assisting in searching for the location of The New Jersey Transportation Heritage Center. The URHS of NJ expects to play a major role in its design, content and operation.

The United Railroad Historical Society of NJ Inc. is located at 104 Morris Avenue in Boonton, NJ. The zip code is 07005–1314.

Locomotives

The URHS has a handful of locomotives either restored or under restoration, while some are awaiting restoration.

Locomotives:

Organizations involved

The URHS board of directors is, as of 2023 composed of representatives of 9 of the original 17 member groups. The purpose of this is to assure all participate equally in the decision-making and activities and will be representative of all of the local railroad history community. Individuals may join any member organization or The Friends of the New Jersey Transportation Heritage Center to participate in URHS efforts.

Preservation activities

A large part of the URHS collection was moved from the Lebanon and Ridgefield Park NJ storage locations to Boonton railyard in 2010. With that accomplished the ability to do cosmetic restoration was greatly enhanced.

The organization leased a large vacant building in 2021 to allow for further preservation work to be conducted indoors. [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad</span> Former U.S. Class 1 railroad

The Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad, also known as the DL&W or Lackawanna Railroad, was a U.S. Class 1 railroad that connected Buffalo, New York, and Hoboken, New Jersey, and by ferry with New York City, a distance of 395 miles (636 km). The railroad was incorporated in Pennsylvania in 1853, and created primarily to provide a means of transport of anthracite coal from the Coal Region in Northeast Pennsylvania to large coal markets in New York City. The railroad gradually expanded both east and west, and eventually linked Buffalo with New York City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Erie Lackawanna Railway</span> American transport company

The Erie Lackawanna Railway, known as the Erie Lackawanna Railroad until 1968, was formed from the 1960 merger of the Erie Railroad and the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad. The official motto of the line was "The Friendly Service Route".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NJ Transit Rail Operations</span> Commuter rail division of NJ Transit

NJ Transit Rail Operations is the rail division of NJ Transit. It operates commuter rail service in New Jersey, with most service centered on transportation to and from New York City, Hoboken, and Newark. NJ Transit also operates rail service in Orange and Rockland counties in New York under contract to Metro-North Railroad. The commuter rail lines saw 57,179,000 riders in 2023, making it the third-busiest commuter railroad in North America and the longest commuter rail system in North America by route length.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">EMD E8</span> Model of 2250 hp American passenger cab locomotive

The EMD E8 is a 2,250-horsepower (1,678 kW), A1A-A1A passenger-train locomotive built by General Motors' Electro-Motive Division (EMD) of La Grange, Illinois. A total of 450 cab versions, or E8As, were built from August 1949 to January 1954, 447 for the U.S. and 3 for Canada. 46 E8Bs were built from December 1949 to January 1954, all for the U.S. The 2,250 hp came from two 12 cylinder model 567B engines, each driving a generator to power the two traction motors on one truck. The E8 was the ninth model in the line of passenger diesels of similar design known as EMD E-units. Starting in September 1953, a total of 21 E8As were built which used either the 567BC or 567C engines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Jersey Department of Transportation</span> Government agency

The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) is the agency responsible for transportation issues and policy in New Jersey, including maintaining and operating the state's highway and public road system, planning and developing transportation policy, and assisting with rail, freight, and intermodal transportation issues. It is headed by the Commissioner of Transportation. The present acting commissioner is Francis K. O'Connor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern Branch</span> Railway line in New Jersey

The Northern Branch is a railroad line that runs from Jersey City to Northvale in northeastern New Jersey, and formerly extended further into New York State. The line was constructed in 1859 by the Northern Railroad of New Jersey to connect the New York and Erie Railroad's Piermont Branch terminus in Piermont, New York, directly to Erie's primary terminal in Jersey City, initially Exchange Place, later Pavonia Terminal. In 1870 the line was extended to Nyack, New York, and continued to provide passenger service until 1966. After the Erie's unsuccessful merger with the Lackawanna Railroad to form the Erie-Lackawanna, ownership of the line passed into the hands of Conrail upon its formation in 1976 from a number of bankrupt railroads.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conrail</span> Former American Class I railroad (1976–1999)

Conrail, formally the Consolidated Rail Corporation, was the primary Class I railroad in the Northeastern United States between 1976 and 1999. The trade name Conrail is a portmanteau based on the company's legal name. It continues to do business as an asset management and network services provider in three Shared Assets Areas that were excluded from the division of its operations during its acquisition by CSX Corporation and the Norfolk Southern Railway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">EMD GP35</span> 4-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division

The EMD GP35 is a 4-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division between July 1963 and December 1965 and by General Motors Diesel between May 1964 and January 1966. 1251 examples were built for American railroads, 26 were built for Canadian railroads and 57 were built for Mexican railroads. Power was provided by a turbocharged EMD 567D3A 16-cylinder engine which generated 2,500 horsepower (1,860 kW).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lackawanna Cut-Off</span> U.S. railway line between Port Morris, New Jersey, and Slateford, Pennsylvania

The Lackawanna Cut-Off was a rail line built by the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (DL&W). Constructed from 1908 to 1911, the line was part of a 396-mile (637 km) main line between Hoboken, New Jersey, and Buffalo, New York. It ran west for 28.45 miles (45.79 km) from Port Morris Junction in Port Morris, New Jersey, near the south end of Lake Hopatcong about 45 miles (72 km) west-northwest of New York City, to Slateford Junction in Slateford, Pennsylvania near the Delaware Water Gap.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GE U34CH</span> American passenger diesel locomotive

The U34CH is a 3,600 hp (2,700 kW) passenger diesel locomotive built by General Electric between 1970 and 1973. In total, 33 U34CH units were built; 32 were built for the New Jersey Department of Transportation and operated by the Erie Lackawanna Railway and, later, Conrail, with the last unit coming as a later rebuild of a GE U30C for the New York MTA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">EMD GP40-based passenger locomotives</span> Passenger diesel locomotive class

The passenger locomotives derivatives of the General Motors EMD GP40 diesel-electric locomotive have been, and continue to be, used by multiple passenger railroads in North America. For passenger service, the locomotives required extra components for providing steam or head-end power (HEP) for heating, lighting and electricity in passenger cars. Most of these passenger locomotives were rebuilt from older freight locomotives, while some were built as brand new models.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belvidere and Delaware River Railway</span>

The Belvidere & Delaware River Railway Company also known as Delaware River Railroad or Bel-Del, is a class III railroad in the United States. It was formed in 1995 when the Conrail Delaware Secondary line was purchased by the Black River Railroad System, which operates several railroad services in western New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania. The Black River Railroad System also owns and operates the Black River and Western Railroad (BR&W). BR&W has leased 10 miles (16 km) of trackage to BDRV since 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paterson station</span> NJ Transit rail station

Paterson is a New Jersey Transit commuter railway station located on an elevated viaduct above Market Street in downtown Paterson, New Jersey. The railway through the station is double tracked, for north and south traffic on the NJT Main Line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rochester & Genesee Valley Railroad Museum</span> Railroad museum in Industry, New York

The Rochester and Genesee Valley Railroad Museum (RGVRRM) is an operating railroad museum located in Industry, New York, a hamlet within the town of Rush. The museum started in 1971 with the purchase of a former Erie Railroad Depot from the Erie Lackawanna Railroad. Since then the museum has grown to include a one-mile demonstration railroad, connecting it with the New York Museum of Transportation in Rush, making it one of the few operating railroad museums in New York State.

<i>Phoebe Snow</i> (train) American passenger train (1949–1966)

Phoebe Snow was a named passenger train which was once operated by the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (DL&W) and, after a brief hiatus, the Erie Lackawanna Railway (EL). It ran between 1949 and 1966, primarily connecting Buffalo, New York and Hoboken, New Jersey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Port Morris Junction</span>

Port Morris Junction is the railroad connection between NJ Transit's Montclair-Boonton Line and the Lackawanna Cut-Off. Opened in 1911 by the Lackawanna Railroad, it is in the Port Morris, New Jersey section of Roxbury Township, New Jersey, south of Lake Hopatcong.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roseville Tunnel</span> Rail tunnel in New Jersey

Roseville Tunnel is a 1,024-foot (312 m) two-track railroad tunnel on the Lackawanna Cut-Off in Byram Township, Sussex County, New Jersey. The tunnel is on a straight section of railroad between mileposts 51.6 and 51.8 (83 km), about 6 miles (9.7 km) north by northwest of Port Morris Junction. Operated for freight and passenger service from 1911 to 1979, it is undergoing work intended to return it to passenger service by 2026.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lackawanna Cut-Off Restoration Project</span> American railway infrastructure project

The Lackawanna Cut-Off Restoration Project is a New Jersey Transit and Amtrak effort to restore passenger service to the Lackawanna Cut-Off in northwest New Jersey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greendell station</span>

Greendell is one of three original railway stations built by the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad (DL&W) along its Lackawanna Cut-Off line in northwestern New Jersey. The station, which still stands in Green Township at milepost 57.61 on the Cut-Off, began operations on December 23, 1911, one day before the line itself opened and the first revenue train arrived.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andover station (NJ Transit)</span>

Andover is a planned New Jersey Transit passenger railroad station in Andover Township, in Sussex County, New Jersey, United States, providing service on its Lackawanna Cut-Off line. The line remains under construction. The station will be built at a site on Andover's Roseville Road, about 1.1 miles (1.8 km) from U.S. Route 206 and about 0.9 miles (1.4 km) from County Route 517. On the rail line, it will be located about 7.3 miles (11.7 km) west of Port Morris Junction.

References

  1. "Erie Lackawanna Railroad Historical Society". Erie Lackawanna Railroad Historical Society. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  2. "Jersey Central Railroad Historical Society". jcrhs.org. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  3. "Erie Lackawanna Railroad Historical Society". Erie Lackawanna Railroad Historical Society. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  4. "Liberty Historic Railway". Liberty Historic Railway. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  5. "Delaware River Railroad Excursions". 877trainride.com. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  6. "North Jersey Electric Railway Historical Society". North Jersey Electric Railway Historical Society. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  7. "Tri-State Railway Historical Society". Tri-State Railway Historical Society. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  8. "Whippany Railway Museum | Easter Bunny, & Excursion Train Rides". www.whippanyrailwaymuseum.net. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  9. Higgs, Larry (9 January 2022). "Rail historians raising $25K for space to restore trains, eventually become N.J. museum". Boonton, NJ: Advance Local Media LLC. Retrieved 10 January 2022.