The
Hanover Branch Railroad
(The
Old Branch)
by Roger
E. Shaffer
The Hanover Branch Railroad
was commonly referred to as the "Old Branch," and is the
name that was always used by the local populace. The name was in
used during a period which is of much interest to me, the early
1920s. It was in the 1920s that we lived in the Old Station House
at Hanover Junction. Before the turn of the twentieth century, the
Old Branch served as a most valuable asset to the community. Large
quantities of iron ore from local mines were shipped by rail on
the Old Branch. It also served a role as an important link in historic
activities associated with the area.
At this period in time,
the Hanover Branch Railroad became the Western Maryland Railway,
but the name Old Branch remained.
The Hanover Branch Railroad
Company was incorporated in Pennsylvania on March 16, 1847. It extended
from the connection with the Baltimore & Susquehanna Railroad
(later to become the Northern Central, and then in 1911, the Pennsylvania)
at Hanover Junction to Hanover, Pa. It represents the oldest portion
of the Western Maryland System. Letters of Patent for this first
thirteen miles of the Western Maryland Railway were issued in Pennsylvania
on October 18, 1849.
The railroad was extended from Hanover to Gettysburg in 1858, just
prior to the Civil War, and to Ortanna, Pa. in 1885, with the name
"Hanover Junction, Hanover, & Gettysburg Railroad."
This original trackage
of the Hanover Branch Railroad became one of real historical interest.
It carried the parties of President Abraham Lincoln and Pennsylvania
Governor Andrew Curtin from Hanover Junction to Gettysburg on November
18, 1869, where on November 19, President Lincoln delivered his
now famous "Gettysburg Address" at the dedication of the
National Cemetery. The Northern Central trains carried President
Lincoln from Baltimore and Governor Curtin from Harrisburg, the
two groups meeting at Hanover Junction and proceeding together on
the Hanover Branch to Gettysburg. On a more somber note, on April
21, 1865, the funeral train of President Lincoln left the Baltimore
& Ohio Railroad Station in Washington at 8:00 A.M. The train
spent some time in Baltimore at the Howard Street Station of the
Northern Central Railroad, and departed at 3:00 P.M. for Harrisburg.
The train passed Hanover Junction at 5:55 P.M. The next morning,
the train left Harrisburg for Philadelphia at 11:00 A.M. It continued
on its trip to Springfield, Ill. for the burial, via the cities
of New York, Albany, Buffalo, Cleveland, Columbus, and Indianapolis.
After the Battle of
Gettysburg in 1863, the Hanover Branch provided a route for transportation
of wounded soldiers to distant hospitals and cities via Hanover
Junction, since this was the only rail outlet available from Gettysburg
to the outside world during the Civil War area.
These Old Branch tracks
provided good travel conditions for us "Junction Kids",
as we were called, on our travels to and from Diehl's school. The
tracks were used for nearly half of our way to school, and they
kept us from walking the dirt road which paralleled the tracks.
I can recall very vividly the Western Maryland "Mixed"
train coming into Hanover Junction from Hanover. Trains operated
on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at about noon time. On arrival,
the engine would be at the head of the train with the engine backing.
Then for the return trip to Hanover, the engine would again be at
the front of the train headed for its destination. This train could
carry passengers to the Junction to make connections for train No.
8021 to York at 12:32 PM., or Train No. 500 to Baltimore at 1:28
PM.
After the train left
Hanover Jct., it was only a short distance before it crossed the
Codorus Creek on a wooden trestle bridge on the farm of Peter Klinedinst.
Two miles later it would come to Strickhousers Station. During the
early days of the Hanover Branch, this was an important location
as it was a shipping point for iron ore taken from the mines in
the local area. Another 1.1 miles the village of Cold Spring, and
then 1.0 mile to Codorus. The railroad station and the post office
here carry the name of Codorus, but the borough is called Jefferson.
Then on 1.9 miles to Valley Junction. This was the connection point
the Bachman Valley Railroad made with the Hanover Branch. The main
purpose of the Bachman Valley was to carry iron ore from the local
mines in the Maryland/Pennsylvania border area. "The
21st Annual Report (1873) of the Hanover Branch Railroad states
that about 12,000 tons of iron ore were received from the Bachman
Valley during 4 months."1 This
Bachman Valley route became a part of the main line of the Western
Maryland route from Emery Grove, Md. to Hanover and Gettysburg.
Valley Junction was
also the location of a coaling station to supply necessary coal,
water, and sand to the steam locomotives. Next station stop, 1.4
miles later, Porters. In 1893, this became the point from which
the York Branch began its route through Spring Grove and on to York.
With the completion of this trackage, a wye was installed at Porters
which proved so useful that it is still actively used to this day.
Then on for 2 miles
to Smith's Station and for 3.3 rail miles to Hanover.
The Hanover Branch Railroad
facilities at Hanover Junction before the Civil War era were rather
extensive. A hotel built by the railroad housed railroad office
facilities. There was also a turntable, an ash pit, and various
smaller buildings used for railroad activities. However, the Gettysburg
Campaign of the Civil War brought Rebel soldiers to the area who
were responsible for destruction by fire of the wooden bridge and
all railroad facilities except the hotel building.
The Hanover Junction Valley Junction rails were removed during the
period 1928 34, bringing the end of service to an area that was
highly dependent on the railroad. And this was the "Hanover
Branch Railroad."
R.E.S.
1999
_________
1 Killough, Edward M. History of the Western Maryland
Railway. Baltimore: Voluntary Relief Department Press of Western
Maryland Railroad, 1940. |
