Hinckley Branch - Remsen-Prospect-Poland

Does anyone have good mapping of the NYC RR in the area of Remsen, Prospect-Poland ? Or can explain the following ...

What I am trying to figure is the alignment at Prospect Jct and what constituted the "tail" at the Eastern Rock quarry. Was this off the main of the Remsen-Herkimer line or part of the Hinckley Branch. The alignment does not look direct as I think the main crossed over the north end of the Trenton Falls and if the tracks extended directly east from the quarry area they would be too far to the north.

I simply can't figure where the actual junction was;

a. of the quarry spur
b. of the Remsen-Herkimer main track with the Hinckley Branch

or at least I don't want to assume I know for sure.

What information or photos does anyone have of the Trenton Falls Station ?

The following is from the Kudish Book, Railroads of the Adirondacks - A History, page 407. A map in this book of Prospect Junction shows the line from Herkimer and going north on this route there was a trailing point switch to the L. M. Stone Company Quarry. The junction with the Hinckley Branch was located north of that switch and included a wye with east to Hinckley Branch and west to Remsen. This book is very interesting readng but I was not able to find any more about the line at Prospect Junction.
I hope this is what you are looking for.
Noel Weaver

This map might help a little,it still shows the spur to the quarry. Going north from the spur as Noel points out,maybe 1000ft north of
the road,Prospect Junction rd,was the wye to the Hinckley branch.
Charles

http://mapper.acme.com/?ll=43.30154,-75 ... 9%2CBridge" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Cactus Jack... I wish you had said something when we met at BM this past Saturday, I had the maps in the car. As for the the Hinckley Branch, it did not connect directly to the main. It connected to the passing siding which had switch points at 134+662 =25.50 & 136+819 =25.91. The Hinckley Branch started out as a wye track which came off this siding, the two wye tracks were tracks 2 &12. This is from an STS for Prospect Jct from 1934. The next STS map I have for Prospect Jct is 1940 and the Hinckley branch is gone and so is the passing siding. There is only a stub track left, with the connecting switch on the south, but it has been moved to 135+327 = 25.63. The track is 450 ft long with a capacity of 3 cars. The next STS map is 1943 and the stub track has been rearranged again. Now the connecting switch is on the north with the switch point at 135+975 = 25.75, it`s still 450ft long. The main ends at 134+551 = 25.48, which is the beginning of track #6 the lead into the stone quarry.Track #6 crosses both Depot Street & Trenton Falls Rd., before entering a 3 track yard, which the NYC was prohibited from entering. I hope this helps. I also have 2 STS maps of the Hinckley Branch 1928 &1931. If you need more, you know how to get a hold of me.

As always for New York railroads, check http://osm.org" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; -- I have the Hinckley Branch. I don't know how far up the creek it went, however. I don't think Kudish does either.

CJ:

Are you looking for pix of the Trenton Chasm station on the M&M or Trenton Falls station on the BR&U side? That station supposedly exists as a home on the opposite side of the Prospect Depot road from the tracks. It was moved at some point years ago. There is no reference to a Trenton Chasm station building in any of my old Trenton Falls reference books, but a stop near one of the picnic groves. They mention that the heyday of Trenton Falls was prior to the building of the M&M and went into a steep decline following the building of the RRs to the north, so maybe there never was a station on the M&M. Apparently Prospect had 2 other stations...one at Prospect Junction and one near Summit Street on the Hinkley Branch.

BBH,

I did not think there was a depot on the M&M and maybe there was not ? - Which opens up another question; if there was something there, what was it ?

I meant the one near Sand Road on the U&BR. Also interested in a photo or the location of Downers Grove picnic park at that location. And wasn't there a depot about a mile north of Sand Road where 365 goes under ?

The whole Trenton Falls - Rural Retreat - Moore's Hotel is very fascinating. However, as you mentioned, after the coming of the M&M Trenton Falls as a resort was in decline. Possibly account of other more "exotic" places people could now easily access; one being Alexandria Bay which was a favorite of Uticans via the U&BR RR after the extension north from Boonville and the Civil War. However, in 1863 after the Battle of Gettysburg, Secretary of State William H. Seward visited the falls with various european diplomats as part of the political strategy of the war. With such prominence there and a photographer it seems odd no photos of Trenton Falls Depot or the picnic pavillion seem to have surfaced. With some creativity the "Leviathon" might make a nice historical recreation.

In a way it is too bad about Trenton Falls as it could possibly rival at the least, Watkins Glen and would be a fantastic day trip via the Adirondack Scenic as would the ride on the M&M along the West Canada and over the gorge.

Pictures and drawings seem sparse on the early Black River & Utica (U&BR after 1860) and the narrow gage Herkimer, Newport & Poland.

Btw - Was the big bridge at Gravesville dismantled for the war effort ? What a ride it must have been over that bridge, then over Trenton Falls Chasm.

As you have probably surmised I am reading and enjoying the book "Kuyahoora" by Paul Keesler and "Trenton Falls, Yesterday & Today" by H. Thomas.

CJ

CJ ... You were wondering if there was a station at Trenton Falls/Chasm on the M&M. Well there was a shelter there, which was built in 1909 according to the 1953 building report. It was located at MP 23.68 and located on the west side of the tracks going north. The size of the shelter was 20x10x10. As the station at Prospect Jct. it mentions 2 of them in the 1953 reports. There was one at Summit St., which is listed as a passenger station, with no other info. And the other one says freight & passenger station which was located at MP 25.60, which was built in 1894, with the dimensions of 64x19x16 and sold on a bill of sale on 3-28-1939.

That "Trenton Falls, Yesterday and Today" is an awesome book. Page 145 talks about a Trenton Chasm depot, but that's the only reference I've seen.

I knew Myrtle Simpson before she died, the last descendent of all those Trenton Falls people in the book. Amazing what the hydroelectric did to the gorge. At least now they open it up for hiking every once in a while and you can get in and see the M&M bridge abutments which are still complete and solid.

The Gravesville bridge was indeed scrapped for the war effort. You can still see some of the stone work as you drive up Hinkley Rd at the junction of Russia Rd.

I think the station on Prospect Depot Rd is the one you are thinking about near the 365 overpass north of Sand Road. That would be on the BR&U.

Sounds like to Inns in Trenton Falls proper competed with the ones in Prospect in those days. The Summit Street station must have been on the Hinkley Branch. The end of Summit Street is where the ROW was before 365 obliviated it. Can still see the ROW as it approaches 365 in that area. The M&M crossed 365 just north of Stockhauser's garage.

West Canada Creek/Up Old Forge Way by David Beetle and written in the 40s has lots of RR tidbits too...he talks about all the small towns up and down the West Canada and Fulton Chain. They were two separate books but then combined into one volume. Interesting read.