That Hojack Line Thread...

Roadster, you're incorrect about Xerox traffic. Although they had 4 different tracks, rail traffic was practically non-existant.

There is a 3-track yard just west of Salt Road. This was for the fuel facility. Xerox burns natural gas. As of about 20 years ago, the plan was that if gas was not available they would burn #2 oil which would come by truck. If #2 was not available they would burn #6 oil which would come by rail. After the facility was built, they ran about 2 carloads of oil to test the system, and the sidings were never again used by Xerox. Since Xerox was a shareholder in OMID, they allowed use of that yard by OMID to store cars, thus generating revenue for the railroad.

The other siding was farther west and went across a road and into building number two-oh-something. Xerox did for a time use this in very limited fashion, bringing in a few cars....paper if I recall, but only a handful of cars. I believe, but am not sure, the space inside the door had been filled with earth and concrete and turned into office or warehouse space.

There were no tanks of chemicals, plastic pellets are certainly not shipped in covered gons, and Xerox did not ship outbound from the Webster facility by rail. Let's stick to facts, not speculation.

What about the stretch of tracks from the Genesee River west to Dewey Avenue. Those are old Hojack line tracks, aren't they? They're in bad enough condition that the trains have to go pretty slow through there, and so I'm pretty sure they date back to the Hojack days.

Dj_paige, you are correct that it is "Hojack" trackage. That is the only remaining Hojack trackage west of the Genesee River, with the exception of the Somerset Railroad segment that uses the ROW and a smattering of track in Niagara Falls which serves as an industrial stub.

The Hojack track west of the Genesee is industrial trackage at the bottom of a 1% grade serving a single (albeit large) customer. Track conditions don't need to be the best - just good enough to keep trains going no more than 10 MPH on the tracks.

Ok, I split some of the Elmira Branch/OMID/Sodus-Newark questions into its own thread... this thread will remain for Hojack topics...

-otto-

[quote="BR&P"]Conrail never dismantled that portion. For one year, from 10-01-79 through 09-30-80, the line from Red Creek to Hannibal was operated by Ontario Midland. quote]

This is true I rember asking a Guy who worked for Penn Central/Conrail and now CSX who used to be a track worker on that segment. He remarked that Conrail should have never taken any of that out of service along with the rest of the line going to Oswego and Fulton. It was easyer to run one local up one line and circle it back down the outher rather than run 2 locals.

FGLK, presumably the two segments you are talking about are the former DL&W line to Oswego, and the NYC line (parts of which I believe are ex-NYO&W).

The Red Creek-Hannibal part is farther west than those two, I believe the mileposts were about P33 for Hannibal and P44 for Red Creek.

I'm not sure when the part between the two Oswego segments was removed but sounds like the employee you quote was talking about running the DFO job up one side and across the Hojack, and back down the other. Sounds like it might have worked.

First off, BR&P, you are correct about the dismantling of the Hojack east of Red Creek. I was going from a faulty memory and a photograph I took at Crocketts Station when the wrecking crew was just a few miles west. That photograph included a 1979 Pontiac that I owned, hence the date reference.

As far as the Oswego-Fulton reference of fglk, that would have to have been the old DL&W up the west side of the Oswego River into the old west side yard, then across what had been RW& O (later NYC) tracks to cross the Oswego River and then back south along former NYO&W (later NYC) tracks into Fulton. Once Niagara Mohawk converted the Oswego Steam Station from coal to oil in 1974 and then Columbia Mills in Minetto folded in the late 1970's, however, there were no regular revenue customers north of Fulton on the west side line. NiMo bought it from Conrail from Fulton north just to run oil trains to fuel the steam station. There has been no traffic through there in a couple of years, now. however since the new owners only run the steam station during peak (extreme cold, extreme heat) demand periods.

Yesterday, I happened to be out near Crocketts and decided to hike the Hojack rail trail east as far as Sterling Creek. I have looked at the massive concrete culvert from Route 3 many times that the NYC built over the creek some time in the early 1900's. Walking on the western approach and then onto the culvert itself, however, was amazing. Imagining the conditions as men dug dirt and poured concrete gave me serious cause for wonder. Maybe next time, I will have a camera with me and be able to grab a picture or two.

The trail itself follows a siding through Crocketts, rather than the main. The main is overgrown and pretty impassable this time of the year.

One other artifact I discovered was the foundation from the old Crocketts depot. I can remember the building still standing when I was a kid, but I think there was a fire some time in the late 1950's and it burned to the ground. At any rate, it was interesting to see it there. I would like to return in the fall, after frost has killed off some of the growth, and see if I can get some pictures of it.

Recently on a fishing trip to Burt and Olcott I decided to take a side trip and do some railfanning too. I went to somerset to check out the railroad. I started up by the power plant and followed the trackage back to where it meets the old hojack line on hosmer rd. To my amazement I found what looked to be original track from the hojack line going west to the somerset turn and east on the other side of hosmer rd. The track at the crossing had long been removed. I could not tell how long east the tracks went because of heavy brush. The old tracks west went right to meet the somerset row these tracks were never connected the somerset row is about two feet higher that the old. The sticks were bolted together and dated Bethlehem 1937. Alot of ties there somerset must own the property for storage. I went down to the next crossing which is hartland rd and found no evidence left of any left rail must have been pulled in 78. I was shocked there was any original rail left on this part of the line.

Yep..........that segment is indeed original "Hojack." Pretty neat that a little slice is left and
in use on the west end.

Charlie

The old rails are not being used just the road bed to the west for a mile or so