by Laverock Memory
Recollections of the Fort Washington Branch Right of Way -
It is amazing to learn more about the neighborhood where I grew up. My family moved to Laverock, PA in 1973, just next door to Trackwalker's house (would love to converse about the history of that house, which is really interesting). As a child, I would play in a creek area located at the back of Hillcrest Road between Chandler Road and Conwell Road. We called this wooded area "The Creek." I recall fondly playing there and finding old rail road ties, spikes, and a creek tunnel that ran under the old Fort Washington Branch. That creek is the headwater for Tookany Creek.
My dad had been Treasurer of the local Laverock Improvement Association and I remember my father stopping the car at Hillcrest and Cheltenham Ave. to look for any signs of Hill Crest Station and the underpass. We found nothing......
I would LOVE to see any photos of the old Hill Crest Station and the underpass. More importantly, the old Laverock Station seems to have been located at the rear of the old "Laverock Farm" estate owned by Arthur E. Newbold. Today, Laverock Road and Deer Run Road dead end where the old rail stop was located. If there are any old signs of this station or photos, it would be quite a treat to view them. Can anyone help?
As a kid, I would walk down Willow Grove Ave to the Wyndmoor Station of SEPTA. Given how population increased in Eastern Montgomery County, I wonder how real estate and community development might have been different if the old rail line had survived and perhaps been upgraded. Laverock may have become like Elkins Park or Glenside.
I would love to hear any other recollections and advice about where to find photos of the old Fort Washington Branch.
It is amazing to learn more about the neighborhood where I grew up. My family moved to Laverock, PA in 1973, just next door to Trackwalker's house (would love to converse about the history of that house, which is really interesting). As a child, I would play in a creek area located at the back of Hillcrest Road between Chandler Road and Conwell Road. We called this wooded area "The Creek." I recall fondly playing there and finding old rail road ties, spikes, and a creek tunnel that ran under the old Fort Washington Branch. That creek is the headwater for Tookany Creek.
My dad had been Treasurer of the local Laverock Improvement Association and I remember my father stopping the car at Hillcrest and Cheltenham Ave. to look for any signs of Hill Crest Station and the underpass. We found nothing......
I would LOVE to see any photos of the old Hill Crest Station and the underpass. More importantly, the old Laverock Station seems to have been located at the rear of the old "Laverock Farm" estate owned by Arthur E. Newbold. Today, Laverock Road and Deer Run Road dead end where the old rail stop was located. If there are any old signs of this station or photos, it would be quite a treat to view them. Can anyone help?
As a kid, I would walk down Willow Grove Ave to the Wyndmoor Station of SEPTA. Given how population increased in Eastern Montgomery County, I wonder how real estate and community development might have been different if the old rail line had survived and perhaps been upgraded. Laverock may have become like Elkins Park or Glenside.
I would love to hear any other recollections and advice about where to find photos of the old Fort Washington Branch.