ex-NH Maybrook Line - current usage

Does anyone have a road atlas of ulster county that shows the tracks from the Poughkeepsie Bridge to maybrook or any other maps that show the tracks?

I have some maps of that area. I am one of the organizers of the annual CNE historical tours. This years tour on 12 April will cover that section starting with a walk on the Poughkeepsie RR Bridge. From there we will follow the former Maybrook line to the yard in Maybrook. We will also visit the Maybrook RR Museum. Maps of the area will be included in the guidebook.

There are still 25 or 30 seats available on the buses.

Bernie Rudberg

In Ct. Housatonic RR owns the line west of Berkshire junction to the Ct/NY border. I know of only 1 customer (might be more I only know of 1) west of main street in Danbury. In the summer the Strates carnival train parks on the line while they work at Danbury Fair Mall. I've seen big electrical transformers off loaded to trucks and occasional car storage in same ares near the mall.

In NY from Holmes on East to the Ct. border Putnam county is working on a rail trail along side of the tracks. Other than a lot on $$$ spent on miles of chain link fence and a parking area at the "trail head" in Holmes, I don't know how this is progressing.

The right of way between the Poughkeepsie bridge and Hopewell was bought by Dutchess conuty with intensions of putiing a county highway on the the railbed. But with politics what they are this has turned into a trail and a right of way for a water pipe.

The section between Hopewell Junction and Poughkeepsie is indeed being built into a rail trail. The water lines were buried a couple years ago and construction of the rail trail has started. The section from Hopewell Junction to Lake Walton Road has been paved. The schedule says it will be completed to Morgan Lake in Poughkeepsie in about 2 years.

The section in Poughkeepsie between Morgan Lake and the big bridge is still owned by CSX. That section would link the rail trail with the Poughkeepsie Bridge into Ulster County and also to Marist College. CSX wants $6 million for that section including the hospital branch. Dutchess County says it is worth only $2 million. The county has started legal condemnation proceedings so it will be settled in court.

Bernie Rudberg

Bernard Rudberg wrote:The tracks on the Hospital Branch were torn out a couple years ago.

Not *completely* true. The tracks to the hospital were torn out, but it sure looks like the tracks *at* the hospital are still in place. Look at this birds-eye view:
http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&F ... &encType=1
You can see the two dump tracks (with rails leading up to them) for the power station, the hospital branch tracks curving around the corner of the power station (which you can follow back into the woods switchback), and as an extra bonus, there seems to have been a side track in the pavement to the left of that view, with more tracks in front of the store-house to the lower-left of that view. Looks like a good thousand feet of track now miles away from the national rail network.

And if you want to be *completely technical*, the spur into Great Eastern Lithograph is still there as well. This is off of Violet Avenue(RT 9G)

RussNelson wrote:

Bernard Rudberg wrote:The tracks on the Hospital Branch were torn out a couple years ago.

Not *completely* true. The tracks to the hospital were torn out, but it sure looks like the tracks *at* the hospital are still in place. Look at this birds-eye view:
http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&F ... &encType=1
You can see the two dump tracks (with rails leading up to them) for the power station, the hospital branch tracks curving around the corner of the power station (which you can follow back into the woods switchback), and as an extra bonus, there seems to have been a side track in the pavement to the left of that view, with more tracks in front of the store-house to the lower-left of that view. Looks like a good thousand feet of track now miles away from the national rail network.

you realize these maps/pictures are sometimes years old right ???

DutchRailnut wrote:you realize these maps/pictures are sometimes years old right ???

Gosh, I could have sworn I saw you waving up at me just now.

No, I mean that the rails are gone from the branch, but NOT from the back of the hospital. It's possible that they're not there now, but it's more likely that the reason they weren't pulled "in the day" remains true.

I can not contribute but I just will remark that that is quite an amazing 'work' on New York State.


As to Flickr I'm sure you have the images backed up but beware---Flickr has turned to random robot? account deletions. No reasons can be cited. I have 11 accounts the are 'pro' that were promised by my ISP for 'life' (!!!!!) All gone now.

Hospital Branch ?? eeeks.. I discovered it when it was psycho-active. I was walking tracks taking pictures and walked right into the place. Security swooped and gone my camera and film and guess when I got out ??

was this line used by the MBTA?