Question re the Saratoga & Schuylerville Railroad

The Saratoga & Schuylerville Railroad ended up under the B&M - it has been suggested I might be able to find the answer to my NY Railfan posting here....

I am working on a creating a map compiled from (1) the UNH historical topo map collection and (2) a schedule of rail stops found on Gino DiCarlo's excellent site.
http://ginosrailpage.com/SANDS/index.html
http://docs.unh.edu/NY/coho98nw.jpg

I am wondering about how travel to Stillwater--being on a spur--worked with the scheduled stops. Did the train out of Mechanicville go north and return south on the same spur every time? Where was the Mechanicville station stop? Any knowledgeable feedback on this would be greatly appreciated.

This is a tough question. Stillwater is on a separate line. Schuylerville might have had some passenger service, but Saratoga would be almost worthless, since D&H was able to provide much better service, since it was on their main line. A station in Mechanicville seems almost unneeded too. A few through trains to the West Shore were about it. Maybe passengers just had to cross Vial Avenue from the D&H station.

Email Gino. He has answered many of my questions.

Fitchburg Div. ETT No. 61, effective 09-25-1927, shows a pair of second class mixeds on the Saratoga and Schuylerville branches. 5901 left Mechanicville at 10:00 AM and arrived Saratoga Springs at 11:40 AM. 5904 left Saratoga Springs at 3:45 PM, arriving Mechanicville at 5:10 PM. 5902 left Saratoga Springs at 12:15 PM and arrived Schuylerville at 1:30 PM, and 5903 left Schuylerville at 1:50 PM, arriving Saratoga Springs at 3:00 PM. It seems probable that 5901, 5902, 5903, and 5904 were the same equipment and crew and additionally gave enviable service -- four trains in less than four and a half hours -- to the 4.29 miles between Saratoga Springs and Schuyler Junction.
Also, there was a photo in an early 1950s Railroad Magazine of a B&M race-season special named The Dude that ran round trips between Boston and Saratoga Springs. I don't have the magazine, so I'm relying on my semi-reliable and partially-developed photographic memory.

[quote= Also, there was a photo in an early 1950s Railroad Magazine of a B&M race-season special named The Dude that ran round trips between Boston and Saratoga Springs. I don't have the magazine, so I'm relying on my semi-reliable and partially-developed photographic memory.[/quote]

I know this old line well and would love to see that photo.

Even more, I would really love to ride a train that was called The Dude!

From a trade publication of the day:

Fitchburg Railroad.
Fast express trains via Hoosac Tunnel route
to Saratoga. On and after July 4, 1892
(Sundays excepted).

Leave Arrive
Boston. Saratoga.

9 00 am Day Express 3 35 pm
11 00 am Saratoga Special 4 30 pm
11 30 am Passenger 7 30 pm

Elegant palace parlor cars. Passenger coaches
and baggage cars through without change.

For tickets (etc.) …

PBM

Any chance the Dude ran to Mechanicville, then ran D&H, to Saratoga, in a joint movement? The B&M had minimal facilities in Saratoga. The passenger station was on Lake Avenue, and was Walton Sports for a long time.