Ferromonte Railroad.

[mikedc3]

I have heard about this mystery RR for years but I don't know anything about it. I know it was somewhere between Kenville, Wharton, and Mine Hill but where exactly was it? When was it in operation? What did it haul? Who owned it? When was it torn up? Etc. How do I get to the remains? I'm assuming from either the MnE line or the old CNJ branch that runs behind Roxbury Auto Wreckers? What is left of this RR? A few years ago on the EL list there was talk of a Ferromonte "ghost town" Where is this and how do I get there?

I want to explore this area this winter. Thanks for any info or directions.

[henry6]

...Larry Lowenthal's " Mining Railroads of North JErsey" ! Its at your hometown library or ask your railfan friends.

[Lackawanna484]

Lowenthal has a huge amount of detail, as well as a very good map in his book.

Here's another source: http://www.fhsmhnj.org/aboutus/aboutfhs.htm for info

In general, Ferromonte (Iron Mountain in Italian) was southwest of Mine Hill, in the northeast corner of Roxbury Twp. There's currently a strip mall on NJ 10 named Ferromonte

[mikedc3]

...Larry Lowenthal's " Mining Railroads of North JErsey" ! Its at your hometown library or ask your railfan friends.

Thanks for the great sugestion's "Go to my local library"

Maybe we should all do that, Then we could close the forum, Why would we need it?

"Ask my railfan friends"

What do you think I'm doing here?????


If ya don't have nothing to ad, don't

[mikedc3]

Lowenthal has a huge amount of detail, as well as a very good map in his book.

Here's another source: http://www.fhsmhnj.org/aboutus/aboutfhs.htm for info

In general, Ferromonte (Iron Mountain in Italian) was southwest of Mine Hill, in the northeast corner of Roxbury Twp. There's currently a strip mall on NJ 10 named Ferromonte

Thanks!!
So it must have been closer to Rt. 10 then. Is this mall the one at the bottom of Mine Hill across from Sussex Tpk?

[henry6]

>>>>If you ask a question that has a detailed answer and it can be found in a book, you should look in the book....if you want to really know something and ask for help, accept the help even if it directs you to the book...if you really just want to piss away time on the intrnet, say so.
Forum questions, I thought, were to seek where to find answers as much as to get the answer. If you really don't want help, don't ask for it.

[cjvrr]

This was posted on another list by Mike DelVecchio in 2001;

Another bit of hallowed ground is about to be taken over by condos -- the
cowbelly section of Mine Hill that encompasses the Dickerson Mine and the
former town of Ferromonte. In this area are numerous right of ways for the
Ferro Monte Railroad and foundations and dirt roads of the former town. This
is supposed to get 1500 units. The narrow gauge line transferred to the
standard gauge Ferro Monte which switchbacked down the hill to its Lackawanna
interchange near the Route 46 crossing of the Chester Branch, then known as
Vanatta. Some of its iron rails are still below the pavement and in people's
back yards.

I'd highly recommend a walk through the town of Ferromonte this winter. The
ghost town may not be there by the next. (The spellings are inconsistent --
the town is one word per old maps and the 1884 History of Morris County, and
the railroad name is both two words and hyphenated in its annual reports.
The 1884 History of Morris County, by the way, predicts that the thriving
town of Ferromonte will grow and soon emcompass all of Mine Hill.)
-------

Frank Street in Mine Hill runs parallel to what is left of some of the right of way. This is a residential neighborhood and the old right of way runs through the back yards on the north side of the street. The right of way looks to have been sold off to the abuting property owners in this area. If you can see the tax maps in that area, the right of way is clearly visible.

The property is southwest of Route 46 and Canfield Avenue. The condos mentioned have not been built yet, so there is still time to see the area and some of the remains of the RR. I toured the site in conjunction with my job and you can see the right of way on the property. There was mention on the plans that ties still existed near the Frank Street end of the property, but the group I was with did not tour that area. We were more interested in the mines which are all over the place there.


Chris

[henry6]

We learned because we read...so why can't you?

[CGRLCDR]

Mike, I think you need to relax a little and take the advice given here. An old friend recommended that I buy Larry Lowenthal's " Mining Railroads of North Jersey" years ago and it was one of the best railfan investments that I ever made. If you can find a copy at the local library, fine, but I think that you'll probably want to purchase your own copy if you're going to do much exploring in Morris Country. I have my worn out copy right here next to my computer and I refer to it constantly. This website site is a good source of information, but Larry's book is way superior and it has lots of pictures and landmarks.

[Lackawanna484]

FWIW, I've found that a few basic resources go a long way in researching rail stuff. My wife would dispute "a few."

Official Guides. I started out with an interest in one for every decade, going back to the 1890s. They're priceless for identifying old railroads, junction points, etc. Prob have 50 now.

Official Equipment Registers. I have a few, representing many decades. Very useful in determining capacity of hopper cars, lessors, what year the Rutland got the fridge boxes, etc. Prob have 10

Maps. The internet has replaced a lot of my needs for old maps, but I still have a few dozen Geodetic Survey maps for key rail areas.

Once I began to specialize in old DL&W, I began to buy books and guides which gave me more insights, better references, etc. Coupla examples:

DL&W in NW NJ (good companion to the Iron book)

Ted Scull's Hoboken Terminals book

Bill Sheppard's Tidewater Terminals Track Maps, and his monumental E-L track map book of 1974. Every switch, siding, shipper, gradient east of Scranton, Port Jervis, and Bangor.

Taber's three Volume DL&W in the 19th and 20th

Lots more. Prob five hundred books on a wide range of rail subjects.

[henry6]

...for backing me up on the book idea. I only referred to "library" because it is usually the most complete source of books and materials, especially those older and out of print. But book stores and rail oriented hobby shops as well as the pages of the model and real train fan magazines along with the NRHS and R&LHS, etc. are good sources of informaiton and books. I have often been approached for both my vocation (degree and 40 years experience) and avocation (60 years experience, thousands of miles traveled or otherwise explored, hundreds of book in own library, complete sets of magazines, memberships, experiences, etc.) to tell everything I know in one paragraph or less or one minute or less. It irks me that whatever I have acquired is held so cheap by others and so I spout off a little. I am sure you others have encountered the same things. But that does not eliminate the need to point out the availabe research material to others...in fact they may, as I often have, find out more than the wanted and end up going in other directions, meeting new friends, and getting a better undrstanding of what their persuit is all about. Paraphrased: give a man a fish and he eats for a day, teach him to fish and he will always eat.

[Lackawanna484]

Official Guides are good tools. They're often on eBay for $10 to $20.

There's a fmily in MA which reprints old OGs on new, heavy paper. They've done months from 1910, 1917, 1929, 1941, etc. Price new was around $60, IIRC.

[cjvrr]

While I agree with you guys that having some of these books are great resources, they are expensive to purchase and now getting dated. Lowenthal's book is great for the history and maps, but it does not reflect the changes that have occured in the area in the last 20 plus years since the book was first published. While the book has a picture of rails poking out of the pavement for the Ferromonte RR, I seriously doubt they are still visible or even present now. Local libraries may have this book in their reference or rare book sections, would they even let you make photo copies of it?

With Mike being a present day explorer I understand his reasoning for posting to the list. If others have visited the areas recently he can zero in on what he would like to see, and what is still left to photograph.

Mike, a reprint of the book has been rumored to be coming out for 2-3 years now, I would suggest waiting to purchase that addition, it may be updated. The out of print version is quite expensive ($50-$125 at Bookfinder.com) and most are well worn from others that have used them for exploring.

It takes a long time and a lot of money to accumulate these books, especially a collection as big as your's Lackawanna484. Mine is only about 30-40 books but my Dad's is well over 100. The most referenced books in the lot are, "The Vanishing Ironworks of the Ramapos" and the Lowenthal Iron Mine RR book.

Chris

[William]

Hello I came across these old posts speaking of the Ferromonte line and Vanatta station or junction. I am not a railroad expert but are wondering about this Vanatta station as it was named more than likely for Jacob Vanatta who was a prominent lawyer in the 1800's and was the attorney for the railroads as well as the Dickerson family who owned the mines in the area. He was also on the board for the mines and also married into the Dickerson family. He also became the Attorney General for the State of NJ in 1875 - 1877. So it seems I know about him but wasn't aware of this station til recently. I'm wondering if any one knows of any photos or what type of station it was. Passenger or freight? Thanks William. Van Natta

[William]

hello i see this is an old conversation but i'd like to know if any one has any pictures on the ferromonte line in particular the Vanatta station on it.I just became aware of it while searching my family tree. You see the the station was named for Jacob Vanatta a prominent attorney back in the mid 1800's. He was the attorney for the Morris and Essex railroad as well as for the Dickerson family and their mines. He also married Julia Ann Dickerson niece to Mahlon and Philemon Dickerson who were Governors of the State of NJ. Some have speculated its his involvement with the railroads that lead many in the family to have received jobs on the railroads.Namely my grandfather,father uncle and more back in the day. Any help on finding out more about this station or other information would be appreciated. Thanks William Van Natta