Unfinished Railroads of New York State

[pumpers]

With the advent of LIDAR, those old hidden ROWs that have disappeared with the past must feel like fish that were comfortably been hiding on the bottom of the lake did when fish finders were invented.

[RussNelson]

It wasn't easy. but I dug out my paper topos (most of the trolley line, and all of the completed grading that I'm aware of is on the Monticello quad- mine is 1966). No markings for the ROW, and no way to tell from the contour lines; they followed the contours.

I found it! I used NYS LIDAR to trace it into OSM here: https://www.openstreetmap.org/way/732003601 . It's completely demolished at the Concord Resort Hotel site east of Kiamesha Lake, but is otherwise intact elsewhere.

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[Marty Feldner]

Yeah- I'd started to look for it on the LIDAR, but got distracted by everything else on the images, statewide. (BTW- you owe me for time spent there, since you posted the link to this site; good thing I'm retired

As for the Concord site, that whole area has been altered for the casino complex construction.

[RussNelson]

Haha, yes, the LIDAR images are fascinating. So much to be seen there that you can't otherwise see!

[EwaNelson]

@RussNelson >>Nope, haven't yet. Wife keeps me on a short leash, otherwise I'd be spending every weekend away, doing research.

We are spending almost every other weekend away, doing research. Sorry that ain't enough

[BR&P]

We are spending almost every other weekend away, doing research. Sorry that ain't enough

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Russ - looks like you're on thin ice!

[50-year railfan]

Russ Nelson, I just found this thread and searched to see if there was any mention of the Elizabethtown Terminal RR. All I found was the reference you made to having adjusted its grade, but not the actual adjustment. I have long been familiar with the section at the height of land between E'town and Westport where the old grade is clearly visible from the highway. More recently, the new Vialls Crossing Trail built by Champlain Area Trails ( CATS) follows the old grade for about 4/10th of a mile, starting across the highway from the Westport station. I'd be interested to see where it went from there. I'm not surprised that it is a curvy grade. Ease of construction over any need for speed or the ability to haul heavy freight.

I'm adding that, according to an early article in "Adirondack Life" the motivation for building the Elizabethtown Terminal RR was to preserve Elizabethtown as the county seat. There was an effort to move it to Port Henry which, of course was on the D&H and therefore easier to reach from the most populous parts of the county. By 1910, however, cars first became a viable means of getting around. In fact, that was the year that Egglefield Ford was founded in Elizabethtown. I am sure I have that issue, but the early ones are not well indexed (at least last time i checked), but if i do find the article, I'll scan it and post it.

[50-year railfan]

In the end, I found an index I'd forgotten I had. The article on the Elizabethtown Terminal RR was in the third issue, Summer, 1970. It's not much of an article, but still worth sharing.

E'town RR scan-reduced.pdf

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[RussNelson]

We are spending almost every other weekend away, doing research. Sorry that ain't enough

Russ - looks like you're on thin ice!

Current wife pointing out why I divorced ex-wife. It's not possible for me to say quite how lucky I am to have a railfan wife.

[BR&P]

Understood, Russ! Sometimes it takes a bad go-round to make you appreciate a good one.

Clint Eastwood said "A man's gotta know his limitations". I'd add "A wise man knows his wife's limitations, too".

[RussNelson]

In the end, I found an index I'd forgotten I had. The article on the Elizabethtown Terminal RR was in the third issue, Summer, 1970. It's not much of an article, but still worth sharing.E'town RR scan-reduced.pdf

Thanks for this! Here is the route of the ETR: https://www.openstreetmap.org/relation/ ... 3/-73.5160

It's also quite clear on the LIDAR: https://orthos.dhses.ny.gov/?Extent=-81 ... =hillshade

There is a short section where NY-9N hugs the hillside where it looks like they never finished blasting out the cliff for the grade. OR maybe the highway destroyed the grade? Hard to say for sure.

[Jeff Smith]

We are spending almost every other weekend away, doing research. Sorry that ain't enough

Russ - looks like you're on thin ice!

Current wife pointing out why I divorced ex-wife. It's not possible for me to say quite how lucky I am to have a railfan wife.

Amen! My soon to be wife (#3) even stops to take pictures for me!

[BR&P]

Amen! My soon to be wife (#3) even stops to take pictures for me!

I suppose that's not bad. But would she clean switches in the winter?

[RussNelson]

and click on the Keuka lake area on the map.

It shows up as the Sodus Bay, Corning & New York Railroad.

Found a link to it: https://www.loc.gov/item/98688525/