Maine Central Railroad Company
The Maine Central Railroad Company ( MEC) was an American railway company. It operated about 2,200 km of railways, as well as some ferry and ship lines mainly in the southern half of the U.S. state of Maine, but in New Hampshire, Vermont and Quebec. The company existed from October 28th 1862 until 1981. Nowadays includes the remaining assets of Pan Am Railways.
History
Acquisition of other companies
The MEC was created when on 28 October 1862, the Androscoggin and Kennebec Railroad and the Penobscot and Kennebec Railroad merged. The entire route Danville Bangor of the two companies was 6 inches ( 5 feet) was built, as they joined in Danville to the power of the Grand Trunk Railway, which had also chosen this gauge in the gauge of 1676 mm. 1871 spurts you the route to the one used in the U.S. standard gauge ( 1435 mm ) around.
The main line was extended in 1871 from Danville from about 30 km to Yarmouth, where she joined the route of the Portland and Kennebec Railroad (P & K). This was, however, already leased from the May 12, 1870 by the MEC. With the Dexter and Newport Railroad on December 1, 1868 the Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroad on May 10, 1871 and the Androscoggin Railroad on July 1, 1871, the MEC leased three smaller railway companies, branching operated the routes of the MEC mainline. The Androscoggin and the P & K went on November 16, 1874 final in the possession of the MEC and were dissolved.
On April 1, 1882, MEC leased the European and North American Railway, which operated the 191.9 km long main route from Bangor to the Canadian border at Vanceboro and two smaller branch lines to Stillwater and Howland. This company was only in 1955 permanently attached. 1883 was followed by two smaller parties, the stitch stretches from Bangor operated from, the Eastern Maine Railway after Bucksport on May 1 and the Maine Shore Line Railroad to Mount Desert Ferry on July 16. The latter was dissolved on 22 October 1888, passed into the possession of the MEC.
After New Hampshire, the MEC met before August 20, 1888, when it leased the Portland and Ogdensburg Railway ( P & O). The about 177 -kilometer route led from Portland through the White Mountains to the border to Vermont in Lunenburg. In the same year, on 13 December 1888 leased the MEC and the Dexter and Piscataquis Railroad. Subsequent to the P & O route of the St. Johnsbury and Lake Champlain Railroad until after Swanton in Vermont leased the MEC until July 1912. Reached in 1890, the network of MEC Canada. The Upper Coos Railroad and the adjoining Hereford Railway, total a distance of 174 kilometers in length, branched off in Quebec Junction of the former Portland & Ogdensburg and led north to Lime Ridge, Quebec.
The Knox and Lincoln Railway joined east of Bath to the already MEC belonging to route and joined the Kennebec River with the port city of Rockland. The 78.8 km long line was leased on 1 August 1891, definitively acquired on 20 February 1901. Another large company could be leased on May 1, 1907. The Portland and Rumford Falls Railroad had 167 km railways in western Maine.
Three railway companies bought the MEC on July 1, 1911. The Sebasticook and Moosehead Lake Railroad had a 24 -kilometer branch line from Pittsfield by mainstream and was extended the following year to Harmony. The Somerset Railway ran a 150 km long network, starting north of Oakland. The 222 km long network of Washington County Railway east joined to the route of the former Maine Shore Line Railroad, and combined this with the Canadian Railway route to Calais.
However, the MEC also acquired narrow gauge railways. So went in August 1911, the 166 km long network of Sandy River and Rangeley Lakes Railroad north of Farmington in the possession of the Company. In October 1912, the 34 km long Bridgton and Saco River Railroad followed. Both tracks recorded on the gauge of 2 feet (610 mm).
1913 bought the MEC nor the Rangeley Lakes and Megantic Railroad, which ran a 17 km long stretch in the northwest of the state.
Decline and end of the MEC
The late 1920s, the dismantling of its maximum expansion in 2200 km large network began. First one the Sandy River and Rangeley Lakes Railroad sold in 1923, which thus again became independent. Also, the MEC own ferry service was abandoned at this time. The lease agreement with the Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroad ran on 31 December 1925 and was not renewed. The Company conducted its routes were again independently. In February 1928, the MEC sold almost entirely located in Canada section of the former Hereford Railway to the Canadian Pacific Railway.
In the 1930s, the transition from steam to diesel locomotives began. In 1933 the MEC concluded with the Boston and Maine Railroad, which also operated an extensive network in Portland had rail connections to the MEC and in any case since the beginning of the 20th century owned the majority of shares of MEC, a " joint management " Treaty on the Portland terminal Railroad, which has since been operated jointly.
On September 5, 1960 drove the last passenger train of the MEC, the goods traffic was restricted in favor of road transport. This period saw many line closures in the network of MEC. On 17 December 1974, the Company sold the stretch Mattawamkeag - Vanceboro for 5.4 million U.S. dollars to the Canadian Pacific Railway, the mitbenutzte this route since 1889. After 1980, the U.S. Filter Corporation had the MEC acquired, the company was a year later by the Guilford Transportation Industries newly founded ( GTI ), renamed since the end of March 2006, Pan Am Railways, adopted. However, the Maine Central remains as a subsidiary. The new owner rationalized away a third of the network, including the route to New Hampshire and Vermont as well as the distance from Bangor to Calais.
In order to complete more favorable contracts for the company, the Maine Central was leased mid-80s to the subsidiary of GTI Springfield Terminal.
After the Maine Coast Railroad, which had in 1990 assumed the distances from Brunswick to Rockland and Augusta, in 2000 the operation ceased, sold you the route Brunswick- Rockland on 1 November 2003 at the Morristown and Erie Railway, which she has since as Maine Eastern Railroad operates. Some branch lines of the former Maine Central are now closed.
Statistics
On June 30, 1910 onwards, on the rail network of the MEC and its subsidiaries 201 locomotives, 187 passenger cars, two observation cars, 4 dining cars, 88 baggage, mail and express cars, 7030 freight cars and 532 company cars in use. In addition, the Company had two ferries and passenger ships 5. In fiscal year 1909/10 revenue of 8.9 million dollars spent in the amount of 6.1 million U.S. dollars were offset by. There are transported over 4 million passengers and 6.25 million tons of goods.