Topics

1

Bridgton & Saco River Railway / Turntable

« on: April 26, 2021, 06:24:12 AM »

A discussion this past weekend about the Edaville turntable got me thinking. I had always assumed that the Bridgton Junction turntable is the one that went to Edaville. So I went back to my B&SR books and saw photos of the Bridgton yard at the time of scrapping operations. The turntable was still intact after most of the yard trackage had been removed, based on the photos, except that the turntable rails had been removed but were lying on top of the table. Also, some of the coaches that had been sold to Atwood were left “landlocked” in the Bridgton yard after some sort of disagreement with Everett Brown. Everett got mad about something and refused to haul the coaches to the Junction, so I’ve heard. Atwood had to send a crew to Bridgton to haul those coaches to Massachusetts so did he also take that turntable or was it scrapped?  Or did pieces of it go to Mass along with the Junction table?  And, could it be possible that the center pivot for the Bridgton Yard table might still be there buried in the old turntable pit of it was filled in before the school was built there? 

2

General Discussion / Steam Shovel found in Michigan Lake

« on: May 28, 2020, 01:51:51 PM »

Not railroad related but it is about steam and I thought some of you might find it interesting.

https://www.ourmidland.com/news/article/Wixom-Lake-reveals-nearly-100-year-old-artifact-15289315.php#photo-19446157

3

Bridgton & Saco River Railway / Ed Mead's B&SR Photos

« on: October 28, 2019, 01:36:10 PM »

Does anyone know what happened to Ed Mead's B&SR photo collection?  Was it donated to some organization and if so, which one?   Or is it still in the family? 

4

General Discussion / All Female Steam Loco Crew

« on: October 25, 2016, 07:57:37 AM »

I watched a YouTube video of Little River Railroad's neat little Baldwin #110 hauling the LRRR Quincy Flyer out of Coldwater, MI and was surprised to see an all female engine crew.  I thought it was pretty cool.  Anyone know of any other railroads that have women on their steam crews?  Seems rare. 

#110 is the smallest (58 tons) 4-6-2 that Baldwin ever built for standard gauge, so I've read.  It has an interesting history.

5

Work and Events / Sunday Track Work

« on: October 13, 2016, 04:51:26 PM »

     I had some discussions with a number of guys during the work weekend about track work.  The main line needs maintenance and since it is difficult to do much on Saturdays when trains are running I was thinking about having a Sunday Track Work day if enough crew can show up.  I know there are family and other considerations but I thought I would at least put the idea out there and see what kind of response I get.

6

Work and Events / Shingle Mill - Official Work Thread

« on: May 01, 2015, 12:18:51 PM »

Hey Everyone,

     I'm planning to have another work day at the shingle mill on Saturday, May 9.  The owners have agreed to spot a dumpster there for us and I'm thinking we can finish the clean out that day and get plans formalized for removing the mill equipment.  It would be nice to have the equipment out and safely stored at Sheepscot or nearby by the end of June.  If you are interested and need directions PM me or call me.

Dana

7

Work and Events / Fall Work Weekend 2011

« on: August 02, 2011, 05:27:27 AM »

The Fall Work Weekend is just around the corner (10/7 -10) and some plans are already in the works.  We will be extending the mainline northward by about 210 feet.  If there is time we will do some mainline maintenance and possibly extend the new siding.  I'm sure there will be other non-track projects going on as well.

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Volunteers / August Work Planning

« on: August 02, 2011, 05:24:16 AM »

Is there any interest in a track work day on Friday 8/12?  That is the day before the picnic weekend.  I'll plan on it if there is enough availability.  I would need 5 or 6 people to make it work.

9

Work and Events / Fall Work Weekend 10/8-11, 2010

« on: September 02, 2010, 09:49:35 AM »

Hard to believe that the Fall Work Weekend is so close upon us but it is just over 5 weeks away.  I thought I'd let everyone in on the plan for trackwork.  In anticipation of installing the new yard switch we are planning on installing a heavier frog (since we had planned to upgrade the rail weight on that part of the mainline anyway).  That means we will be relaying the mainline from Davis Curve southward to a point beyond the spot where the switch will be, with 50 lb rail.  The distance will be about 800 feet more or less depending on where the 30 foot lengths fall.  So the plan is to get the 50 lb rail set out next to the existing track and then replace the lighter rail.  Jane's Way Crossing will also have to be "de-planked" and "re-planked" as well.    The details of the plan are subject to change as always but that is the gist of it.  We also may replace six bent rails on the "Crooker Section" north of Humason Trestle if time allows plus any other work that there may be time and crew enough for.  Just thought I'd lay out the general plan as we are getting close.

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Bridgton & Saco River Railway / More Land For Sale containing B&SR ROW

« on: August 31, 2010, 10:14:57 AM »

  FYI: For Sale signs just went up on the land across the road from our camp at Hancock Pond.  This parcel contains ROW from Perley's Mills to the Swamp Road crossing.  It is currently owned by Hancock Lumber.  Don't know the asking price or acreage at this time.  The parcel described in an earlier post which contains ROW from Perley's Mills northward has not yet been sold.

11

Bridgton & Saco River Railway / Hancock Pond Tank House is No More

« on: June 01, 2010, 04:59:38 AM »

     On my way to camp on Memorial Day I was shocked to discover that the little camp that had once been the Hancock Pond Tank House was gone.  I walked down to the site and spoke with a couple of the contractors hoping that the building had only been moved but they told me it has been demolished to make way for a new camp building.  They had no idea about the history of the structure they had destroyed.  Another piece of Maine Two Foot History is gone forever.

12

Work and Events / Work Weekend Fall 2009

« on: September 22, 2009, 06:01:07 AM »

Hi All,

     We all knew that this fall would mark a kind of "breathing space" where track laying is concerned.  We are almost ready to begin the yard expansion, but not quite, so that will come at a later work weekend.  The work weekend is going to be a bit more "diverse" this year. We have some rail on hand that we can lay if it is cropped and re-drilled.  It is the Chair Factory Rail that has defects on the ends which require cropping before the rail can be used.  A crew will be working on getting some of the rail cropped and drilled prior to the work weekend and the balance will be done on Friday of the Work weekend.  We only have room for 390 feet of new track on the graded ROW and I am not sure we even have that much salvageable rail.  We will do what we can. Also on Friday a crew will be working on cutting ties at Sheepscot and moving some of them to EOT and piling others in the yard for use on the future yard expansion, which could begin in the spring, emphasis on could.  On Saturday we will lay whatever rail we have.  If we get the rail down and have time to spare on Saturday we'll do some ballasting and tamping on the new track or we will complete some long overdue track work on the track from the top of the Ladder all the way to Albee's crossing.  This section hasn't been touched much since it was put down and it needs some major surfacing and lining.  Since we'll have Big Joe operating we could get a lot of that done.  We'll continue on Sunday and Monday with either work on the new track or work on existing track.  I'm sure there will be other projects going on, too.  So even though there isn't a lot of track laying scheduled for this fall there is a lot of important work to do.  I hope folks will still show up.  See you then!  As always, the plan is subject to change as conditions may warrant.

Dana

13

Volunteers / Rail Cutting Postponed

« on: September 11, 2009, 10:15:24 AM »

Since I only got a total of three volunteers to commit to Saturday 9/12, and due to an uncertain weather forecast, I'm postponing the rail cutting day until Saturday 9/26.  Maybe I can stir up more interest or more guys would be available that day.  The more rail we crop and drill the more we'll have to put down over the work weekend.

14

Volunteers / Putting out the Call for 9/12/09

« on: September 01, 2009, 10:30:14 AM »

     I am putting out the call for 6 to 8 volunteers to crop and drill more of the Chair Factory rail on September 12.  Any takers?

15

Bridgton & Saco River Railway / LAND FOR SALE Includes Perley's Mills and a large chunk of ROW

« on: August 27, 2009, 08:39:06 AM »

Follow the link below.  This land includes a house, a 40 acre pond, and a large chunk of the B&SR ROW.  Open the picture and the lower right one shows the ROW.  This could affect the future of the Return of the Rails project.  Asking price is 3.15 million bucks.  Out of my price range.

http://www.mainehomesandcondos.com/863393.aspx