What Is - What (almost) Was
What makes this photo special is not what is but what almost was.
As for what is, this is CSXT Selkirk to Worcester manifest M436 hustling along just east of CP79 about to pass under the Mass Pike. They are following the Quaboag River valley along the former Boston and Albany mainline dating from way back in 1839 and still serving as the main east west freight route in and out of New England as modern day CSXT's Boston Sub.
This spot is unremarkable by any measure which may explain why in nearly 30 years exploring the area I'd never bothered to come here. What makes this interesting is the large concrete block visible behind the tree on the left side of the frame which is a part of what almost was.
That concrete block is a footing for what would have been a massive curved steel trestle over 1000 ft long and more than 100 feet in height spanning Boston Road, the Quaboag River, the B&A main, and Washington Road as it crossed from Palmer into Brimfield. This would have been the superlative piece of infrastructure on super railroad that was under construction between 1912 and 1916. Known as the Southern New England Railroad it was an 85 mile route linking the Central Vermont near Palmer with the deepwater port of Providence, RI on a 100% grade separated right of way. Financed by British interests at the urging of Grand Trunk Railway president Charles Melville Hayes it was conceived to break the stranglehold on New England commerce then held by the Morgan interests (New Haven and Boston and Maine railroads) and the Vanderbilt interests (the B&A by then a New York Central property). The story is a complex one and far too long for me to even summarize here, but for those who don't know this line had gained the moniker 'The Titanic Railroad.' While the scale of the project and bridges such as the one to have been built here may lead some to believe that was the origin of the name the the actual reason lies at the 12,000 ft beneath the Atlantic Ocean. GTR president CM Hayes was perished on board that doomed White Star line vessel when it sank to the bottom of the sea on April 12, 1912.
Despite the oft told tale, the railroad did not die with him and in fact the first construction didn't even commence until about a month after his death. Nonetheless with the loss of the railroad's leader who was the driving force behind the audacious plan, the project was never followed through to completion. Whether it would have if he'd lived is a matter of speculation to this day, though I doubt that even if it had been built access to the port would have not have made any difference in the Grand Trunk's ultimate failure that led to the road being taken over in 1923 by the government to become a part of the Canadian National Railway, a Crown corporation. The history of GTR and its many subsidiarys (particularly the Grand Trunk Pacific which arguably led to its demise) and its relationship with the government of Canada is a very complex subject worthy of more investigation.
If one knows where to look relics like this dot the landscape across south central Massachusetts as far as the Rhode Island state line account the road was fully graded with all concrete structures poured by 1916. But no steel was ever erected and not one foot of track was laid so what may have been is left to the imagination....
I'll leave you with two recent discoveries. One is that if you research historic USGS maps the one from 1915 shows this route in its entirety as if it had been completed and is a fascinating document to pore over if you're inclined to enjoy cartography.
The second is that I didn't realize until recently that the White Star Line was owned by J.P. Morgan at the time Titanic was built and that he was scheduled to be on her maiden voyage. It is interesting that his corporate rival in this last great New England railroad war perished on the great vessel he owned....
You never know what stories you might unearth in the woods if you just know where to look!
P.S. - If you missed this shot long ago check out another 'almost' superlative on the east end of the SNE route: flic.kr/p/2mKyFs1
Brimfield, Massachusetts
Friday November 11, 2022
What Is - What (almost) Was
What makes this photo special is not what is but what almost was.
As for what is, this is CSXT Selkirk to Worcester manifest M436 hustling along just east of CP79 about to pass under the Mass Pike. They are following the Quaboag River valley along the former Boston and Albany mainline dating from way back in 1839 and still serving as the main east west freight route in and out of New England as modern day CSXT's Boston Sub.
This spot is unremarkable by any measure which may explain why in nearly 30 years exploring the area I'd never bothered to come here. What makes this interesting is the large concrete block visible behind the tree on the left side of the frame which is a part of what almost was.
That concrete block is a footing for what would have been a massive curved steel trestle over 1000 ft long and more than 100 feet in height spanning Boston Road, the Quaboag River, the B&A main, and Washington Road as it crossed from Palmer into Brimfield. This would have been the superlative piece of infrastructure on super railroad that was under construction between 1912 and 1916. Known as the Southern New England Railroad it was an 85 mile route linking the Central Vermont near Palmer with the deepwater port of Providence, RI on a 100% grade separated right of way. Financed by British interests at the urging of Grand Trunk Railway president Charles Melville Hayes it was conceived to break the stranglehold on New England commerce then held by the Morgan interests (New Haven and Boston and Maine railroads) and the Vanderbilt interests (the B&A by then a New York Central property). The story is a complex one and far too long for me to even summarize here, but for those who don't know this line had gained the moniker 'The Titanic Railroad.' While the scale of the project and bridges such as the one to have been built here may lead some to believe that was the origin of the name the the actual reason lies at the 12,000 ft beneath the Atlantic Ocean. GTR president CM Hayes was perished on board that doomed White Star line vessel when it sank to the bottom of the sea on April 12, 1912.
Despite the oft told tale, the railroad did not die with him and in fact the first construction didn't even commence until about a month after his death. Nonetheless with the loss of the railroad's leader who was the driving force behind the audacious plan, the project was never followed through to completion. Whether it would have if he'd lived is a matter of speculation to this day, though I doubt that even if it had been built access to the port would have not have made any difference in the Grand Trunk's ultimate failure that led to the road being taken over in 1923 by the government to become a part of the Canadian National Railway, a Crown corporation. The history of GTR and its many subsidiarys (particularly the Grand Trunk Pacific which arguably led to its demise) and its relationship with the government of Canada is a very complex subject worthy of more investigation.
If one knows where to look relics like this dot the landscape across south central Massachusetts as far as the Rhode Island state line account the road was fully graded with all concrete structures poured by 1916. But no steel was ever erected and not one foot of track was laid so what may have been is left to the imagination....
I'll leave you with two recent discoveries. One is that if you research historic USGS maps the one from 1915 shows this route in its entirety as if it had been completed and is a fascinating document to pore over if you're inclined to enjoy cartography.
The second is that I didn't realize until recently that the White Star Line was owned by J.P. Morgan at the time Titanic was built and that he was scheduled to be on her maiden voyage. It is interesting that his corporate rival in this last great New England railroad war perished on the great vessel he owned....
You never know what stories you might unearth in the woods if you just know where to look!
P.S. - If you missed this shot long ago check out another 'almost' superlative on the east end of the SNE route: flic.kr/p/2mKyFs1
Brimfield, Massachusetts
Friday November 11, 2022