CNYrailroadnut
The Burt Line
The Burt Line was an unfinished railroad intended to cross NY state, and competed during construction with the West Shore & Buffalo Railroad. The 2014 Oneida Railway Company book discusses the unfinished line in some detail, and ironically states that construction of the line had been halted around this general vicinity due to an embankment that the West Shore built just west of Quality Hill Rd. (Now Beebe Bridge Rd.) Apparently both railroads surveyed land, and even did some grading, in some places side by side. I theorize that many parts of the West Shore may have been built at a later date over the proposed route of the Burt Line. From what I recall in the book, the two railroads went to court, but neither were found responsible, and construction on the Burt Line ceased not long after, due to the death of General Burt; the mastermind of the proposed railroad. I have no clue how much of the Burt Line was actually built, surveyed, or graded. It is clearly evident here, and on the north side of the old West Shore right-of-way at the end of Stone St. and Lenox Avenue in the city of Oneida, NY. Interestingly, I did see traces of stone, cinder, on the embankment, and a fence on the south side of this grade, typical in design of those built by the railroads. This made me wonder if the West Shore ever used this as a siding during the early days of operations? Perhaps during construction, or until the NYC take over?
The Burt Line
The Burt Line was an unfinished railroad intended to cross NY state, and competed during construction with the West Shore & Buffalo Railroad. The 2014 Oneida Railway Company book discusses the unfinished line in some detail, and ironically states that construction of the line had been halted around this general vicinity due to an embankment that the West Shore built just west of Quality Hill Rd. (Now Beebe Bridge Rd.) Apparently both railroads surveyed land, and even did some grading, in some places side by side. I theorize that many parts of the West Shore may have been built at a later date over the proposed route of the Burt Line. From what I recall in the book, the two railroads went to court, but neither were found responsible, and construction on the Burt Line ceased not long after, due to the death of General Burt; the mastermind of the proposed railroad. I have no clue how much of the Burt Line was actually built, surveyed, or graded. It is clearly evident here, and on the north side of the old West Shore right-of-way at the end of Stone St. and Lenox Avenue in the city of Oneida, NY. Interestingly, I did see traces of stone, cinder, on the embankment, and a fence on the south side of this grade, typical in design of those built by the railroads. This made me wonder if the West Shore ever used this as a siding during the early days of operations? Perhaps during construction, or until the NYC take over?