Rochester and Syracuse Railroad
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Rochester and Syracuse Railroad was a railway company in the United States. It was incorporated in 1850 to consolidate the Auburn and Rochester Railroad and Auburn and Syracuse Railroad, giving it a railway line between Rochester and Syracuse via Auburn, New York. The company constructed a new, more direct line between its two namesake cities, which opened in 1853. The railroad was consolidated with nine other railroads in 1853 to form the first New York Central Railroad.
| Overview | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Locale | Rochester, New York to Syracuse, New York | ||
| Dates of operation | 1850–1853 | ||
| Predecessors | |||
| Successor | New York Central Railroad | ||
| Technical | |||
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) | ||
| Length | 176 miles (283 km) | ||
| |||
History
The oldest predecessor of the Rochester and Syracuse Railroad was the Auburn and Syracuse Railroad, which was incorporated in 1834.[1] The company completed a 23-mile (37 km) between Syracuse and Auburn, New York, in 1838.[2] The Auburn and Rochester Railroad was incorporated in 1836,[3] and completed a 73-mile (117 km) line between Auburn and Rochester, New York, in 1841.[2] Together, the two lines provided a route between Rochester and Syracuse, and served a number of cities bypassed by the Erie Canal, which ran further north. The Syracuse and Utica Railroad, completed in 1839, provided a connection to the east.[4]
The Rochester and Syracuse Railroad was incorporated on August 1, 1850, to consolidate the two older companies and develop a more direct route between its two namesake cities.[5] On August 6, it acquired the Direct Railway between Syracuse and Rochester, incorporated in 1848, which owned some right-of-way but had performed no construction work.[6] The new line, shorter than the original route and double-tracked, was completed on June 1, 1853, after the company's consolidation.[7]
The Rochester and Syracuse Railroad was consolidated with nine other railroads to form the first New York Central Railroad on May 1, 1853.[8]
