Ironton Railroad
Encyclopedia
The Ironton Railroad was a shortline railroad
in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania
. Originally built in 1861 to haul iron ore and limestone
to blast furnace
s along the Lehigh River
, traffic later shifted to carrying Portland cement
when local iron mining declined in the early 20th century. Much of the railroad had already been abandoned when it became part of Conrail in 1976, and the last of its trackage was removed in 1984.
or the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad
. The charter also allowed the railroad to own land along the right-of-way containing iron ore or limestone. Its charter was amended on May 16, 1861 to change the terminus from Ballietville to Ironton
, and was also given the power to buy connecting branch railroads and lay its own branches of up to 6 miles (9.7 km) to iron ore mines.
The principal reason for building the railroad was to haul iron ore from the mines at Ironton to iron furnaces along the Lehigh River. The rapid growth of the Lehigh Valley
iron industry during the 1850s had resulted in a mining boom, but the heavy ore traffic was highly destructive to local roads. The Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad
had already been built further to the south in the late 1850s to bring ore to furnaces of the Thomas Iron Company
and the Crane Iron Company. Shortly after its incorporation, the railroad made a contract with Tinsley Jeter, who owned one of the large mines at Ironton, to construct the railroad. For a fixed payment, he agreed to build the railroad, which also purchased his iron mines. The railroad was leased to Jeter for three years from January 1, 1860.
The railroad was surveyed by George B. Roberts
, later president of the Pennsylvania Railroad
. Grading began at Ironton on 2 August 1859, and rails were laid by the end of January 1860. The ballast
ing of the railroad could not be finished until spring, and the first train ran on 24 May 1860. Regular service began in July or August. At the beginning of 1861, Roberts was elected one of the directors; Jay Cooke
and his partner EW Clark, who financed the railroad, were also directors.
The line, as initially built, ran from the mines at Ironton down a small tributary to reach Coplay Creek, and then followed the creek to the vicinity of Egypt
. Here the creek turns south, and the railroad continued east over a small ridge to meet the Lehigh Valley Railroad
on the banks of the Lehigh River, on the north side of Coplay
. Limonite
ore from the mines along the railroad was shipped to iron companies along the Lehigh River via the Lehigh Valley Railroad
. The closest was the Lehigh Valley Iron Company, just south of the interchange in Coplay
; Thomas Iron, in Hokendauqua, and Crane Iron in Catasauqua were further downriver. The railroad also shipped limestone
for the furnaces from quarries along the line (one of which it owned), and coal, probably to fuel the stationary steam engines at the mines.
During the summer of 1861, the railroad obtained permission under its amended charter to extend a branch to Siegersville and Orefield
. Lying to the southwest of Ironton, these two towns were also the site of extensive ore mining. The right-of-way left the main line near Ormrod, and followed Coplay Creek to around Meyersville Road, then cut cross-country to Siegersville, turning south and descending the hill to Orefield.
The Siegersville Branch was completed to Siegersville by 1862, and reached Orefield soon thereafter. The company also bought out Jeter's lease and began independent operation on January 1, 1862. By the beginning of 1863, Cooke had been replaced on the board by his brother-in-law, William G. Moorhead, and Jeter had become a director.
Another charter amendment on January 30, 1866 allowed the railroad to lease ore lands along the right-of-way as well. On February 1, 1882, all of the Ironton's stock was bought by the Thomas Iron Company
, which owned several mines along the right-of-way.
In 1902, the Ironton leased all of the trackage owned by Thomas Iron, including its line from Hokendauqua to West Catasauqua, and performed its plant switching. On December 21, 1906, Thomas Iron incorporated all of the trackage it owned, except for that immediately around the plant, as the Thomas Railroad. This was leased to the Ironton in 1907, and that year, a new branch was built off the Ironton near Egypt along Coplay Creek to reach the Thomas Railroad at West Catasauqua. The Ironton also built a large yard along the creek in West Catasauqua and a new interchange with the Catasquaua and Fogelsville, by that time controlled and operated by the Reading Company
.
In the early 20th century, the Ironton began to seek more diverse sources of revenue. Potato
farmers became significant shippers on the Siegersville Branch, which also saw deer
and buffalo
being moved by rail to the Trexler Game Preserve in 1911. However, the Ironton's parent company could not escape the ongoing trends in iron manufacture. As Mesabi Range
iron ores, hauled by rail, became increasingly favored for ironmaking, not only the local mines but the whole Lehigh Valley iron industry began to struggle. By 1914, the Ironton was the only profitable subsidiary of Thomas Iron. The Thomas Railroad was merged into the Ironton on December 4, 1917. After Thomas Iron collapsed in 1921, its stock was sold to Drexel & Company, which sold off Thomas Iron's railroad holdings. The Ironton became the joint property of the Reading and Lehigh Valley Railroads in November 1923.
In 1996, Whitehall Township
purchased 9.2 miles (14.8 km) of the right-of-way from Conrail, transforming it into the Ironton Rail Trail.
The Ironton also had trackage rights over the Lehigh Valley from Coplay to Lower Coplay, 0.24 mile (0.3862416 km).
Shortline railroad
A shortline railroad is a small or mid-sized railroad company that operates over a relatively short distance relative to larger, national railroad networks. The term is used primarily in the USA and Canada...
in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania
Lehigh County, Pennsylvania
-Climate:Most of the county's climate is considered to fall in the humid continental climate zone. Summers are typically hot and muggy, fall and spring are generally mild, and winter is cold. Precipitation is almost uniformly distributed throughout the year....
. Originally built in 1861 to haul iron ore and limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
to blast furnace
Blast furnace
A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally iron.In a blast furnace, fuel and ore and flux are continuously supplied through the top of the furnace, while air is blown into the bottom of the chamber, so that the chemical reactions...
s along the Lehigh River
Lehigh River
The Lehigh River, a tributary of the Delaware River, is a river located in eastern Pennsylvania, in the United States. Part of the Lehigh, along with a number of its tributaries, is designated a Pennsylvania Scenic River by the state's Department of Conservation and Natural Resources...
, traffic later shifted to carrying Portland cement
Portland cement
Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general use around the world because it is a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar, stucco and most non-specialty grout...
when local iron mining declined in the early 20th century. Much of the railroad had already been abandoned when it became part of Conrail in 1976, and the last of its trackage was removed in 1984.
Origins and construction
The railroad was originally incorporated on March 4, 1859 to run from Ballietville to a connection with the Lehigh Valley RailroadLehigh Valley Railroad
The Lehigh Valley Railroad was one of a number of railroads built in the northeastern United States primarily to haul anthracite coal.It was authorized April 21, 1846 in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and incorporated September 20, 1847 as the Delaware, Lehigh, Schuylkill and Susquehanna Railroad...
or the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad
Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad
The Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad was built in the 1850s to transport iron ore from local mines in Lehigh and later Berks County to furnaces along the Lehigh River...
. The charter also allowed the railroad to own land along the right-of-way containing iron ore or limestone. Its charter was amended on May 16, 1861 to change the terminus from Ballietville to Ironton
Ironton, Pennsylvania
Ironton, Pennsylvania is a village in North Whitehall Township, Lehigh County. It uses the Coplay zip code of 18037 and is drained by the Coplay Creek into the Lehigh River....
, and was also given the power to buy connecting branch railroads and lay its own branches of up to 6 miles (9.7 km) to iron ore mines.
The principal reason for building the railroad was to haul iron ore from the mines at Ironton to iron furnaces along the Lehigh River. The rapid growth of the Lehigh Valley
Lehigh Valley
The Lehigh Valley, known officially by the United States Census Bureau as the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ metropolitan area and referred to locally as The Valley and A-B-E, is a metropolitan region consisting of Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, and Carbon counties in eastern Pennsylvania and...
iron industry during the 1850s had resulted in a mining boom, but the heavy ore traffic was highly destructive to local roads. The Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad
Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad
The Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad was built in the 1850s to transport iron ore from local mines in Lehigh and later Berks County to furnaces along the Lehigh River...
had already been built further to the south in the late 1850s to bring ore to furnaces of the Thomas Iron Company
Thomas Iron Company
The Thomas Iron Company was a major iron-making firm in the Lehigh Valley from its organization in 1854 until its decline and eventual dismantling in the early 20th century. The firm was named in honor of its founder, David Thomas, who had emigrated to the United States in 1839 to introduce hot...
and the Crane Iron Company. Shortly after its incorporation, the railroad made a contract with Tinsley Jeter, who owned one of the large mines at Ironton, to construct the railroad. For a fixed payment, he agreed to build the railroad, which also purchased his iron mines. The railroad was leased to Jeter for three years from January 1, 1860.
The railroad was surveyed by George B. Roberts
George Brooke Roberts
George Brooke Roberts was a civil engineer and the 5th president of the Pennsylvania Railroad ....
, later president of the Pennsylvania Railroad
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
. Grading began at Ironton on 2 August 1859, and rails were laid by the end of January 1860. The ballast
Track ballast
Track ballast forms the trackbed upon which railway sleepers or railroad ties are laid. It is packed between, below, and around the ties. It is used to facilitate drainage of water, to distribute the load from the railroad ties, and also to keep down vegetation that might interfere with the track...
ing of the railroad could not be finished until spring, and the first train ran on 24 May 1860. Regular service began in July or August. At the beginning of 1861, Roberts was elected one of the directors; Jay Cooke
Jay Cooke
Jay Cooke was an American financier. Cooke and his firm Jay Cooke & Company were most notable for their role in financing the Union's war effort during the American Civil War...
and his partner EW Clark, who financed the railroad, were also directors.
The line, as initially built, ran from the mines at Ironton down a small tributary to reach Coplay Creek, and then followed the creek to the vicinity of Egypt
Egypt, Pennsylvania
Egypt is an unincorporated community in Whitehall Township, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, United States, about north of Allentown and west of Cementon. Egypt is located on Pennsylvania Route 329, just west of its intersection with Pennsylvania Route 145 at Eagle Point.The population of Egypt is...
. Here the creek turns south, and the railroad continued east over a small ridge to meet the Lehigh Valley Railroad
Lehigh Valley Railroad
The Lehigh Valley Railroad was one of a number of railroads built in the northeastern United States primarily to haul anthracite coal.It was authorized April 21, 1846 in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and incorporated September 20, 1847 as the Delaware, Lehigh, Schuylkill and Susquehanna Railroad...
on the banks of the Lehigh River, on the north side of Coplay
Coplay, Pennsylvania
Coplay is a borough in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, six miles northwest of Allentown. It is part of the Lehigh Valley region of the state. In 1900, 1,581 people lived in Coplay; in 1910, 2,670 people lived there...
. Limonite
Limonite
Limonite is an ore consisting in a mixture of hydrated iron oxide-hydroxide of varying composition. The generic formula is frequently written as FeO·nH2O, although this is not entirely accurate as limonite often contains a varying amount of oxide compared to hydroxide.Together with hematite, it has...
ore from the mines along the railroad was shipped to iron companies along the Lehigh River via the Lehigh Valley Railroad
Lehigh Valley Railroad
The Lehigh Valley Railroad was one of a number of railroads built in the northeastern United States primarily to haul anthracite coal.It was authorized April 21, 1846 in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and incorporated September 20, 1847 as the Delaware, Lehigh, Schuylkill and Susquehanna Railroad...
. The closest was the Lehigh Valley Iron Company, just south of the interchange in Coplay
Coplay, Pennsylvania
Coplay is a borough in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, six miles northwest of Allentown. It is part of the Lehigh Valley region of the state. In 1900, 1,581 people lived in Coplay; in 1910, 2,670 people lived there...
; Thomas Iron, in Hokendauqua, and Crane Iron in Catasauqua were further downriver. The railroad also shipped limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
for the furnaces from quarries along the line (one of which it owned), and coal, probably to fuel the stationary steam engines at the mines.
During the summer of 1861, the railroad obtained permission under its amended charter to extend a branch to Siegersville and Orefield
Orefield, Pennsylvania
Orefield is a small unincorporated community in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, United States, split between North Whitehall and South Whitehall township. Located along Pennsylvania Route 309, Orefield has the zip code of 18069. Its name is derived from the extensive deposits of limonite once mined...
. Lying to the southwest of Ironton, these two towns were also the site of extensive ore mining. The right-of-way left the main line near Ormrod, and followed Coplay Creek to around Meyersville Road, then cut cross-country to Siegersville, turning south and descending the hill to Orefield.
The Siegersville Branch was completed to Siegersville by 1862, and reached Orefield soon thereafter. The company also bought out Jeter's lease and began independent operation on January 1, 1862. By the beginning of 1863, Cooke had been replaced on the board by his brother-in-law, William G. Moorhead, and Jeter had become a director.
Another charter amendment on January 30, 1866 allowed the railroad to lease ore lands along the right-of-way as well. On February 1, 1882, all of the Ironton's stock was bought by the Thomas Iron Company
Thomas Iron Company
The Thomas Iron Company was a major iron-making firm in the Lehigh Valley from its organization in 1854 until its decline and eventual dismantling in the early 20th century. The firm was named in honor of its founder, David Thomas, who had emigrated to the United States in 1839 to introduce hot...
, which owned several mines along the right-of-way.
Shift to cement
In 1884, shortly after its purchase by Thomas Iron, the first shipment of Portland cement was made over the railroad. Extensive cement deposits lie in the vicinity of the line, and cement became an increasing part of the railroad's traffic. This proved to be its saving grace as the local iron mining industry began to decline. The Siegersville Branch was cut back from Orefield to Siegersville sometime between 1876 and 1900. However, passenger service began on the railroad on November 1, 1898.In 1902, the Ironton leased all of the trackage owned by Thomas Iron, including its line from Hokendauqua to West Catasauqua, and performed its plant switching. On December 21, 1906, Thomas Iron incorporated all of the trackage it owned, except for that immediately around the plant, as the Thomas Railroad. This was leased to the Ironton in 1907, and that year, a new branch was built off the Ironton near Egypt along Coplay Creek to reach the Thomas Railroad at West Catasauqua. The Ironton also built a large yard along the creek in West Catasauqua and a new interchange with the Catasquaua and Fogelsville, by that time controlled and operated by the Reading Company
Reading Company
The Reading Company , usually called the Reading Railroad, officially the Philadelphia and Reading Rail Road and then the Philadelphia and Reading Railway until 1924, operated in southeast Pennsylvania and neighboring states...
.
In the early 20th century, the Ironton began to seek more diverse sources of revenue. Potato
Potato
The potato is a starchy, tuberous crop from the perennial Solanum tuberosum of the Solanaceae family . The word potato may refer to the plant itself as well as the edible tuber. In the region of the Andes, there are some other closely related cultivated potato species...
farmers became significant shippers on the Siegersville Branch, which also saw deer
White-tailed Deer
The white-tailed deer , also known as the Virginia deer or simply as the whitetail, is a medium-sized deer native to the United States , Canada, Mexico, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru...
and buffalo
American Bison
The American bison , also commonly known as the American buffalo, is a North American species of bison that once roamed the grasslands of North America in massive herds...
being moved by rail to the Trexler Game Preserve in 1911. However, the Ironton's parent company could not escape the ongoing trends in iron manufacture. As Mesabi Range
Mesabi Range
The Mesabi Iron Range is a vast deposit of iron ore and the largest of four major iron ranges in the region collectively known as the Iron Range of Minnesota. Discovered in 1866, it is the chief deposit of iron ore in the United States. The deposit is located in northeast Minnesota, largely in...
iron ores, hauled by rail, became increasingly favored for ironmaking, not only the local mines but the whole Lehigh Valley iron industry began to struggle. By 1914, the Ironton was the only profitable subsidiary of Thomas Iron. The Thomas Railroad was merged into the Ironton on December 4, 1917. After Thomas Iron collapsed in 1921, its stock was sold to Drexel & Company, which sold off Thomas Iron's railroad holdings. The Ironton became the joint property of the Reading and Lehigh Valley Railroads in November 1923.
Contraction and decline
In late 1955, the Siegersville Branch was abandoned, due to increasing truck competition, minimal on-line industry, and the construction of the Northeast Extension across its right-of-way. In 1961, it was cut back about 1 miles (1.6 km) from Ironton to a farmers' co-operative. A further abandonment, from the co-op to Ormrod, took place in the late 1970s or early 1980s. In 1976, the Ironton followed the Lehigh Valley and the Reading to become a part of Conrail, but in 1984, the last remaining trackage was abandoned.In 1996, Whitehall Township
Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania
Whitehall Township is a township in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is a suburb of Allentown, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of the state.The population of Whitehall Township was 24,896 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
purchased 9.2 miles (14.8 km) of the right-of-way from Conrail, transforming it into the Ironton Rail Trail.
Stations
The following stations existed along the railroad:| Name | Distance | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Main Line | ||
| Coplay | 0 mile (0 km) | Connection with Lehigh Valley Railroad |
| Saylor | 0.73 miles (1.2 km) | |
| Egypt | 1.77 miles (2.8 km) | Connection with Catasauqua Branch |
| Kohlers | 2.14 miles (3.4 km) | |
| Steckels | 2.62 miles (4.2 km) | |
| Lesley | 2.88 miles (4.6 km) | |
| Ormrod | 3.63 miles (5.8 km) | Connection with Siegersville Branch |
| Ironton | 5.52 miles (8.9 km) | |
| Siegersville Branch | ||
| Ormrod | 0 mile (0 km) | Connection with main line |
| Balliet | 1.75 miles (2.8 km) | |
| Siegersville | 2 miles (3.2 km) | |
| Catasauqua Branch and Thomas Railroad | ||
| Egypt | 0 mile (0 km) | Connection with main line |
| West Coplay | 0.75 miles (1.2 km) | |
| West Catasauqua | 2.55 miles (4.1 km) | Connection with Catasauqua & Fogelsville Railroad, Thomas Railroad, Lehigh Valley Railroad |
| Hokendauqua | 3.22 miles (5.2 km) | Site of Thomas Iron Company furnaces and post-1907 engine facilities; connection with Central Railroad of New Jersey |
| Lower Coplay | 3.9 miles (6.3 km) | Connection with Lehigh Valley Railroad |
The Ironton also had trackage rights over the Lehigh Valley from Coplay to Lower Coplay, 0.24 mile (0.3862416 km).