Kennebec Central Railroad
Encyclopedia
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The Kennebec Central Railroad was a gauge
Rail gauge
Track gauge or rail gauge is the distance between the inner sides of the heads of the two load bearing rails that make up a single railway line. Sixty percent of the world's railways use a standard gauge of . Wider gauges are called broad gauge; smaller gauges, narrow gauge. Break-of-gauge refers...
narrow gauge railroad operating between Randolph
Randolph, Maine
Randolph is a town and a census-designated place in Kennebec County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,911 at the 2000 census. The town was named for Randolph, Massachusetts.-Geography:Randolph is located at ....
and Togus, Maine
Togus, Maine
Togus is a facility operated by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs in Chelsea, Maine. The facility was built as a resort hotel, and housed Union veterans of the American Civil War prior to being converted to a veterans hospital....
. The railroad was built to offer transportation for American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
veterans living at Togus to the nearby City of Gardiner
Gardiner, Maine
Gardiner is a city in Kennebec County, Maine, United States. The population was 6,198 at the 2000 census. Popular with tourists, Gardiner is noted for its culture and old architecture.-History:...
. Tracks of 25-pound steel rails ran 5 miles from Randolph, Maine (across the Kennebec River
Kennebec River
The Kennebec River is a river that is entirely within the U.S. state of Maine. It rises in Moosehead Lake in west-central Maine. The East and West Outlets join at Indian Pond and the river then flows southward...
from Gardiner) to the veterans home at Togus. Train service began on 23 July 1890.
The Randolph terminal included a small, Queen Anne style station and a long set of stairs up to the covered bridge
Covered bridge
A covered bridge is a bridge with enclosed sides and a roof, often accommodating only a single lane of traffic. Most covered bridges are wooden; some newer ones are concrete or metal with glass sides...
passengers used to reach Gardiner. Initial rolling stock was 6 flat cars
Flatcar
A flatcar is a piece of railroad or railway rolling stock that consists of an open, flat deck on four or six wheels or a pair of trucks or bogies . The deck of the car can be wood or steel, and the sides of the deck can include pockets for stakes or tie-down points to secure loads...
and 2 box cars
Boxcar
A boxcar is a railroad car that is enclosed and generally used to carry general freight. The boxcar, while not the simplest freight car design, is probably the most versatile, since it can carry most loads...
built by W.H.Dyer of Strong, Maine
Strong, Maine
Strong is a town in Franklin County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,259 at the 2000 census. Strong is home to the annual Sandy River Festival.-History:...
, 2 passenger coaches and a combination passenger-baggage car
Combine car
A combine car in North American parlance, most often referred to simply as a combine, is a type of railroad car which combines sections for both passengers and freight....
built by Jackson & Sharpe
American Car and Foundry Company
American Car and Foundry is a manufacturer of railroad rolling stock. One of its subsidiaries was once a manufacturer of motor coaches and trolley coaches under the brand names of ACF and ACF-Brill. Today ACF is known as ACF Industries LLC and is based in St. Charles, Missouri...
, and a 16-ton 0-4-4
0-4-4
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 0-4-4 represents the wheel arrangement of no leading wheels, four powered and coupled driving wheels on two axles, and four trailing wheels on two axles...
Forney locomotive
Forney locomotive
The Forney is a type of tank locomotive patented by Matthias N. Forney between 1861 and 1864. Forney locomotives include the following characteristics:* An 0-4-4T wheel arrangement, that is four driving wheels followed by a truck with four wheels....
built by Baldwin Locomotive Works
Baldwin Locomotive Works
The Baldwin Locomotive Works was an American builder of railroad locomotives. It was located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, originally, and later in nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania. Although the company was very successful as a producer of steam locomotives, its transition to the production of...
. Operational experience during the first summer encouraged purchase of two open, arch-roofed excursion cars from Jackson & Sharp
Jackson and Sharp Company
Jackson and Sharp Company was an American railroad car manufacturer and shipbuilder in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The company was founded in 1863 by Job H. Jackson , a tinsmith and retail merchant, and Jacob F. Sharp Jackson and Sharp Company was an American railroad car manufacturer...
to handle the crowds traveling during fair weather. Portland Company
Portland Company
The Portland Company was established 10 November 1846 by John A. Poor and Norris Locomotive Works engineer Septimus Norris as a locomotive foundry to build railroad equipment for the adjacent Portland terminus of the Atlantic and St. Lawrence Railroad connection between Portland, Maine and...
built a spare 18-ton 0-4-4 Forney to provide reliable service when one engine required repairs. The veterans at Togus gave a band concert on summer Sundays while other veterans played baseball games. Sunday and holiday passenger service filled all the coaches and excursion cars with local civilians enjoying a Sunday afternoon on the spacious grounds including a herd of deer.
The Kennebec Central had no rail connection with the outside world at Randolph. Coal was delivered by barges and schooners to a large government-owned coal shed between the Randolph yard and the Kennebec River. Coal was loaded onto flat cars
Flatcar
A flatcar is a piece of railroad or railway rolling stock that consists of an open, flat deck on four or six wheels or a pair of trucks or bogies . The deck of the car can be wood or steel, and the sides of the deck can include pockets for stakes or tie-down points to secure loads...
for transport to a trestle feeding the Togus steam heating plant. Portland Company
Portland Company
The Portland Company was established 10 November 1846 by John A. Poor and Norris Locomotive Works engineer Septimus Norris as a locomotive foundry to build railroad equipment for the adjacent Portland terminus of the Atlantic and St. Lawrence Railroad connection between Portland, Maine and...
built 2 lowside gondolas
Gondola (rail)
In railroad terminology, a gondola is an open-top type of rolling stock that is used for carrying loose bulk materials. Because of its low side walls, gondolas are used to carry either very dense material, such as steel plates or coils, or bulky items such as prefabricated pieces of rail...
in 1904 and 3 more in 1907 to help the railroad carry increasing quantities of coal needed to heat the expanding facility. These lowside gondolas
Gondola (rail)
In railroad terminology, a gondola is an open-top type of rolling stock that is used for carrying loose bulk materials. Because of its low side walls, gondolas are used to carry either very dense material, such as steel plates or coils, or bulky items such as prefabricated pieces of rail...
had side gates to facilitate unloading on the coal trestle. Kennebec Central rebuilt 3 of the original flat cars
Flatcar
A flatcar is a piece of railroad or railway rolling stock that consists of an open, flat deck on four or six wheels or a pair of trucks or bogies . The deck of the car can be wood or steel, and the sides of the deck can include pockets for stakes or tie-down points to secure loads...
with similar side gates in 1908. The two box cars
Boxcar
A boxcar is a railroad car that is enclosed and generally used to carry general freight. The boxcar, while not the simplest freight car design, is probably the most versatile, since it can carry most loads...
handled small quantities of freight and were painted coach green to match the passenger equipment.
The railroad settled into a profitable routine of 4 round trips per day from Randolph to Togus and return with a couple of coal gondolas
Gondola (rail)
In railroad terminology, a gondola is an open-top type of rolling stock that is used for carrying loose bulk materials. Because of its low side walls, gondolas are used to carry either very dense material, such as steel plates or coils, or bulky items such as prefabricated pieces of rail...
between the engine and the combination car
Combine car
A combine car in North American parlance, most often referred to simply as a combine, is a type of railroad car which combines sections for both passengers and freight....
. One of the excursion cars was rebuilt into a second combination car
Combine car
A combine car in North American parlance, most often referred to simply as a combine, is a type of railroad car which combines sections for both passengers and freight....
after availability of automobiles reduced the number of passengers. The railroad purchased a used 19-ton Portland Company
Portland Company
The Portland Company was established 10 November 1846 by John A. Poor and Norris Locomotive Works engineer Septimus Norris as a locomotive foundry to build railroad equipment for the adjacent Portland terminus of the Atlantic and St. Lawrence Railroad connection between Portland, Maine and...
0-4-4 Forney from the Bridgton and Saco River Railroad
Bridgton and Saco River Railroad
The Bridgton and Saco River Railroad was a gauge railroad that operated in the vicinity of Bridgton and Harrison, Maine. It connected with the Portland and Ogdensburg Railroad from Portland, Maine, to St...
when their first engine wore out in 1922 and purchased another used 18-ton Portland Company
Portland Company
The Portland Company was established 10 November 1846 by John A. Poor and Norris Locomotive Works engineer Septimus Norris as a locomotive foundry to build railroad equipment for the adjacent Portland terminus of the Atlantic and St. Lawrence Railroad connection between Portland, Maine and...
0-4-4 Forney from the Sandy River and Rangeley Lakes Railroad
Sandy River and Rangeley Lakes Railroad
The Sandy River & Rangeley Lakes Railroad was a narrow gauge common carrier railroad that operated approximately of gauge railroad in Franklin County, Maine.-History:Josiah L...
to replace their second engine in 1926.
Operations were suspended abruptly on 29 June 1929 after the federal government awarded the coal-haul contract to a trucking firm. The locomotives were closed up in the 2-stall Randolph enginehouse; and the cars waited on sidings for 3 years. Then a December 1931 enginehouse fire in Wiscasset damaged the locomotives of the nearby Wiscasset, Waterville and Farmington Railway
Wiscasset, Waterville and Farmington Railway
The Wiscasset, Waterville and Farmington Railway is a gauge railway which operated from Wiscasset, Maine to Albion and Winslow, Maine. It was operated as a for-profit company from 1895 until 1933...
. The owner of the Wiscasset railroad bought the whole Kennebec Central Railroad for less than it would have cost to repair his burned locomotives. Kennebec Central engines #3 and #4 were trucked to Wiscasset, repainted, and renumbered 8 and 9. Kennebec Central rails and car hardware became scrap metal. Some of the box car and passenger car bodies were sold as sheds, and the remainder floated down the Kennebec River
Kennebec River
The Kennebec River is a river that is entirely within the U.S. state of Maine. It rises in Moosehead Lake in west-central Maine. The East and West Outlets join at Indian Pond and the river then flows southward...
in the 1936 flood.