FRIENDSHIP RAILROAD
(more news)
Narrow Gauge, became part of Pittsburgh Shawmut & Northern RR
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(Submitted by Richard Palmer)
Friendship Chronicle
Wednesday, June 29, 1881
Work on the Friendship railroad progresses. The bed is nearly graded between this place and the Summit. The engine arrived last Friday and the gondolas are on the way.
Friendship Chronicle
Wednesday, July 13, 1881
George M. Brown, a former Erie man, has charge of the engine on the Friendship Railroad.
Friendship Chronicle
Wednesday, July 20, 1881
Twenty new gondolas for the Friendship railroad have been received.
The track for the Friendship railroad is now laid as far as the Cuba road. The grade this side of the Notch is read, excepting a short distance between this place and Nile. Contractor Chapman is certainly pushing things.
Friendship Weekly Register
Thursday, July 21, 1881
The work of grading for the Friendship Railroad is being pushed vigorously and the grade is nearly ready for the rails to Richburg.
Cuba Patriot
Friday, August 5, 1881
They Find Out the Difference
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Large numbers of men who have been working on the Friendship Railroad are here working on the Tonawanda Valley & Cuba road. Most of these men, at first, had an idea that they could do just about as they had a mind to after they got a little whiskey in their skins. For several nights officer Bemis has filled up his brick “hotel: with these “chappies.”
Wednesday morning one of these fellows, upon being arraigned before Recorder Todd, “allowed, be jabbers,” that he has had a right to do just as he wanted because he “did the self-same thing at Friendship, and they didn’t have a license there at all, at all!” He has now found out the difference between this town and a no license town.
Friendship Weekly Register
Thursday, August 18, 1881
THE NEW RAILROAD!
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Friendship and Richburg Joined Together
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The Friendship Railroad is Nearly Completed
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The building of the Friendship Railroad has been watched with deep interest by the good citizens of our enterprising and wide-awake town, and while some of our neighbors have been throwing envious missiles at the project, the construction has been steady and rapid. Before tis issue of the Register will reach its readers the iron horse will be sounding its loud snorting through the city of Richburg, and carrying passengers to and from the city of grease. The grading is completed throughout the whole line, and the rails will be laid to Richburg today (Thursday, and through to Bolivar before Monday.
The scenery adjacent to the new railroad is so varied in its numerous formations as to take too much space for a detailed account in today’s paper. Especially through the Notch is the landscape strikingly grand, where the passengers will ride over high, long trestle work, with deep and romantic ravines on either side; the towering mountains in the distance, with bountiful growth of forests, thickly studded with almost innumerable derricks - no finer scenery can be found in this section of the state.
The railroad bed has been graded with more than the usual amount of care, and is built to last. The rolling stock is all of the best make, and in short is the best running to the new oil field. The completion of the road at this early day is a good lift for our young city, and establishes the fact beyond a doubt that Friendship is the great center of the Allegany oil fields.
Friendship certainly offers better inducements to land purchases than either Cuba, Scio or Wellsville, and building lots are being sold off at a rate that excels Maude S. by several seconds and a fraction. Today Friendship is the liveliest town in the county, and besides our former manufactories and oil refinery, new industries are being established that will assist materially in revolving the wheel of fortune and good times.
Land is not held in Friendship to speculate on - nor is it sold for such purposes. :The train makes three trips a day between Friendship and Richburg. Good day, sir!”
The Friendship Railroad will be in running order between this place and Richburg, Friday, and will be completed to Bolivar within days thereafter.
Cuba Patriot
Friday, August 26, 1881
What’s In the Wind?
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Special to the Patriot
Friendship, Aug. 25, 1881
There is a rumor here that Messrs. Miner and Wellman have sold the Friendship railroad to Post, Martin & Co., or to Post Mortem & Co., the great Angelica Syndicate. There is something in the wind that is certain. Our people here are naturally indignant at the manner in which our little expected narrow gauge is being “monkeyed” with, and are asking one another: -
“Does ‘Mitch’ Blair and ‘Bill Doc’ Smith have a brass collar around our necks?” It looks like it. M.
Cuba Evening Review
August 31, 1881
Passenger trains are now running on the Friendship railroad and stage travel is decreasing.
Friendship Register
Thursday, September 1, 1881
The Friendship Railroad was completed to Richburg, Friday, and trains are now running on schedule time, making six trips a day, and connecting with all passenger trains on the Erie. Friendship already receives perceptible benefits from its new railroad. The road will be completed to Bolivar this week.
Friendship Weekly Register
Thursday, September 22, 1881
The Friendship Railroad Company has purchased the West Lambert property, near the Erie station, and will, we learn, convert the “beehive” into a depot and freight house. Mr. Lambert has purchased a lot of Mayor Pearse, and will erect a dwelling house at once.
The Friendship Railroad is doing a rattling business and handling an almost incredible amount of freight and express goods. The passenger business is exceedingly large.
Friendship Weekly Register
Thursday, October 6, 1881
The Friendship Railroad will run excursion trains to and from Bolivar on Saturday next, to accommodate those who wish to attend the great circus menagerie to be exhibited in this village that day.
A train will leave for Bolivar immediately after the evening performance.
The passenger cars are crowded daily with passengers for the Allegany oil field. Three trips are made each way every day, and the amount of freight carried cars exceeds the expectations of the company.
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The Wellsville and Eldred railroad is doing a rushing business. The train started out Saturday morning last with one passenger, two cases of merchandise and one pup, said to belong to the “Rip Rap” office. Upon its (the train’s) return it was empty.
Cuba Patriot
October 21, 1881
The Friendship Railroad Company has ordered 100 new freight cars, six passenger cars, one express and one combination car.
Naples Record
December 14, 1892
It is rumored in Hornellsville that the Central New York & Western railroad are contemplating the extension of their line from Wayland to this village to connect with our Middlesex Valley R.R. If this is done and our road is extended to Geneva it will connect us with all the belt lines and be a direct route to the Pennsylvania coal fields.
Bolivar Breeze
Thursday, March 23, 1899
Tour of Inspection
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Several Capitalists, Owners of the Central
New York & Western Railroad, go Over the Line.
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This village was honored Tuesday with a short visit by four New York capitalists, who represent a controlling interest in the affairs of the Central New York & Western Railroad Company. Those who composed the party were: Mr. Ellsworth, a brother of Senator Timothy E. Ellsworth; Mr. Marquard, a son of the well-known financier; General Austin Lathrop, former state superintendent of prisons, and Hon. Frank Sullivan Smith of Angelica and New York, the first vice president of the company.
In company with Superintendent M. S. Blair the party drove over from Angelica and took dinner at the Newton House. Early in the afternoon they boarded a special train and started on a tour of inspection of the narrow gauge division between Bolivar and Olean, and from Olean they will go on a tour of inspection of the newly purchased St. Mary’s & Southwestern Railroad.
The object of this tour of inspection is to prepare their way for the consolidation of the Central New York & Western and the recently acquired St. Marys road. By building a standard gauge road from Angelica to Bolivar and widening out the narrow gauge from here to Olean, they will be able to reach their new line. The St. Marys road runs into the heart of the soft coal country and this consolidation of the two roads means a new output for this product.
Bolivar Breeze
Thursday, April 16, 1903
SHAWMUT LINE CHANGE
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C.J. Renwick Has Been Appointed
General Freight and Passenger agent
to Succeed Charles H. Hammond
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On April 13, C. J. Renwick was appointed General Passenger Agent of the Shawmut Line to succeed Charles H. Hammond who for many years has been in charge of the freight and passenger business of the Shawmut Line and its predecessors, the Lackawanna & Pittsburg, and the Central New York & Western railroad.
Mr. Hammond was first station agent at Friendship, working his way up by merit to the position he has held for ten years or more. He has been a very popular and efficient official and will not be long in finding a congenial position at a good salary.
Mr. Renwick has been an employee of the company and the companies it followed for 16 or 17 years. For several years he was chief clerk in Mr. Hammond’s office and is well acquainted with the duties of the office to which he has been promoted. For several months he has been sales agent for the coal department of the Shawmut Line with an office in Buffalo. He is said to be a very capable man. The appointment was announced by a circular sent out by Vice President Maroney.
Angelica Advocate
April 3, 1948
Angelica Railroad Shops 64 years old
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The original railroad shop at Angelica was built about the year 1881 by local men, and was known as the Angelica Foundry and Machine Shop, with the late James T. Brown as president. At this shop, repairs were made to cars and engined for the Allegany Central Railroad, Olean Railroad and the Friendship Railroad companies, which later merged, forming the Central New York & Western Railroad Company, operating between Olean, Hornell and Wayland Junction, New York.
In February, 1893, the Central New York & Western Railroad took over these shops. By merger in August, 1899, the railroad became the present company, the Pittsburg, Shawmut & Northern, which has operated these shops to the present time.
In 1903, the shops were seriously damaged by fie, and in 1918 were practically destroyed by fire, being rebuilt in October of that year.