New York Railroad Archive

Brocton, NY

An undated photograph showing the Pennsylvania Railroad station in Brocton, NY. John Stewart collection on Flickr.

Brocton, New York is a town on the shores of Lake Erie in Chautauqua County. The Lake Shore and Michigan Southern (New York Central) and New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad (Nickel Plate Road) mainlines ran through the town and the Pennsylvania Railroad line from Mayville snaked into town from the south.

The station in Brocton was named “Centreville” on the early timetables of the Buffalo and State Line Railroad.

This map shows the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway line (blue) and the New York, Chicago and St Louis (Nickel Plate) Railroad (green) line running west along the shore of Lake Erie from Buffalo. The Pennsylvania Railroad line running north from Pennsylvania (red) snakes it way up before joining the other two on the way to Buffalo. Author’s illustration from a 1900 Dunkirk topographic map.
Detail of a 1901 Sanford fire insurance map showing the layout of the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway freight and passenger stations and the New York, Chicago and St. Louis (Nickel Plate) Railroad and Chautauqua Branch of the Pennsylvania Railroad tracks. The area on the map is just west of where Railroad Avenue intersected the tracks. Library of Congress collection.

Pennsylvania Railroad

The table below from a 1923 list of Pennsylvania Railroad stations and sidings shows the railroad’s customers in Brocton.

Detail showing the Pennsylvania Railroad customers in and around Brocton, NY. Pennsylvania Railroad List of Stations and Sidings. November 1, 1923.

Nickel Plate Road

A 1913-1914 Nickel Plate Road Shippers’ Guide listed the following customers in Brocton:

  • Bailey Construction Co., lumber. (See note 2)
  • Brainard, C. L., Co., shipper grapes, feed mill. (See note 2)
  • Brocton Fruit Products Co., manufacturers cider, wine and vinegar. (See note 1)
  • Brocton Furniture Co., furniture. (See note 2)
  • Brocton Hardware and Lumber Co., dealers hardware and lumber.
  • Chautauqua Grape Co., shippers grapes.
  • Crandall Grape Shipping Co., shippers grapes.
  • Crandall Panel Co., baskets, veneering and art panels. (See note 1)
  • Edmunds, E. C., hardware.
  • Fay, A. A., & Son, dealers coal and feed. (See note 2)
  • Lawson, C. P., dealer coal and feed. (See note 2)
  • Moss, E. S., Co., shippers grapes.
  • Mathews, Vernon, feed mill, dealer grain. (See note 2)
  • Naboth Vineyards, manufacturers grape juice (unfermented) and fruit syrups. (See note 2)
  • Ryckman, G. E., Wine Co., manufacturers wine.

Note 1: Private Siding on line N. Y., C. & St. L. R. R.

Note 2: Private Siding on line of some other road, but which can be reached by switching from N. Y., C. & St. L. R. R.

Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway

The Buffalo and State Line Railroad completed its line through Brocton in January 1852. The line was later operated by the Buffalo and Erie Railroad (1857 – 1869), Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway (1869 – 1877), New York Central and Hudson River Railroad (1877 – 1914), and New York Central Railroad (1914 – 1968).

Timetables