New York Railroad Archive

PRR Chautauqua Branch

The Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) was one of the largest and most influential railroads in American history.  It had a myriad of lines running from the east coast to Chicago.  Four of those lines operated in Western New York; two to Buffalo, one to Rochester, and one through Salamanca and Olean to Warren and Oil City Pennsylvania.

Like most railroads, the Pennsylvania reached Buffalo, at one time the second most important railroad city beside Chicago.  The PRR reached Buffalo through a route that went north from Corry, PA through Mayville, Brocton, and Dunkirk on its way to Buffalo along the shore of Lake Erie.  This is sometimes referred to as the Chautauqua Branch of the PRR.

History

1866: The Buffalo and Oil Creek Cross Cut Rail Road Company constructed and began operating on the line from Brocton, NY to Corry, PA.

1867: On October 18, 1867 it merged with the Cross Cut Railroad Company (organized in Pennsylvania) to form the Buffalo, Corry and Pittsburgh Rail Road Company. The company was foreclosed upon and sold multiple times but continued operating under the same name.

1879: On April 26, 1879 it became the Dunkirk, Chautauqua Lake and Pittsburgh Railroad. On May 3, 1879 that company was renamed the Buffalo, Chautauqua Lake and Pittsburgh Railway Company and restarted service on the line.

1880: On February 17, 1880 the Buffalo, Chautauqua Lake and Pittsburgh Railway Company merged with the Pittsburgh, Titusville and Buffalo Railway Company and operated under the name of the latter company. 

1881: On January 22, 1881, the Pittsburgh, Titusville & Buffalo Railway Company merged with numerous other companies and formed the Buffalo, Pittsburgh and Western Railroad Company. This company built the line from Brocton to Buffalo in 1881/1882.

1883: On February 14, 1883 the Buffalo, Pittsburgh and Western Railroad merged with other companies to form the Buffalo, New York and Philadelphia Railroad Company.

1887: On November 28, 1887 the bankrupt company was reorganized as the Western New York and Pennsylvania Railroad.

1895: The company was reorganized to form the Western New York and Pennsylvania Railway. 

1900: On July 31, 1900 the company was leased and operated by when the Pennsylvania Railroad.

1925: The 2.64 mile long branch from Mayville to the Chautauqua Institution was abandoned.

1968: The Pennsylvania Railroad merged with the New York Central Railroad to form the Penn Central Railroad. 

1972: The abandonment of the portion from Blasdell to Brockton was authorized by ICC Finance Docket 26566

1976: The Penn Central was merged into the new Conrail system.

1977: The Brocton to Corry, PA section was abandoned by Conrail and scrapped in June 1977.

Operations

Prior to the Buffalo, Pittsburgh and Western Railroad building its own tracks from Brocton to Buffalo, the railroad and its predecessors either connected at Brocton with trains on the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway to Buffalo or ran their own trains over the Lake Shore tracks.

Stations

Blasdell * Bay View * Athol Springs * Cemetery * Clover Bank * Wanakah * Weyer * Lake View * North Evans * Derby * Pike’s Crossing * Angola * Farnham * Irving * Silver Creek * Sheridan * Dunkirk * Van Buren * Brocton * Mayville * Summerdale * Sherman * Panama * Clymer * Corry, Pa.

Details
StationMile
Blasdell
Bay View
Athol Springs
Cemetery
Clover Bank
Wanakah
Weyer
Lake View
North Evans
Derby
Pike’s Crossing
Angola
Farnham
Irving
Silver Creek
Sheridan
Dunkirk
Van Buren
Brocton
Mayville
Summerdale
Sherman
Panama
Clymer
Corry, Pa.		7.5
9.1
10.4
11.1
12.1
13.0
14.0
15.6
16.5
18.4
21.1
22.8
27.1
28.8
32.7
36.5
42.3
46.0
50.7
65.1
71.0
74.6
81.6
85.8
93.9
Mileage is from Buffalo.

Clippings

Timetables

References