This article from the September 20, 1851 issue of the American Railroad Journal announced the completion of the Canandaigua and Jefferson Railroad between Canandaigua to Jefferson, NY (now known as Watkins). The actual name of the railroad was the Canandaigua and Elmira Railroad, but was sometimes referred to in the press as the “Canandaigua and Jefferson railroad” because it connected those two cities.
Canandaigua and Jefferson Railroad. -The Canandaigua and Jefferson railway is completed, and will be run by the Erie railroad company. It is stated by the Ontario Repository, that the distance from Canandaigua to New York, will be accomplished by this route in 14 hours. From Canandaigua to Jefferson, the road traverses a beautiful country – being the most fertile sections of the rich counties of Ontario and Yates. The distance from Canandaigua to New York by this route, is 356 miles. By the way of Albany, it is 364 miles. There is little saving in distance, therefore, on the new route.
Source: American Railroad Journal, 20 September 1851. Google Books.