New York Railroad Archive

Allegany, NY

An undated postcard looking north towards the Erie Railroad station in Allegany, NY. eBay.com.

Allegany is a village in Cattaraugus County just to the west of Olean and is the home of Saint Bonaventure University. An 1887 guidebook to the Erie Railroad described Allegany as

A prosperous village with about 1,500 inhabitants. A Franciscan College and Convent are located in the vicinity, and St. Elizabeth’s Academy, under the charge of the Sisters of the Order of St. Francis.

A 1963 topographic map showing the routes of the Erie Railroad (marked as “Erie-Lackwanna Railroad” on the map) in green and the Pennsylvania Railroad in red. Author’s illustration.

The town was served by three railroads: the Main Line of the Erie Railroad, which had a station just west of downtown Allegany, the Western New York and Pennsylvania Railroad which ran along the south edge of the town after crossing the Allegheny River, and the Western New York and Pennsylvania Traction Company which ran down Main Street.

Erie Railroad

A photo taken circa 1909 showing the street side of the Erie Railroad station in Allegany, NY. Photo from the collection of Steamtown National Historic Site archives, image #A-164, found on Rootsweb.com.
Detail of a map showing the routes of the Erie Railroad (green) and Western New York and Pennsylvania Railroad (red) in Allegany, NY. 1901 Sanborn fire insurance map from the Library of Congress collection.

The Erie Railroad station was located on the south side of the tracks just to the west of Harmon Avenue, also known as Bentley Street, and now known as South 5th Street.

A photo taken circa 1909 showing the side of the Erie Railroad station in Allegany, NY. Photo from the collection of Steamtown National Historic Site archives, image #A-163, found on Rootsweb.com.

Station Photos

Other Photos

Pennsylvania Railroad

A photo taken around 1910 of the Pennsylvania Railroad station in Allegany, NY. Facebook.

The Western New York and Pennsylvania Railroad, later part of the Pennsylvania Railroad, ran to the south of Allegany and the Allegheny River (note the different spellings) before crossing the river at the border between Allegany and Olean. The right of way is clearly visible south of the river on Google Maps as is the bridge abutment in the middle of the river.

Note that there is a modern Western New York and Pennsylvania Railroad that is separate from the historic one.

Station Photos

Western New York and Pennsylvania Traction Company

The Western New York and Pennsylvania Traction Company was separate from the Western New York and Pennsylvania Railroad and ran along Main Street in Allegany. I have not found much about it, but did find the photo below of an October 31, 1910 accident on the line near Allegany. According to notes on the back of the photo, one person, Will Shuff, was killed in the accident.

Postcard showing the results of an accident on the Western New York and Pennsylvania Traction Company near Allegany, NY. eBay.com.

Saint Bonaventure Railroad

Allegany is the home of Saint Bonaventure University, which has its own railroad, the Saint Bonaventure Railroad, for a number years that was used to haul coal to the school’s power plant.

A 1940 photo looking roughly west over the campus of Saint Bonaventure University in Allegany, NY. The green line is the Erie Railroad main line, the red line is the Pennsylvania Railroad Salamanca River Line, and the blue line is the route of the Saint Bonaventure Railroad. Author’s illustration based on a photo from Facebook.

Clippings

Other Photographs

Maps

Timetables

Learn More