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Millville and Glassboro Railroad

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Millville and Glassboro Railroad
Overview
Dates of operation1859 (1859)–1868 (1868)
SuccessorWest Jersey Railroad
Technical
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+12 in)
Length22.25 miles (35.81 km)
Route map
Map

The Millville and Glassboro Railroad was a railway company in the United States. It was incorporated in 1859 and began operating between Millville, New Jersey, and Glassboro, New Jersey, in 1860. The company was merged into the West Jersey Railroad, a forerunner of the Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines, in 1868. Today its line is part of the Vineland Secondary.

History

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The Millville and Glassboro Railroad was incorporated on March 9, 1859.[1] Its backers were based in Millville, New Jersey, who hoped to connect with the West Jersey Railroad, then building south from Woodbury, New Jersey. George Brooke Roberts, a future president of the Pennsylvania Railroad, oversaw the construction of the line, which opened between Millville and Glassboro, New Jersey, in October 1860.[2] The West Jersey Railroad reached Glassboro in April 1861, creating a link between Millville and Camden, New Jersey.[3]

Even as construction of the original line proceeded, the New Jersey Legislature authorized a southern extension to Cape May, New Jersey. Some construction took place, but the line was never completed because of insufficient capital. The legislature transferred the Cape May franchise to the Cape May and Millville Railroad on March 9, 1863.[4][5] The company opened its line between Millville and Cape May in August 1863.[1] The West Jersey Railroad acquired the Millville and Glassboro Railroad on April 1, 1868, and leased the Cape May and Millville Railroad on June 1, 1868.[6]

Notes

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References

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  • Coverdale & Colpitts (1946). The Pennsylvania Railroad Company: The Corporate, Financial and Construction History of Lines Owned, Operated and Controlled To December 31, 1945, Volume IV Affiliated Lines, Miscellaneous Companies, and General Index. Philadelphia: Allen, Lane & Scott. OCLC 13172415.
  • Wentzel, Donald B. (2002). "The Millville & Glassboro Railroad". In Coxey, William J. (ed.). West Jersey rails: a series of stories about southern New Jersey railroad history. Vol. 3. Palmyra, New Jersey: West Jersey Chapter, National Railway Historical Society. pp. 2–3.