| Wawa and Concordville Railroad | |
|---|---|
| Overview | |
| Type | Tourist railroad |
| Status | Out of service |
| Locale | Concordville, Pennsylvania |
| Termini | Wawa, Pennsylvania Concordville, Pennsylvania |
| Services | Local |
| Operation | |
| Opened | 1967 |
| Closed | 1968 |
| Owner | SEPTA |
| Character | Surface |
| Technical | |
| Line length | 12.2 mi (19.6 km) |
| No. of tracks | 1 |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) |
The Wawa and Concordville Railroad (W&C) was a steam tourist and recreational railroad in the US state of Pennsylvania during the late 1960s. Although it has been defunct since 1968, it continues to have a lasting effect on the steam tourist industry.
Continued popularity is due to its heavy promotion during its existence, and being only about 20 miles (32 km) west of Philadelphia, it was located near a busy urban setting. The Wawa and Concordville never lacked patronage during its short life and had a large base to draw from.
Contents |
The Wawa and Concordville was one of the earlier steam tourist railroads. It was conceived by local businessmen with the support of the Delaware County Chamber of Commerce in 1966. It ran from Concordville, alongside U.S. Route 322, eastward to the village of Wawa. The railroad did not own the right of way in which they ran, but leased the trackage rights from the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), which would eventually lead to the demise of the company.
The actual track that the Wawa and Concordville ran was the eastern most section of the Octoraro Branch of the Pennsylvania Railroad. This branch was famous as the main means of shipping large quantities of mushrooms from farms in Chester County to market in Philadelphia. By the mid 1960s most of the mushrooms were shipped by truck, but a few freight trains still ran the line each week. The organizers of the Wawa and Concordville worked out a lease with the PRR that allowed them to begin operations in 1967.
The railroad had two vintage steam locomotives. The first was former U.S. Navy 0-6-0T #3, which was popular with small children, because it was painted in non-traditional blue. The other was former Pacific Coast Lumber 2-8-2T #37, which was painted black. Most of the passenger cars were old wooden boxcars that had been converted into open observation passenger cars prior to their use on the W&C.
During the 1968 season, several homeowners along Pole Cat Road, near Concordville, complained of the noise and smell of steam locomotives literally coming across their yards. They pressured the current landlord, the Penn Central Transportation Company (PC), who opted not renew the Wawa and Conconcordville’s lease when it expired in 1968. Not wanting to give up, the owners of the W&C continued to renegotiate a lease even after they were forced to halt operations.
Just before a possible rebirth of the tourist line in the early 1970s, a flash flood in September 1971 and Hurricane Agnes in 1972 severely damaged the infrastructure. The bankrupt PC decided to remove the line from service, not having the funds for necessary repairs. At the time, 12 freight cars were marooned on the derelict line.
Many traces of the popular tourist destination still remain. While the station was destroyed by fire, the locomotives and cars remained at the site for another 10 years. Both locomotives eventually were moved to Marshallton, Delaware where they ran on the Wilmington and Western Railroad. Some of the converted boxcars were scrapped, but two still remain near the site to this day, albeit in deplorable condition. A third one is in Marshallton, where it is now used as a flatcar. U.S. Navy, #3 was later moved to Lewes, Delaware to run on the Queen Anne's Railroad. Today, bearing no resemblance to its days on the W&C, it is a part of a railroad themed restaurant in Ocean View, Delaware. #37 was on a siding in Marshallton, but was moved to the Strasburg Railroad for major repairs in February 2009, which will lead to its eventual return to California, where it originally ran.
The line itself was never formally abandoned. Under pressure from the large part of Chester County served by the Octararo line, state politicians arranged for SEPTA to buy the entire line, including the still in-service section west of Chadds Ford into the state of Maryland. The nearby U.S. Route 1 corridor has developed with upper income housing heavily since the 1970s, and the line was expected to become a future suburban passenger route. However, no serious proposals have been put forth by the state, county or SEPTA.[1] Rails and wooden ties remain in place, but are buried beneath soil or are rotting away.
The Wawa and Concordville Historical Society was formed in 2003. It is run by Paul Calpin, A. Marc DeCaro and Jenny Simpson. A good deal of the existing right of way and equipment have been documented by this group. There is also a G scale Model railroad layout in Delaware.
The definitive piece on the history of the Wawa and Concordville Railroad was written by Kurt R. Bell. His highly researched article was published in the Philadelphia Chapter of the Pennsylvania Railroad Technical & Historical Society's High Line magazine.