Conway Branch

Boston & Maine Conway Branch

Legend Mountain Division to Hazens 0.0 Intervale Mountain Junction Mountain Division to Redstone 1.0 U.S. 302/NH 16 1.2 North Conway 3.4 Saco River 4.8 West Side Road 6.0 Swift River Swift River Railroad 6.8 NH 16 7.0 Conway, Conway Scenic Railroad 8.2 NH 113 10.7 Silver Lake Railroad 13.7 Silver Lake 13.8 NH 113 14.3 NH 41 18.4 NH 41 18.7 West Ossipee 19.1 Chocorua River 21.4 NH 16 22.4 Lovell River 24.3 Center Ossipee 24.8 Dan Hole River 29.2 Ossipee NH 28 New Hampshire Northcoast Corporation New Hampshire Northcoast to gravel pit NH 16 37.3 East Wakefield NH 153 NH 153 Wolfeboro Railroad 42.6 Sanbornville NH 109 Branch River Branch River NH 153 Branch River NH 125 47.0 Union Jones Brook NH 16 Milton Pond Salmon Falls River; Maine Salmon Falls River; New Hampshire 52.6 Milton NH 125 NH 75 Great Brook 55.5 Hayes (North Rochester) U.S. Route 202/NH 11 NH 125 60.5 Rochester NH 9 67.1 Somersworth Pan Am Railways, Boston - Portland

The Boston and Maine Corporation Conway Branch is a rail line between Dover and Intervale, New Hampshire, in the United States. Parts of the line are abandoned.

Today, the former Boston & Maine branch is owned by different entities. The southern 43 miles (69 km) of the track to Ossipee is owned and operated by the New Hampshire Northcoast Corporation. The New Hampshire Northcoast (NHN) operates freight trains along this portion of the line.

The 21-mile (34 km) section between New Hampshire Route 28 in Ossipee and West Main Street in Conway is owned by the State of New Hampshire. The New Hampshire Division of Parks and Recreation maintains this section as the Conway Branch Recreational Rail trail.^[1] The railroad in this section is abandoned, and roads are paved over the rails, but much of the rails are still in place (there is no trail surface). This rail trail is used by hikers and snowmobilers. The Cotton Valley Rail Trail Club uses about 8 miles (13 km) of the track in the Ossipee area for recreational use of speeders, between Route 28 and Route 16. Similarly, the Silver Lake Railroad operates small, seasonal tourist trains along 3 miles (5 km) of track in Madison, using large speeders.

The northernmost 7 miles (11 km) of the rail line between Conway and the Mountain Division in Intervale are owned by the Conway Scenic Railroad. This heritage railway operates seasonal passenger trains on this and also on a portion of the Mountain Division. The Conway Scenic Railroad allows the use of its portion of the Conway Branch by snowmobilers outside of its operating season.

History

The Conway Branch began construction in 1865 as the Portsmouth, Great Falls and Conway Railroad. The line was completed to West Ossipee in 1871, to North Conway in 1872, and finally to Intervale in 1875. The Portsmouth, Great Falls & Conway was absorbed by the Boston & Maine in 1890.

Abandonment came to the section north of Ossipee in 1972. The Conway Scenic Railroad purchased its portion just two years later, and began tourist trains in September of 1974. The Boston and Maine retained ownership of the rest of the line, including the abandoned portion, for some time afterward.

In 1986, the New Hampshire Northcoast Railroad (NHN) purchased the line between Rochester and Ossipee, and began its freight operations. The section south of Rochester to the terminus in Rollinsford, just outside of Dover, was sold to the NHN in 1994, ending Boston & Maine operation of the Conway Branch.

Finally, in 2001, the remaining abandoned portion owned by the Boston & Maine was purchased by the state of New Hampshire, to secure the rail corridor for potential future use.^[2]

The Silver Lake Railroad began its operation on state-owned right-of-way in 2007.

References