Railroad Station, Mifflinburg Pa

The Mifflinburg Train Station

Located at 390 Mulberry Street at North Fourth Street

The original station for the Lewisburg & Tyrone Railroad at Mifflinburg was constructed about prior to 1888. That building was replaced, or possibly expanded,  sometime after 1906

The Railroad Station  (on the left of 4th street) as depicted on the 1884 Fowler Map.
See more of that map here:
https://susquehannavalley.blogspot.com/2021/01/a-closer-look-at-1884-fowler-map.html

The train station, with Hopp Carriage Works in the background.  Hopp's was built in 1903.

The Lewisburg and Tyrone Railroad operated as a PRR subsidiary. On June 16, 1913, it was again foreclosed on, and reorganized on December 30, 1915 as the Lewisburg and Tyrone Railway. 

However, in just over a year, on April 30, 1915, it was merged into the PRR

The Lewisburg, Milton and Watsontown Trolley Company operated a battery powered trolley between Montandon and Mifflinburg, from 1912-1921.  It traveled at a pace of 25 miles an hour, making 5 scheduled round trips daily.

Read more here:
https://susquehannavalley.blogspot.com/2021/10/the-edison-battery-car-that-ran-from.html

Today the old railroad bed is the Buffalo Valley Rail Trail, between Lewisburg and Mifflinburg.

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READ MORE

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"Conrail, which took over what remained of the east end of the PRR/PC's old Lewisburg & Tyrone line to Mifflinburg in 1976, petitioned to abandon the Mifflinburg line in 1982 or 1983. The co-op feed mill in Mifflinburg was faced with shutdown without rail service, so they, along with a couple other shippers and a group of railfans headed by Richard Sanders, incorporated the West Shore RR in October 1983. 

They acquired the line and a former PRR SW1 (CR/PC 8525) from Conrail. The freight operations began around Feb. 1984, and shortly thereafter a PRR P70 and a former Jersey Central(?) passenger car showed up from the former Adirondack Scenic RR (used in service to the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics), as well as a unique NYC caboose with bay windows and an aborted cupola. 

Passenger excursions ran at first from the Time Markets (a chain Sanders owned at the time) at Fairground Road and Rt 45 on the west side of Lewisburg west to Mifflinburg and return.

 Eventually, Sanders set up "excursion shop" at a "station" (actually an agricultural loading building with loading doors) in Mifflinburg, and operated there for a while.

They then acquired the West Milton-Winfield line from Conrail in 1987 abandoning the line through St. John St. in Lewisburg to Montandon after a ceremonial "last trip" in 1988.

 Sanders may have been the majority shareholder, but there were definitely other shareholders, primarily the few industries that wanted service (the Mifflinburg mill, Pennsylvania House in Lewisburg, and one or two fertilizer customers) and several of the local railfans that had "token" investments."

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North Shore ran excursions over the line on Sundays from the late 1980's until 1997. The train originated in what is now a loading area for crop trucks, at the intersection of U.S. 15 and Hafer Road, known as Delta Place. The Country Cupboard is right across from Delta Place, and there are still some cabooses there. The line ran seasonally from Easter through the end of October. Trips went down the old Reading line to Winfield, and then a Sunday trip went to Mifflinburg and turned around by the Community Park. The original owner was the Dick Sanders, who started the excursions in 1982 during the July4th celebrations. The excursion ended in 1997 and the line has been dormant since that time.

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February  2008 NOTICE-WEST SHORE RR Corp. and Union

County Ind. RR give notice that on or after 1/30/08, they intend to

file with the STB a Notice of Exemption, permitting the abandonment of

the 11.8 mile Mifflinburg Branch rail line in Union and Northumberland

Counties between Montandon Jct. and Mifflinburg. Appropriate offers of

financial assistance to continue rail service can be filed with the

STB.

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Lewisburg & Tyrone Railroad

Montandon Secondary

West Shore Railroad

This is a list from memory of the lines rail customers during the 1970’s and early 1980’s. As you can see over a period of time the trucking industry hurt this line just like many others.

Mifflinburg rail customers:

Yorktown Kitchens- One of the lines biggest users, Shipped out finished cabinets and received flat car loads of lumber.

Mifflinburg Farmers Exchange-One occasion received covered hoppers and box cars of feed.

Snook’s Mill-Farm Bureau-Agway-Another one of the lines big users at the time and they received covered hoppers and box cars of feed.

Mifflinburg Railroad Station unloading platform:

Ritz-Craft Corporation- On occasion received loads of lumber via flat car or box car and later switched to truck.

Mifflinburg Farm Supply- The local International Harvester dealer received farm equipment on flat cars and later switched to trucks.

QE Manufacturing- On occasion shipped out playground equipment.

Shipton’s Building Supply- On occasion received lumber via flat car or box car and later switched to truck.

Borough of Mifflinburg- Received flat car loads of utility poles and later switched to trucks.

Sanford Seeds- On occasion received box cars.

Lewisburg rail customers:

Pennsylvania House Furniture-Shipped out furniture and later switched to trucks.

Moore Business Forms-Another one of the lines big users at the time and received box cars of paper and later switched to trucks.

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Abandoned Railroad crossing along SR 45 in Lewisburg.

As railroads expanded in the 1840s, Union County planners considered joining the route between Pittsburg and Philadelphia. Delegates, including bridge builder James Moore II, were sent to a railroad convention in Philadelphia in 1847. An effort to bring

the Susquehanna Railroad along the west bank of the Susquehanna River towards Lewisburg, financed by a bond issue, was unsuccessful. In 1853, another attempt was made to connect Lewisburg with rail lines in the Susquehanna and Juniata valleys. Local investors included William Cameron, George F. Miller, John Walls, Peter Beaver, John Chamberlin, Thomas Hayes, William Frick, Eli Slifer, and Geddes, Marsh and Co.

By 1856, two rail lines came near Union County: the Catawissa and Danville through Milton, and the Pennsylvania and Erie stopping at Montandon between Sunbury and Lock Haven. In 1858, the line connected to Harrisburg, thence to Philadelphia. After the Civil War, rail construction increased across the US. In order to connect

Lewisburg to the PA and Erie line at Montandon, the bridge over the river had to be rebuilt; it had been destroyed by the flood of March 1865. The railroad agreed to build the track, if Lewisburg built the bridge and railroad station. The project was not without drama, as Mifflinburg residents wanted to connect the rail line at Milton, and then run through Buffalo Crossroads, Cowan and Mazeppa. The Lewisburg Chronicle newspaper, supporting the Lewisburg connection, suggested that the line be extended to Mifflinburg

mile by mile, as those who would benefit from the line purchased stocks. Lewisburg raised the necessary funds and the bridge was constructed to hold vehicles and pedestrians, with a depot at North Second and St. John streets. The Lewisburg Chronicle reported that on 23 July 1869, Congressman George F. Miller, President of the Lewisburg, Centre and Spruce Creek Railroad, and five guests

came across the new bridge to an empty train station, whereupon the train returned to Montandon until a suitable crowd was assembled for the occasion. Soon engine #1008, pulling car # 1047, crossed the bridge to the station, the crowd cheering its arrival.

The next railroad expansion via the Lewisburg, Centre and Spruce Creek line would connect Union with Centre County. It was decided, after discussion of narrow gauge track, that the railroad would be built with a gauge of 4 feet, 8 1/2 inches.

By October 1871, trains were bringing goods and passengers to Mifflinburg, although Mifflinburg residents were not completely happy with the train or their depot. Those along the rail line gave land for a depot and siding, creating Vicksburg, which soon would also have a gristmill and other new businesses. As the rail line went westward, other stations were opened. A siding towards Hartleton became Swengle, another became Millmont. The stop at Laurelton was first

called Laurelton Station, then Rutherton, then Laurel Park. The siding for the Berlin Furnace was called Glen Iron. Land was given by local residents for a depot at Swengle, which acquired a post office, grist mill, saw mill, new houses and a church; and at

Millmont, which added new buildings and a church.

The Pennsylvania Railroad leased the line in 1876. To continue westward, engineers designed two tunnels, at Paddy Mountain and between Cherry Run and the Forks (Coburn), and the line was continued to Spring Mills in 1877. On July 4, 1877, about 1200 Union County residents took the train to Spring Mills for the rail lines' Grand Opening. The Lewisburg and Freeburg coronet bands provided music. Picnics were followed by games, music, dancing, speeches and fireworks. For many people it was their first train ride, first ride in a tunnel, and first time in the mountains of Union and Centre counties.

http://www.unioncountyhistoricalsociety.org/Article56.pdf

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History of the Rail Trail The Buffalo Valley Rail Trail follows the route of a railroad right of way that once ran from Montandon to Bellefonte in Centre County, crossing through Union County on an east-west alignment. The Lewisburg, Centre & Spruce Creek Railroad was incorporated in 1853, but the line immediately met with difficulties. The Civil War diverted men and material away from the project; then the St. Patrick's Day Flood of 1865 destroyed the bridge over the Susquehanna River. Without the bridge, the branch line would be unable to connect to the Philadelphia & Erie main line, which lay on the eastern side of the river. Nonetheless, the branch line through Union County overcame these obstacles, and by 1869 locomotives were carrying freight and passengers along the tracks. In 1879 the branch was renamed the Lewisburg & Tyrone Railroad Co., and for another hundred years it was a key part of the valley's transportation network. The rise of the interstate highway system Buffalo Valley Rail Trail Marker image. Click for full size. Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., August 25, 2021 2. Buffalo Valley Rail Trail Marker Looking west led to a reduction in rail traffic, and in 1982 the line ceased operations west of Mifflinburg. The following year, the tracks from Mifflinburg east were acquired by the West Shore Railroad Co., which was formed by a group of local investors, including the larger rail freight customers such as the Mifflinburg Farmers Exchange and Pennsylvania House Furniture. In addition to freight, the West Shore operated an excursion train on the line until 1997, at which point all traffic ended. By the late 1990s the rails-to-trails movement was already gathering steam in other parts of the country. After the federal Surface Transportation Board granted the West Shore's request for the line to be rail-banked in 2008, the way was clear for the Lewisburg Area Recreation Authority to acquire the 60-foot-wide right-of-way and to begin the process of converting the rail line to a trail. The trail restores the connection between the historic towns of Mifflinburg and Lewisburg and offers users a healthy way to enjoy the natural beauty and fascinating history of the Buffalo Valley in every season of the year without the use of fossil fuels.