A CNE train at the new Beacon station.

Beacon Historical Society collection

The new road bridge is in use and the old road bridge is gone. The fence in the center shows where the old bridge was. The new steel bridge will also be replaced in later years. The ferry lunch seems to be back in business just to the right of the ferry building.

There is a CNE train backed up to the new station. You can see a wisp of steam from the locomotive just to the right of the road bridge. To the right, behind the tree, between the platforms there is also a NYC train in the station.

The white building at left that used to be the Hammond building now has a new sign. It is now The National Oven Company, manufacturers of baker’s ovens. I wonder what happened to all the paint and insecticide that used to be in that building. Even though the ferry has moved away from the point, that road still seems to be in use at the upper left.

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	Central New England Railway Home Page This page is an overview of the entire railway in Connecticut and New York.
Central New England Railway in New York State This page is an overview of the railway as it existed in New York State.
Central New England Railway in Hopewell Junction This page is about the CNE in the Hopewell Junction area.
Central New England Railway's Great Bridge at Poughkeepsie This page is about the CNE' bridge at Poughkeepsie.
The Rhinebeck & Connecticut This page is about the Rhinebeck & Connecticut which became part of the Central New England Railway.
The Railroads of Pine Plains Pine Plains was the intersection of three railroads, all of which became part of the Central New England Railway.
Newburgh, Dutchess and Connecticut Railroad One of the railroads that formed the Central New England Railway was the Newburgh, Dutchess and Connecticut. The CNE / ND&C from Dutchess Jct to Matteawan. The CNE / ND&C Glenham to Hopewell Jct. The CNE / ND&C from Hopewell Jct to Millbrook. The CNE / ND&C from Bangall to Pine Plains. The CNE / ND&C from Pine Plains to Millerton.
Connecticut Connection A trip along the Central New England Railway (CNE) from Canaan, Connecticut to the New York State Line.
Maybrook Yard The major freight yard where the CNE connected with other railroads was at Maybrook.
The Maybrook Line across Dutchess County The "Maybrook Line" was important to New England before the advent of Penn Central and before the Poughkeepsie Bridge burned.
The Poughkeepsie Bridge after the 1974 Fire The "Maybrook Line" lost its importance with Penn Central. See the effects of this fire on Eastern Railroading.
P&E in the Poughkeepsie Area Part of the The Central New England Railway (CNE) was the Poughkeepsie & Eastern (P&E)
P&E North of Poughkeepsie Area Part of the The Central New England Railway (CNE) was the Poughkeepsie & Eastern (P&E)
Poughkeepsie & Connecticut One of the railroads that formed the Central New England Railway was the Poughkeepsie & Connecticut.
The Central New England in Connecticut A great WebSite from Tim Dowd on the remains of the CNE in Connecticut
Fishkill Landing The Newburgh, Dutchess and Connecticut Railroad became part of the CNE. The New York Central ran from New York City to Albany and beyond through the Hudson Valley. The two roads met at Fishkill Landing. The first phase of the NYC rebuilding at Fishkill Landing starting in 1913. The second phase of the NYC rebuilding in 1914 and 1915. New York Central in the Fishkill Landing Area.

Bernie Rudberg's "The second phase of the NYC rebuilding at Fishkill Landing"

New New York Central main line alignment

New NYC main line alignment.

Beacon Historical Society collection

By early 1915 the new alignment for the New York Central main line was well underway. In this photo you can see the old line at left and the construction on the new at right. In the background you can see the new higher road bridge and the old road bridge still in use. If you look carefully you can see a horse on the old road bridge at the far left.

Beacon Newburgh ferry

Beacon Historical Society collection

Judging by the wake, the ferry boat at left has just left Beacon headed for Newburgh.

Aerial photo of the Fishkill Landing yard

Beacon Historical Society collection

NYC freight cars are in the yard area and construction materials are stacked along the lower part of the photo.

Road bridge to Beacon.

Beacon Historical Society collection

Teams of horses coming off the ferry had to face a tough climb up the hill to Beacon. Animal rights groups were active in trying to get the owners to lighten the loads instead of beating the horses. In the lower right corner you can see the stub of the trolley tracks that used to go out to the old ferry landing on the point.

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Several years ago I wrote a story on the major railroads of 1950 and what happened to them.

Now I am following up with a closer examination of the New York Central Railroad. This railroad only lasted until 1968 when it merged into Penn Central.

But, what was the NY Central Railroad like in 1950?

You will also be interested in "What if the Penn Central Merger Did Not Happen"

The frame of the new station is up.

Beacon Historical Society collection

The new combined NYC and CNE station took shape in the summer of 1915 even before the tracks were re-aligned. I would bet that this yard was a muddy mess during any summer rain storms.

The new station takes shape in 1915.

Beacon Historical Society collection

The new road bridge is in use by August 1915.

Beacon Historical Society collection

The trolley tracks have been moved to the new road bridge.

New track alignment construction.

Beacon Historical Society collection

Scaffolding around the new station shows progress on the building. The new track alignment construction also seems to be going well. The old section of Fishkill Landing is still in use for passenger and freight service.

Real horse power does much of the work.

Beacon Historical Society collection

The platforms in front of the station are beginning to take shape.

Steam power on the new tracks.

Beacon Historical Society collection

The new tracks are in good enough condition to start using steam engines for part of the work.

A view from the hill.

Beacon Historical Society collection

A view from the hill shows a crew working on the roof of the new station. At far left there is activity in the old NY&NE yard now occupied by the CNE. There was no more car ferry service but there was a dock for river boats and barges.

At least three tracks are in place.

Beacon Historical Society collection

Loads of ballast are being brought in by train for the three new tracks.

Four tracks in place.

Beacon Historical Society collection

There are now four tracks in place and the platforms are growing. The station building looks to be almost completed.

The platform gets a canopy.

Beacon Historical Society collection

Work is underway to build the canopy over the platform.

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The Central New England Railway (CNE) was a railroad across northern Connecticut and west across the Hudson River in New York. It eventually became part of the Poughkeepsie Bridge Route (an alliance between railroads for a passenger route from Washington to Boston) and later a line of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad.

The second platform is well underway.

Beacon Historical Society collection

With an October chill in the air, the second platform takes shape. In the background you can see the new road bridge but the old road bridge is now gone.

The platforms look to be completed.

Beacon Historical Society collection

In this view from the hill the platforms and canopies look to be completed but the CNE tracks to the station are not yet in place.

Work is progressing on the CNE tracks.

Beacon Historical Society collection

On a sunny day in November 1915 the CNE tracks to the station are being built. At lower left you can see the extension of the CNE tracks from the old yard area.

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The CNE platform is being built.

Beacon Historical Society collection

At lower left work is progressing on the CNE platform. There are people standing on the new NYC platform. Perhaps it is already is use.

The CNE tracks and platform are completed.

Beacon Historical Society collection

The new station complex looks to be completed but there are no people in the picture.

Map of Fishkill Landing after the reconstruction.

Sanborn map Company

The new road bridge crosses the NYC main line in the center. Just above the road bridge is the station area with the CNE tracks ending at the building. To the left of the station is the double ferry dock. The old ferry dock on the point is still in place but not used. In the lower left corner is the former NY&NE dock area used for river boat and barge freight.

The new station area seems to be completed.

Beacon Historical Society collection

Just above the station roof and a bit to the right, you can see the outline of Dennings Point. The town of Dutchess Junction is just past Dennings Point. Farther south on the horizon you can see the gap in the mountains leading to Breakneck Ridge, Peekskill and New York City.

Fly Along the Central New England Railway! If you have "GOOGLE EARTH" installed on your computer, you can "fly" along the routes of the Central New England Railway with the "PLACEMARK" below: (Click to get GOOGLE EARTH)
The Central New England Railway
We will be adding more routes Because many of the locations on our tour have varying "resolutions" of the pictures, you may need to stop the tour and adjust the height you are viewing. On several locations, you may also stop the tour and click on the placemark icon for more information. Tell us where you want to fly and give us any of your comments