The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1885-05-06
TiOnesta Valley Railroad.

Nall6y hallWay, nnlsned ana seat 70
headquarters complete map of their
road as far as now completed and
laid and while we were examining
the map he gave US the following bit
Of the roads history;
The company was organized in 1880
and authorized to build road of Is
miles in length, down Tionesta creek
from Sheffield, and branches not to
exceed 15 miles in length guage not
to exceed three feet. The work of
surveying and grading was com.
menced in the Summer of 1881, and
was under the charge of Mr.. T. p.
Camp, an engineer of marked ability,
who located the line as far south as
Foxburgh, on Tionesta Creek, but,
owing to rivalry of the Penn'a Rail.
road Company's extension down the
Tionosta, the original design was
abandoned and the company com.
menced the construction of the line
towards Brookston, on the south fork
of Tionesta creek. But little was
done that year, and early in February,
1882, the first engine "Wild Pigeon"
made its trial trip as far as Donald.
sons. From that time the road was
pushed rapidly forward, and by the
latter part of March the track was
laid about one.half mile south of
Brookston. About this time Mr..
Camp resigned his position as engi.
neer and on the 10Th of April, 1882,
the present incumbent took charge of
the engineering department, and
found much to interest him in com.
pletiDg the location to where Sheffield
Junction now is, it being not much
different from what he found during
his somewhat extended trip ia the
Rocky Mountains in the employ of
the Denver & Rio Grande Railway.
On the 10Th of September, 1882, the
road was opened for business to Shelf
field Junction, where connection was
made with the Pittsburgh, Bradford
and Buffalo, now Pittsburgh and
Western Railroad. In 1884 the Tio-
nesta Valley Railway obtained con-
troll of the Garfield and Cherry Grove
Railway by purchase, end the same
year constructed about six miles oi
road south from Sheffield Junction
down Spring creek, where they are
still at work. In all they have about
thirty.seven miles of track in opera
ton, which Mr.. w. assures US is
among the very best narrow gauge
railroads in the United States.
From our examination of the map
spoken of we add the following: The
map is on one continuous sheet OF
mounted paper about twenty feet long
by five feet wide. The center line OF
the road is plainly laid down with all
curve and tangent points marked,
with the degree, lengths, and total
curvature in each curve and direction
of the tangents. The streams are
carefully and accurately laid down
and steep bluffs and general topo.
graphy of the country marked there
on. The line is very crooked and in.
volved an immense amount of calcu.
lation, labor and patience to complete
it. AT one point the road makes al.
most a complete circle and is carried
over a deep ravine on a trestle work
about forty feet in height. The trestle
is built on a reverse curve of sixteen
and nineteen degrees with but a short
tangent between the curves; and,
after running about a mile passes
around sharp point which Mr.. w.
called might Cap Curve" at which
point you are but six hundred feet
distant, horizontally, but 256 feet
higher, than point passed over two
miles back. The road down Spring
creek traversss an unbrOken forest its
entire length.
The title of the map, "Tionesta
Valley Railroad. and Sheffield and
Spring Creek Railroad, in Forest and
Warren Counties" is beautifully let.
tered and encloses in a semi.circle a
handsomely drawn locomotive on a
piece of railroad, the cross-ties of
which rive the scale unon which the