Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1905-08-04
!, BRATTLEBORO, FRIDAY, AUGUST 4, 1905.

and carrying capacity. Here seemed to |
open up new ground of hope for our |
local enterprise, and in order that our |
people might be fully assured as to the |
capacity and adaptabiity for use of the |
two-foot system, company of 30 promi- |
nent men from the West river towns went |
in January, 1875 to pay a visit of inspec-
ton to this Bedford & Billerica road The |
road appeared to be all that its friends |
claimed for it, and the visitors became |
satisfied that such a road would be suff- |
cient for all demands of the West river |
traffic.
The project Of building a two-foot road |
from Brattleboro to South Londonderry |
at once began to be agitated, and general |
ly met with warm endorsement from the |
people of the valley. Although 1t was
the general opinion that the votes Of the |
towns passed the year previous i'm aid of
the contemplated road through to White
hall were equally binding in aid of this |
new plan. it was thought best as a mat
ter of fairness, to secure a formal trans
fer by the towns of their aid from the
former enterprise to the latter BY dint
of earnest work this was accomplished, the
provision and understanding being that
no vote or subscription should be binding
until the sum of 5000, 900 of capital stock
in cash subscriptions had been obtained
The town aid, as finally voted, was in the
following amounts: Brattleboro, $50, 900;
Newfane, S25,00O Townshend, S37 900;
making total of $16S, 600 The balance Of
the required sum of $780, 900 was secured
by private subscription, the closing sub
scription having been made at Townshend
i'm May 1873. The survey and permanent
location of the road was at once begun,
and construction bids were advertised for.
On Sept. 30 the contract for building the
road was awarded to Col. L. NJ Morrison
of Lock Haven Pa. Col. Morrison, how
ever finally declined to enter upon the
execution of his contract, and on the Goth
day of October, 1878, a contract was closed
with Harris Bros. & Co. for the compile
tion of the road. At the time Of closing
the contract with Harris Bros. & Co. It
was decided to build the road on three
foot gauge instead of two-foot, II being
understood that the road-bed, embank-
ments, masonry bridges, etc, as laid
out by the engineer for the two-foot
gauge. were ample TO receive the three
foot track. The chief reason for this
change to the wider gauge lay In the fact
that the bonds of a three-foot gauge road
would be readily marketable, while the
bonds OF a two-foot road had no establish
! ed character or value in the market.
Ground for the road was formally broken
at Fayetteville on Monday. Nov. IL, and
! on the same day, at a slightly earlier
! hour, ground was also broken at jamaica.
/ From this time on the construction work
was pushed rapidly forward. Such parts
] OF lne NOIk as was possible were DTOSeCu-
ted during the winter, and with the open
! ing of the following spring the work pro-
ceeded with great vigor, contracts having
| already been made for the rails. bridges,
| equipment, etc. Everything went well un-
! til July 1879, when, through methods
which were fully discussed and properly
rebuked in our columns at the time, the
| concern which had contracted to furnish
! the iron was led to refuse neglect to
fulfil its contract. Iron was then rapidly
rising, that 1t was impossible to make
new contract for rails, except at figures
| largely in advance OF a sum such as the
price paid for the whole construction
work would warrant BY this means a
serious and unlooked-for obstacle arose.
and the completion OF the road al the time
| named in the contract was defeated The
completion OF the substructure was, how
ever, pushed forward to substantial COM
pletion during the fall.
II became evident that some new ar
| rangement must be made for the COM
| pletion and operation OF the road. Dur
ing the winter an arrangement was made
| between the railroad company and the
| Harris Bros. & Co.. by which the former
took the further construction and COM
pletion OF the road into its own hands
for the purpose of putting itself in a
| position to perfect an arrangement, the
preliminaries OF which had already been
entered into, for a lease OF the road to
|
At the annual stockholders meeting, held
in February, the officers OF the road were
| given full authority to negotiate this
| lease. The New London Northern road
being under lease to the Central YER
mont the management OF the Brattle-
boro & Whitehall road passed by this
! arrangement into the hands Of that cor
poration. AS soon as the spring of 1880
| opened the Central Vermont began the
! work OF fully completing the substitute
! ture, laying ties. etc. Early in Septem-
Der the iron, which had been bought in
England, arrived and the work OF laying
ii down was rapidly proceeded with.
when the Vermont Valley Railroad
company learned that the control Of the
Brattleboro & Whitehall road had passed
into the hands of the New London North
ern company Slas NJ. Waite. then vice
president and acting manager of the YER
mont Valley company, ordered his men
to move the Vermont Valley track at
the approach to the depot to just that
right of way which had been leased to
the Brattleboro & Whitehall company.
A stormy scene followed and President
Thompson and others had an injunction
served on Mr.. Waite. Final victory rested
with the Brattleboro & Whitehall COM
pany.l
The opening of the road for regular
business took place Nov IS. On their
final visit of inspection, two days pre-
vious, the Central Vermont officials pro-
nounced the road in good condition and
to compare well with other new roads at
their opening.
The equipment OF the road consists
of two locomotives OF the "mogul" pat
tern (three pairs of drivers) Weighing
$500 pounds each, two combination bag
gage and passenger cars, two first class
passenger cars, and two observation cars,
Is box freight cars and Is platform cars,
with the usual complement Of hand cars,
push cars etc. The cost of construction,
including the equipment, has been about
$3.50 900. The stock issued amounts to
S205, 900. First mortgage bonds issued
$3.50, 900.
That the road has been brought to sue
cessful completion in the face of many
obstacles and discouragements, and at
the cost of earnest, unfiagging work on
the part OF its friends, is a matter OF
history and needs no repetition. AS was to
have been expected, the enterprise at its
inception met with strenuous opposition
an opposition, however, which was un-
doubtedly honest and well meant. The
friends OF the road acted under a firm
belief that its construction was necessary
to the unity OF Windham county, to the
future prosperity of the West river valley
towns, to the development of a region
rich in natural resources but far removed
| from railroad communication, and to the