Bridgton and Saco River, The A technical & Pictorial Review by Peter Barney SC

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Bridgton and Saco River, The A technical & Pictorial Review by Peter Barney SC
The Bridgton and Saco River A technical & Pictorial Review by Peter Barney  Soft Cover  1987 96 pages
The Bridgton and Saco River Railroad was granted its charter on July 19,1881 to begin construction of a railroad from Hiram Junction (later Bridgton Jct.) to Bridgton. This roughly paralleled the watercourse of the Songo River with its canals and lakes, and rivers with canals to the Sebago Lake region. Tourists (sometimes known as rusticators) regularly used lake steamers to travel in this region, and the arrival of the rival railroad was not an occasion of overwhelming joy to the boatman or wagon and stage companies. These early transportation companies took visitors to and from the town of Bridgton with its summer area resorts to the lake boats and steamers. The railroad interests prevailed and, with the help of George E. Mansfield, late of the Sandy River RR. management, the B&SR was completed to Bridgton on January 29th, 1883 for a distance of 16 miles.
The first two locomotives were built by the Hinkley Locomotive works and the cars came from Laconia. These included: 2 coaches, 1 baggage car, 5 boxcars, 10 flat cars and a combination-mail, baggage and express car. About 1887, the road's only caboose arrived from Laconia complete with cupola. (The cupola was removed after a slight accident during the Harrison branch grand opening in 1898.)
Although the first ten years of the railroad operations produced a net deficit, by 1891 business had improved markedly and two boxcars and one flat car were added to the roster. Bridgton had become a small manufacturing center with several woolen mills (chiefly the Pondicherry Mill Complex), and there were other small firms and a grain company in the town. Between 1891 and 1894, another six flat cars purchased by the line, and in 1895, the first three 28-foot boxcars built by the Portland Company were added. Four more followed in 1898.
Also in 1898 came the Harrison extension. Harrison, very much a summer resort, had passenger services provided by steamer or stage, and was in need of a railroad. The B&SR management was also in need of the additional revenue to be gained from all those people going north from Bridgton. Ground was broken on May 10,1898, and track opened for business on July 29,1898. The yard at Harrison sported a station, single stall engine-house, turntable, car shed (2 tracks) and a freight house. Within a few years there were sidings for a few small manufacturers, and a grain store and corn cannery. Enroute to Harrison, the railroad erected at North Bridgton on the shores of Long Lake, a small station of similar style to the one at Harrison, and freight house. At Bridgton, to facilitate the operation of trains to Harrison, a wye was constructed in the south part of the yard, allowing trains to be easily switched for running to Harrison.
Also, as a benefit to the Harrison branch, a coal trestle was constructed to the Pondicherry Mill complex. Coal, and later kerosene and gasoline, were to become chief items of lading on the railroad, as the early active lumbering industry had declined after cutting most of the usable timber along the right-of-way.
In 1901 Locomotive #4, from Porter, arrived. Similar to the Wiscasset Waterville & Farmington #4, built a year or so later, the B&SR No.4 ran until about 1927. She was retired and partially scrapped in 1930. About 1903 or 1904 the first tank car arrived, and in 1905 a coach with stained glass windows, (which was later named Elthea when at Edavil le), was added to the roster to increase passenger accommodations. With the increase in traffic even this proved to be inadequate, and in early 1912 the B&SR purchased coach No.3 from the WW&F, re-numbering it #18.
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