Whether you love good food, great shopping, hiking or beautiful scenery, we have just the ticket for you when you ride with us! 425 remained at Steamtown until 1997. BOB MILLER/TIMES NEWS, A diesel freight train owned by Reading and Northern Railroad passes along the Panther Valley rail line in front of Ametek in Nesquehoning. The shops were completed four years later; with their imposing brick architecture, they were the largest railroad shops in America and, unlike most railroads, allowed the Reading to make its own engines. The Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad (reporting mark RBMN), sometimes shortened to Reading and Northern Railroad, is a regional railroad in eastern Pennsylvania. The Reading also relinquished control of the Central New England Railroad and the Boston and Maine Railroad. On June 1, 1999, NS took over all of the portions of Conrail that connected with RBMN. In 1859, the Reading leased the Chester Valley Railroad, providing a branch from Bridgeport west to Downingtown. Reading Blue Mountain & Northern Railroad Co - Company Profile and News - Bloomberg Markets Bloomberg Connecting decision makers to a dynamic network of information, people and ideas,. This led to financial trouble in the 1870s. The Reading Company was forced to file for bankruptcy protection in 1971. To further complicate matters, the Reading was forced to continue paying its debts to the Penn Central Railroad, however, Penn Central (also in bankruptcy at the time) was not required to pay its debts to the Reading Company. With that agreement in place, we were able to turn our attention to restoration of the bridges and rail infrastructure, and the necessary work along the Lehigh River to connect the railroads. That's our philosophy and it is all done through people. Railroad tycoons were the early industrial pioneers amassing or overseeing construction of many large railroads through the early 20th century. The early Philadelphia and Reading Railroad named all of its locomotives with names such as Winona or Jefferson, as did most American railroads following in the British precedent, but in December 1871 the P&R replaced all the names with numbers. Along with regular pay increases and profit-sharing checks, the Company decided to offer its employees the best health care plan in the region, and with no deductibles! Free shipping for many products! The G1 class 4-6-2 were passenger locomotives. Grand Forks, ND 58201. Among the improvements were repairs to a trestle that leads from Carbon County to White Haven. Soon the P&R bought or leased many of the railroads in the Schuylkill River Valley and extended westward and north along the Susquehanna into the southern end of what became known as the Coal Region. All of our RDCs have functional windows and clean restrooms, and are fully climate controlled. However, on July 12, 1878, the P&AC Railway slipped into bankruptcy; on September 20, 1883, it was jointly acquired by the Central Railroad of New Jersey (CNJ) and the Philadelphia and Reading Railway for $1 million. RBMN operates occasional passenger excursions using restored steam locomotives #425 and #2102. Every weekend and holiday from May to Christmas, hundreds of visitors to Jim Thorpe board our passenger coaches for a ride into the Gorge. The Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad (RBMN), with its corporate headquarters in Port Clinton, is a privately held railroad company serving major businesses in nine Eastern Pennsylvania counties, (Berks, Bradford, Carbon, Columbia, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Northumberland, Schuylkill, and Wyoming). The P&R became profitable almost immediately. In the spring of 2006, we proudly opened our new Penobscot Yard office building. You can keep abreast of the latest RBMN developments by coming to this website, and by reading our quarterly newsletter. Reading & Northern Railroad, headquarted in Port Clinton, is a privately held railroad company serving over 70 customers in nine eastern Pennsylvania counties (Berks, Bradford, Carbon, Columbia, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Northumberland, Schuylkill and Wyoming). RBMN also decided to go smoke-free and instituted a policy of not hiring smokers. On a system 8,316 miles in length, its trains carry freight, passengers, mail and express in the area between the Great Lakes and the Pacific Ocean. The Reading and Northern Railroad owns and operates three self-propelled Rail Diesel Cars #9166, #9167, and #9168. The portion from Reading to Norristown opened July 16, 1838 and the full line opened December 9, 1839. In 2009, Berkshire Hathaway bought full control of Burlington Northern Santa Fe, giving it ownership of North America's largest railroad. Zurn told the commission, which includes the three county commissioners, that Harts cars are so out of date they lack bathrooms, and he does not have a ticket office. [15] Also in 1893, the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad built its most famous structure, Reading Terminal in Philadelphia. Passenger service between Fox Chase and Newtown was terminated on January 14, 1983, under the auspices of SEPTA. We offer both freight services and passenger excursion operations and we currently employ over 200 employees. Here at the Reading & Northern, we are not much into buzzwords or the latest trends like "re-engineering" or "TQM" or fancy mission statements. We were pleased to be the winner of the American Short line and Regional Railroad Association's Marketing Award. [2][17], In Bridgeport, a new bridge was constructed over the Schuylkill River in 1903. Reading & Northern got its start as the Blue Mountain & Reading in 1983 with a 13-mile former Pennsylvania Railroad branch between Temple and Hamburg. As RBMN grew, so did its commitment to its employees. Raffa began his career in 1989 as a trackman with RBMN predecessor Blue Mountain & Reading Railroad. The bridge connected the P&R main line on the west (south) bank of the river with the Manayunk/Norristown Line on the opposite side, allowing passenger service to Norristown and a bypass of the old main line, known as the West Side Freight line. After its railroad operations were merged into Conrail in 1976, the remainder of the corporation was renamed Reading International. It also owns 92% of BH Energy, with $4.3 billion in earnings. [clarification needed] In 1890, Reading president Archibald A. McLeod saw that more riches could be earned by expanding its rail network and becoming a trunk railroad. Posted 30+ days ago. It opened in 1864, using the Lebanon Valley Railroad from Sinking Spring east to Reading. Muller now is co-owner of C&S; with James Zurn, and the company remains independent. [2], In 194547 the company took 30 class I-10 2-8-0 locomotives and rebuilt them at the 6th Street facility into the modern T1 class 4-8-4 locomotives at a cost of 6 million dollars. Amid the turmoil of the Panic of 1893, Joseph Smith Harris was elected president. The Philadelphia and Reading Rail Road was chartered April 4, 1833, to build a line between Philadelphia and Reading, along the Schuylkill River. "We are delighted that Jim has chosen to return to Reading & Northern," President Wayne Michel said. Duke Energy installs, operates, owns and maintains the system, while customers receive kilowatt-hour and solar renewable energy credit output, up to an initial limit of 1 megawatt. With a solid freight business in hand and a growing passenger operation underway, Andy Muller decided to begin the renovation of his steam engines. In the 1920s, the Reading operated a dense network of commuter lines branching off of the Ninth Street Branch mostly powered by small 4-4-0s, 4-4-2s and 4-6-0 camelbacks. [20], Reading also offered through passenger car service with the Lehigh Valley Railroad via their connection at Bethlehem. This was a move to offset the fact that EMD FT diesel locomotives (first choice of Reading management) were very hard to obtain, and in order to have faster, up-to-date modern power. The Reading and Northern Railroad started operations in 1983 after acquiring thirteen miles of tracks from Conrail that ran from Temple to Hamburg, Pennsylvania. Its not a money-making thing for us, OGurek said, adding that its aim is serving area industries. Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad President Andrew M. Muller Jr. said Monday that he bought out former C&S; Railroad partner Betsy Ahner in November. It operated service as Reading Railway System and was a successor to the Philadelphia and Reading Railway Company, founded in 1833. Lionel O gauge # 18639 Reading 4-6-2 Steam Locomotive USED in original box. RBMN again was recognized by Railway Age as Regional Railroad of the Year for the development of port operations for the export of anthracite coal. Monday to Friday. Between 1907 and 1914 the old double track and street level route was replaced by an elevated quadruple-track route that offered greater capacity and safety. At the New York end it used the Central Railroad of New Jersey's Jersey City Terminal from which passengers could board ferries to Liberty Street Ferry Terminal, Staten Island Ferry Whitehall Terminal, and West 23rd Street in lower Manhattan.[14]. Our philosophy is really pretty simple. Dubbed the Philadelphia & Chester Branch, the line extended from the Gray's Ferry Bridge across the Schuylkill River in West Philadelphia to Ridley Creek in Ridley Park in Delaware County. This gave the Reading a route from Philadelphia to Harrisburg, for the first time competing directly with the Pennsylvania Railroad, which became its major rival. After the Panic of 1893, and the failure of Archibald A. McLeod's efforts to turn the Reading into a major trunk line, the Reading was forced to reorganize under suspicions of monopoly. Free shipping. Engines with the name "lessor" in its title meant some steam power was owned by a second party and leased to the P&R. A.C.Muller Enterprises Visit: Reading & Northern Railroad.com The Reading and Northern Railroad, with corporate headquarters in Port Clinton, Pennsylvania, is a privately held railroad company servicing customers in eight counties in Eastern Pennsylvania. Listing provided courtesy of Arizona Regional Multiple Listing Service, Inc. (ARMLS) Now is your chance to own a parcel of land in beautiful Northern AZ. Led by Samuel Richards, an officer of the C&A for 24 years, they established the Philadelphia and Atlantic City Railway (P&AC) on March 24, 1876. He was able to gain control of the Lehigh Valley Railroad, Central Railroad of New Jersey, and the Boston and Maine Railroad. The Latest. [citation needed]. Reading & Northern- TS12 - JointedRail.com Reading & Northern- TS12 Rated 5.00 out of 5 based on 6 customer ratings ( 6 customer reviews) Log in to Download $ 0.00 JointedRail content is currently supported ONLY in Trainz Railroad Simulator 2019 117009 to current TRS22 and plus versions. On May 17, 1842, a freight branch from West Falls to Port Richmond on the Delaware River north of downtown Philadelphia opened. Ephraim Railway, and the Kaighn's Point Terminal Railroad in southern New Jersey into The Atlantic City Railroad. McLeod went about trying to control neighboring railroads in 1891. Our focus will be on jobs and economic development, Muller said. We followed that up in 2004 when we were awarded a Marketing Award from the NS Agriculture Products Group for our outstanding business development. As a part of Norfolk Southern's 30th anniversary in 2012, the company painted 20 new locomotives into predecessor schemes. The Reading Company was created to serve as a holding company for the Reading's rail and coal subsidiaries: the Philadelphia and Reading Railway, and the Philadelphia and Reading Coal and Iron Company, respectively. We aim to give our customers the best possible service we can and that means doing what we say we'll do, and we want to do it in a way that doesn't get anyone hurt. 11.7K members Join group About Discussion More About Discussion About this group A group dedicate to sharing their photos of the Reading and Northern Railroad in Pennsylvania If I approved your membership, But i want to te See more Private The railroad runs about 400 miles from Reading PA to Mehoopany PA and it also operates the 7-mile rail line from Towanda to Monroeton in Bradford County. This vertical expansion gave the P&R almost full control of anthracite coal from mining through market, allowing it to compete successfully with like-organized competitors such as Lehigh Coal & Navigation and the Delaware & Hudson Canal Company. The Reading leased it in 1870. BNSF, as the railroad is called, operates more than. The Reading and Columbia Railroad was chartered in 1857 to build from Reading southwest to Columbia on the Susquehanna River. The Bike train is a 25-mile (40km), 1-hour one-way trip from Jim Thorpe to White Haven and it allows passengers to ride their bicycles for the 25-mile (40km) journey along the Lehigh Gorge Trail from White Haven back to Jim Thorpe. On May 29 the Reading leased the Central Railroad of New Jersey. Microsoft founder Bill Gates has amassed a sizeable ownership stake in Canadian National Railway Co. [27] The bankruptcy was a result of dwindling coal shipping revenues, freight being diverted to highways by trucking companies, and strict government regulations that denied railroads the ability to set prices, imposed high taxes, and forced the railroads to continue to operate money-losing lines as a common carrier. They still stand today in non-RR use.[2]. We could soon find out, A windy, cloudy Saturday for the Lehigh Valley, but the sun will come out tomorrow, Six years after hazing death, Penn State plans to drop the Greek life oversight it championed, As Adderall shortage continues, DEA plans to limit some telemedicine prescriptions, House where JonBenet Ramsey was found dead listed for sale for almost $7M, Columbia University permanently drops SAT, ACT admissions requirement, The Waterbed Doctor: California retailer lays claim to retro bed with nearly 40 years of service, sales, Felonious Florida podcast: Missing teenage girl leads to several cases of child sex trafficking, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. The commissioners also approved the motion unanimously. As our operation and business expanded, the need to upgrade facilities grew as well. The steamers never ran long enough to pay back this major investment, and had some major problems, but it did keep men employed. Commonly called the Reading Railroad, and logotyped as Reading Lines, the Reading Company was a railroad holding company for the majority of its existence and was a single railroad during its later years. The Reading Terminal opened in Philadelphia in 1893. No. A total of nine steam locomotives that once served the company are still preserved. Between 1998 and late 2008, all steam operations were suspended. The Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad (reporting mark RBMN) (a.k.a. Price. The grant was used by Carbon County. 425, https://www.trains.com/trn/railroads/profiles/regionals/reading-and-northern-profile/, "A Brief History - Reading Railroad Heritage Museum - Reading Company Technical & Historical Society - 500 S 3rd St, Hamburg, PA 19526 - 610-562-5513", "Railroad building train station in Muhlenberg", "Train makes inaugural round trip: Reading Outer Station to Jim Thorpe", "Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway to close in late November after tax dispute", "Legal argument over taxes threatens to derail popular Carbon County tourist attraction", "Carbon sells railroad to Reading and Northern for $4.7 million | Times News Online", "Railroad buys KME campus | Times News Online", "What's going on here? This is the third time we have won this prestigious award and we are the only railroad ever to have achieved this recognition three times. The RBMN provides freight service on 300 miles (480km) of track. The first major task was to convert all track to standard gauge, which was completed on October 5, 1884. The frontview of the Locomotive. At least 57 people were killed and . RBMN interchanges with these railroads: The Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway (LGSR) is a tourist railroad that operates passenger excursions along RBMN trackage from the former Central Railroad of New Jersey station in Jim Thorpe to Old Penn Haven, following the Lehigh River through Lehigh Gorge State Park. In 1996, Cotter reorganized the company as Reading Entertainment. On December 31, 2001, both Reading Entertainment and Craig Corporation merged into and with Citadel Holding Corporation, another Cotter company. After a fierce fight over the future of Conrail, CSX ultimately agreed to split Conrail with its main rival, Norfolk Southern Railway (NS). On July 7, 1877, the final spike was driven and the 54.67 miles (87.98km) line was opened in time for summer tourism season. A view of the Hometown High Bridge in Schuylkill County, which is owned by Carbon County. The county will retain the parking lot and train station. The railroad operates special trains over much of its 350-mile system throughout the year, using freight locomotives and its large collection of passenger cars. [10] The segment included 4.9 miles of double track and 16.7 miles of single track, including sidings and turnouts.[11]. Work began in April 1877, and the track work was completed in a remarkable 90 days. Located near the well known Grand Canyon Junction and easily accessible to Ash Fork, Williams and Flagstaff. Ephraim Railway, Reading, Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad, Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad, "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990", "Philadelphia & Reading Railroad: Chester Branch", "Report of the Operations of the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad Co. and the Philadelphia & Reading Coal & Iron Co", "First Permanent Railroad in the U.S. and Its Connection to the University of Pennsylvania. Andy Muller, owner of Reading and Northern, offered to purchase the line, which he currently manages for the county, in 2016. Dentons Offices Operations began on December 15, 1990. [18], The RBMN also operates passenger excursions out of the Reading Outer Station located outside of Reading in Muhlenberg Township, with Rail Diesel Car trains running from Reading Outer Station to Jim Thorpe with an intermediate stop in Port Clinton. It currently resides at Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton. Morlok, Edward K., University of Pennsylvania (2005). In May of 2005, the Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway was born. The Reading almost achieved its goal of becoming a trunk road, but the deal was scuttled by J. P. Morgan and other rail barons, who did not want more competition in the northeastern railroad business. In 1990, the Blue Mountain and Reading took ownership of 150 miles of track located in the Coal Region north of Reading. The train tragedy that unfolded in Greece this week, claiming dozens of lives in the country's worst rail disaster, has exposed chronic failures by successive administrations, insiders say.This was a crash that was waiting to happen, they argue.A passenger train with over 350 people on board ran for several kilometres on the same track as an incoming freight train, reportedly after the station . An extension northwest from Reading to Mount Carbon, also on the Schuylkill River, opened on January 13, 1842, allowing the railroad to compete with the Schuylkill Canal. The Railroad Commission receives 2 percent of the gross charged for railroad cars transported through the county on the C&S; line and 18 percent of the net profit. The return trip leaves Jim Thorpe in the late afternoon and returns to Port Clinton and Reading in the evening. 425 was present at the grand opening of Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton. With the aid of public funding from the city of Philadelphia, the line was electrified as far as Fox Chase (the last station within city limits) in September 1966.[28]. The BM&R also began operating three more state-owned lines, including the Allentown branch and Colebrookdale branch. Muller now is co-owner of. ", "Home Page - Reading Railroad Heritage Museum - Reading Company Technical & Historical Society", "The Use of Historical Production Data to Predict Future Coal Production Rates", https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1023993/000089843002000002/dsc13e3a.txt, https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/716634/000089843001503845/d425.txt, Reading Company Technical and Historical Society. [3] The railroad also entered into a partnership with the Reading Company Technical and Historical Society, which leased track space in Leesport and in return leased two diesel locomotives and assorted passenger cars for use on the line. Corporate records, 1862-1962. . 425 with diesel helpers. Full-time. In late 1995 these offices were combined into a new corporate headquarters at Port Clinton. 209 talking about this. Who owns the most railroad stock? In the process, we want to control costs (control, not necessarily cut) because we hope to make a buck at this, and we hope to have a little fun. [3] The Reading had taken great strides to wean itself of anthracite dependency but it still relied heavily on coal revenue, and Pennsylvania anthracite production had peaked in 1917 with 99.7 million tons produced.[26]. The company sold one of its last railroad-related assets, the Reading Terminal Headhouse, in 1991. LOVE, POVERTY, WAR AND Also by Christopher Hitchens BLOOD, CLASS AND EMPIRE: The Enduring Anglo-American Relationship A LONG SHORT WAR: The Postponed Liberation of Iraq WHY ORWELL MATTERS LEFT HOOKS, RIGHT CROSSES: A Decade of Political Writing (edited with Christopher Caldwell) LETTERS TO A YOUNG CONTRARIAN THE TRIAL OF HENRY KISSINGER BLAMING THE VICTIMS: Spurious Scholarship and the . NS #1067, an EMD SD70ACe locomotive, was painted into the Bee Line Service paint scheme of the Reading. It is a Spanish multinational clothing company that is . In addition, RBMN operates the Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway, a heritage railway based in Jim Thorpe. In October, the LGSR operates abbreviated 45-minute trips that offer views of fall foliage in Lehigh Gorge State Park. As of 2023, four examples have survived, and the 2102 is in active tourist service with the Reading, Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad. These classes were an important break of tradition of the Reading's motive power fleet. EMD F7PA 903 - Built by EMD in 1950. In December, 1990 Andy's railroad career really took off when he purchased Conrail's Reading Cluster. Blue Mountain and Reading Railroad: BMS: Berlin Mills Railway (St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad) BMSX: Bemis: BMT: Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit: BMZ: Boston and Maine Railroad (Pan Am Railways) BN: Burlington Northern Railroad (BNSF Railway) BNAU: Burlington Northern Railroad (BNSF Railway) BNAZ: Burlington Northern Railroad (BNSF Railway) BNFE In 2017, the county moved on, getting the rail line, which runs between Packerton Yards and Haucks Junction in Schuylkill County, appraised by Stone Consulting of Warren. Electrification was to be completed through to Newtown in the 1970s, but government subsidies were not readily available, leaving the Fox Chase-Newtown section as the lone non-electrified suburban commuter route on the Reading system. Zurn and Muller said they have offered Hart, 80, a lifetime pass on their tours and other perks to soften the blow. There trains connected with the Western Maryland Railroad to continue westward. Under his leadership, the Reading Company was formed and the P&R was absorbed into it on November 30. 9 Museum in Lansford, after the train stops in Jim Thorpe. None of the totals include Atlantic City RR or PRSL. Most of those shares were acquired through Cascade Investment LLC, an investment firm solely. The owner of a 317-mile railroad has bought part of a company that manages a railroad owned by Carbon County that runs from Packerton to Hometown. Thanks for your interest and your support. The Reading & Northern, officially the Reading, Blue Mountain & Northern Railroad (or RBM&N), is an eastern Pennsylvania Class II regional railroad which operates over 300 miles of predominantly ex-Reading Railroad trackage (although the company also operates lines owned by other fallen flags). In addition to freight service, the Reading and Northern Railroad offers Passenger Service annually throughout its servicing counties and in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania with the Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway, a subsidiary of the Reading and Northern Railroad. Comprised of over one hundred miles of mostly ex-Lehigh Valley Railroad trackage, the Lehigh rail line stretches from the southern foot of the Pocono Mountains at Lehighton through Wilkes-Barre and Scranton and onward to Wyoming County. The company also owned 38.6% of Pilot Corp. The RBMN system expanded again with the addition of the seven-mile Towanda line near the New York state border. The subsidiary that owned mining interests in the area, the Philadelphia and Reading Coal and Iron Company, not the government, called up militia and Coal and Iron Police to put down riots and protests that had broken out in the city. Along with the Little Schuylkill, a horse-drawn railroad in the Schuylkill River Valley, it formed the earliest components of what became the Reading Company.