Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Sanford and Eastern Railroad

A Locomotive www.railroad.net
  This railroad operated as a "branch" of the Boston and Maine for a time between 1949-1961.  The line went from Rochester, New Hampshire to Westbrook, Maine.  The state line is between Rochester and Lebanon, Maine (my home town); Sanford is the next town over.  The Rochester to Sanford line was closed in 1952, and I still remember when it closed.  When it was the actual Boston and Maine that ran the line my grandfather Grant worked on it and my Dad and his brothers and sisters all rode the train to Sanford to attend high school, Lebanon doesn't have a high school so Sanford was the place to go.
  I remember, as a little boy, going to "Eastwood" to watch the trains, huge steam locomotives billowing smoke and steam - wonders of engineering; at least to me.  I also remember when the diesel electric locomotives came; how dull they were and I missed the "old ones".
  I went to Lakeview Plantation some years ago just to watch a train, a steam locomotive that was on a special run - it was just like I was a kid again for a few minutes.
I couldn't find a photo of the old Eastwood Depot, but this one located in
Alton Bay, New Hampshire is a fine example.  They really look alike.
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  1. AnonymousJune 7, 2015 at 12:10 AM

    This is a picture of the diesel engine that replaced the steam engine, in which I had the honor of riding in the cab during a short sprint down the tracks in Sanford, Maine in 1948. I was 12 years old at the time. It was early summer. School ran until the end of June back then.

    I was walking home from school with a pal and the engineer invited us to climb aboard the steamer, which I did, although hesitantly. We started chugging off down the tracks. Then we stopped and the engineer put it into reverse and back we came to the station.At the end of the trip, I was scared out of my mind. There was SO much noise and heat and fire and smoke, I couldn’t wait to get off. The other kid thought it to be great fun.

    The railroad was originally a part of the Boston & Maine RR. This branch ran from Rochester, New Hampshire toPortland, Maine. Passenger service had stopped in 1922, but during WWII they moved an overwhelming amount of freight because Portland was one of the the kick off points for shipping goods from, Canada and the Eastern US to England.

    WhenI was in grade school we had an apartment overlooking the track and trestle that led to the station, so I asked my mother to keep a list of all the freight cars that went by during the two or three daily freights that passed.

    Ah, to have those lists now. The tracks are gone, the trestle is gone, There is a commercial area where the railroad yard used to be, but the station still stands and serves as a lumber yard, which I understand was the last customer that the Sanford & Easter had.

    RalphMorin@verizon.net

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