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 Arcade and Attica Railroad - Arcade, New York Posted by:  Szuchie
N 42° 32.029 W 078° 25.428
17T E 711568 N 4712264
Arcade and Attica Railroad Depot, Arcade, New York 14009.
Waymark Code: WM2BF8
Location: New York, United States
Date Posted: 10/07/2007
Views: 215
Arcade and Attica's hours of operation are:
Memorial Day Weekend
Saturday, Sunday, and Monday:
12pm & 2pm
June
Saturday & Sunday:
12pm & 2pm
July & August
Fridays: 2:00pm Saturday, Sunday, & Wednesday:
12pm & 2pm
4th of July:
12pm & 2pm
September
Saturday & Sunday:
12pm & 2pm
Labor & Columbus Days:
12pm & 2pm
Incorporated in 1917, the Arcade and Attica Railroad (AAR reporting marks ARA) is a shortline railroad that hauls freight between Arcade, New York and North Java, New York. The railroad originally connected Arcade with Attica, New York, however the right of way north of North Java was abandoned in 1957 due to flooding on the Tonawanda Creek.
The principal business of the ARA is handling agricultural products (soy beans, corn, and fertilizer), lumber, dairy feed, and other commodities between Arcade and North Java. They continue to use their GE 65-ton as primary freight power, and sometimes will double-head it with the GE 44-ton if they need to move more than 4 cars at once. Days of freight operation remain Monday, Wednesday, Friday, starting its day at 7:00am at the Arcade engine shop. From there, they will run up to the Norfolk Southern interchange, and then out to serve the handful of customers left on the line.
The ARA also runs their ever popular steam excursion passenger trains from May to October, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Passengers get to enjoy a 14 mile ride from Arcade to Curriers, New York and back on restored 1920s era Boonton passenger coaches, and an open gondola, pulled by one of their historic steam or early diesel engines.
The Arcade and Attica Railroad is the latest in a long succession of railroads planned and built through the Tonawanda Valley in Wyoming County. In 1836 the Attica and Sheldon Railroad was proposed, but no construction was even begun.
In 1852 the Attica and Alleghany Valley Railroad was incorporated to build a 3 ft 0 in (914 mm) narrow gauge railway from Attica, through Arcade, to the Pennsylvania state line. in 1853 the contract was let for construction and most of the road was graded between Attica and Arcade. In 1855 construction was discontinued and the property was sold at forclosure on February 2, 1856.
On February 28, 1870 the Attica and Arcade Railroad was organized and began purchasing the right of way with construction of the line scheduled to be complete by October 1, 1876. The railroad went bankrupt in 1873 without ever completing the railroad.
On April 5, 1880 the Tonawanda Valley Railroad was incorporated with major financial backing from the Erie Railroad. The company planned to build a 24 mile, narrow gauge line from Attica, through Curriers Corners, to Sardinia to connect with the Buffalo, New York, and Pennsylvania Railroad. On September 11, 1880 the first train ran on the line from Attica to Curriers Corners. In October 1880 the Tonawanda Valley Extension Railroad was organized to extend the line from Curriers to Sardinia. By that winter the company changed its mind and began building to Arcade, rather than Sardinia. By May 1, 1881 the line had reached Arcade. On July 14, 1881 the Tonawanda Valley and Cuba Railroad was formed to extend the line from Arcade to Cuba via Sandusky and Rushford. On August 27, 1881 the Tonawanda Valley Railroad, Tonawanda Valley Extension Railroad, and Tonawanda Valley and Cuba were merged into the new Tonawanda Valley and Cuba Railroad. By September 4, 1882 the line was complete between Attica and Cuba. The Company built facilities to transfer to the standard-gauge Erie Railroad in Attica and Cuba. In Cuba, the company made a connection with the Bradford, Eldred and Cuba, another narrow-gauge railroad controlled by the Erie.
By September 1884 the company was defaulting on its bonds and November 29 the company was in receivership. The company's fortunes further fell when the Bradford, Eldred and Cuba went bankrupt. The company limped along but on October 30, 1886 it stopped service from Cuba to Sandusky. On January 19, 1891 the section from Attica to Freedom was sold to bondholders and in May of that year the Attica and Freedom Railroad was formed. The line went bankrupt and was sold in April 1894.
On October 13, 1894 the Buffalo, Attica and Arcade Railroad was formed to operate the line. The new management switched the line to standard gauge and by January 1895 the Attica to Curriers section was operating again. By December of that year the line was open and running from Attica to Arcade. By December 1897 the company had laid a 2-mile segment to connect with the Pennsylvania Railroad near Arcade. By January 1902 the company had built a line from Arcade to Sandusky with the ultimate goal of reaching Crystal Lake. In August that same year, a flood washed out much of the line between Arcade and Sandusky and the connection to the Pennsylvania RR as well. In 1904 the BA&A was sold to the Buffalo and Susquehanna Railroad which connected the BA&A in Arcade. The B&S operated the line until 1913 when it was sold to W. L. Kann of Pittsburgh. Under Kann the railroad declined and lost money until operations were suspended in the winter of 1916/1917.
On May 23, 1917 the Arcade and Attica Railroad was formed by local investors to operate the line. The line had its ups and downs, but survived. It had the enviable distinction of not laying off a single employee during the Great Depression. In 1941 the company purchased a 44-ton diesel from General Electric. The diesel was more dependable and much less expensive to operate than the steam locomotives. Many people credit the diesel for preventing the A&A from going bankrupt in 1941. The Arcade and Attica operated passenger service until 1951 when the Erie stopped service on the Buffalo-Hornell line, including the connection with the A&A in Attica. In 1957 the line was abandoned between Attica and North Java because of severe washouts in spring of that year.
With railroad freight traffic starting to decline from the inroads being made by the automobile and trucking industries following World War II, the Arcade & Attica wasn't immune. A solution was to purchase a light steam locomotive and a couple of passenger coaches for tourist excursion service. After a few years of searching, A&A management purchased a 2-8-0 #18 from the Boyne City Railroad in Michigan and two commuter coaches from the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. For 27 days, the A&A offered passenger excursions in 1962. The following year, #14, a 4-6-0, was purchased from the Escanaba and Lake Superior Railroad and more coaches were added.
Also during the 1960s, the Arcade & Attica struck its proverbial mark when Borden's debuted the non-dairy creamer 'Cremora'. Until the facility's closure in 1970, the Arcade facility was the sole production plant in the United States for Cremora, and the Arcade & Attica brought in the raw supplies, and shipped out the finished product across America. The famous orange & white boxcars; and later blue & white ones; were used to ship the wonder product throughout the country.
(Gracious thanks to Arcade and Attica Webiste as well as Wikipedia for allowing me to cull this historical information.)
Engine Type: Tourist line has more than one engine of various types
Gauge of Railway: Standard Gage
Approximate Adult Fare: 12.00 (listed in local currency)
Approximate Child Fare: 7.00 (listed in local currency)
Type: Spur (out and back)
Length of Route: +90-minutes
Dates of Operation: From: 01/01/2007 To: 12/31/2007
Frequency of departures: Varies
Key Attractions:
Your journey aboard the Arcade & Attica Railroad begins even before you board the train. As you enter the historic station, you are surrounded by the history of railroading in America.
Tour our historic station, and view all the exhibits, from antique railroad lanterns to switch locks, even to an old switch stand. Next, you pass our authentic ticket office, where the ticket master will be glad to sell you your tickets for the day's train trip. Tour the small gift shop and snack bar while waiting to board your train.
With an "All Aboard", the whistle blows, and the whoosh of the air brakes releasing can be heard. Very soon, the engineer has gotten the train up to speed and you are on your way, enjoying your 90-plus minute ride through history. Along the way, you will see a few random appearances of today; for the most part though, the trip is through the countryside and farmlands that have remained virtually unchanged since the line was originally laid in the 1880's.
The journey into the Curriers Depot is quite enjoyable, as there is no ride like that behind a steam engine. Once at the depot, the locomotive uncouples from the train, and moves onto a siding, and stops, where you are free to look at the engine, take pictures, and talk with the crew as they prepare #18 for her return journey. As the engine begins to move once more, moving tender first, the engineer blows the whistle for the crossing. The Conductor throws the switch, and the engine moves forward once more to couple up with the end of the train. Watch as the crew couples up the engine, and then runs the brake test.
With three sharp reports on the whistle, the engine slowly backs up, for the return trip to Arcade. Whistling once again for the crossing, the engine picks up speed, and before you know it, you are once again "buried" in nature. This time, ride on the open gondola, which is now directly in front of the engine. As the train climbs the hill, coming out of Curriers, listen to the enchanting sounds of the exhaust steam, as the engine chugs on. Finally, arriving back in Arcade, watch as they uncouple the engine from the train.
Through out the year, the Arcade and Attica Railroad offer special excursions, some powered by the steamer, others by the vintage World War Two-era diesel engines. Regular excursions run every weekend from Memorial Day Weekend until the last, full, weekend of September. During the month of October, the Arcade and Attica continues to operate their steam excursions, however, nearly the entire month is special events. For more information on both the regular excursions, as well as special events, please see the website listed below.
Railroad Website: [Web Link]
Does this Scenic Railroad Provide: Brunch, Lunch or Dinner Trains?: Not Listed
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Visit Instructions:Provide a picture of something with the train. Possible photos include the entertainment on board the train, the train itself at any location along the route, a picture of the scenery with part of the train in view, the kids borrowing the engineer’s hat. Show us you had a good time visiting the train. If the train isn't running when you visit get a photo of one of the many railway related items that can be found in locations like this.
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