Lebanon Valley Branch

For the current line, see Harrisburg Line.

The Lebanon Valley Branch was a railway line in Pennsylvania. Built between 1857–1858, it linked the cities of Harrisburg and Reading. It was part of the Reading Company system from its completion until 1976, when it was conveyed to Conrail. Under Conrail, the branch was merged with part of the former Reading Main Line to become the Harrisburg Line. It remains an important freight route.

Lebanon Valley Branch
Overview
Status	Merged into the Harrisburg Line
Owner	Lebanon Valley Railroad (1857–1858) Philadelphia and Reading Railroad (1858–1896) Philadelphia and Reading Railway (1896–1924) Reading Company (1924–1976)
History
Opened	13 July 1857 (1857-07-13)
Conveyed to Conrail	1 April 1976 (1976-04-01)
Technical
Line length	53.4 mi (85.9 km)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Route map mi Pennsylvania Main Line 53.4 Harrisburg 52.9 Philadelphia, Harrisburg and Pittsburgh Branch Pennsylvania Main Line 47.9 Rutherford Yard Middletown and Hummelstown Branch 44.2 Hummelstown 41.5 Swatara 40.7 Hershey 37.3 Palmyra 32.5 Annville 30.5 Cleona Lebanon and Tremont Branch Cornwall Branch Lebanon Branch 27.7 Lebanon 25.7 Avon 24.0 Prescott 21.1 Myerstown 18.6 Richland 16.8 Sheridan 14.4 Womelsdorf 12.0 Robesonia 9.8 South Mountain 8.6 Wernersville Reading and Columbia Branch 5.7 Sinking Spring 2.3 Wyomissing Junction Reading Belt Branch Schuylkill River Schuylkill Branch 0.0 Reading Reading Main Line

History

See also: Lebanon Valley Railroad

The Lebanon Valley Railroad completed the line between Reading and Lebanon on July 13, 1857. It was extended further west to Hummelstown on July 30, and finally to Harrisburg on January 18, 1858. Under the Lebanon Valley Railroad the line was single-tracked. The Philadelphia and Reading Railroad acquired the company and its assets on March 20, 1858. The branch remained within the Reading system through multiple reorganizations until 1976, when it was one of many Reading lines conveyed to Conrail. Conrail merged the line with the Reading–Philadelphia portion of the former Reading Main Line to create the Harrisburg Line. The line was conveyed to the Norfolk Southern Railway in the 1999 Conrail split.

Passenger service

The Lebanon Valley Branch, together with the East Pennsylvania Branch, the Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad, and the Central Railroad of New Jersey (CNJ) main line, created a direct route between Harrisburg and Jersey City, New Jersey, bypassing Philadelphia. The most famous service on this route was the Queen of the Valley, a joint venture of the Reading and the CNJ. The Queen of the Valley ceased running west of Allentown, Pennsylvania, on April 28, 1963, after the loss of mail contracts, ending passenger service on the Lebanon Valley Branch.

References

• Conrail (January 1, 1996). "Harrisburg Division" (PDF).
• Interstate Commerce Commission (1931). "Interstate Commerce Commission Reports: Decisions of the Interstate Commerce Commission of the United States. Valuation reports". U.S. Government Printing Office.
• United States Railway Association (1975). Final system plan for restructuring railroads in the Northeast and Midwest region pursuant to the Regional Rail Reorganization Act of 1973 (PDF). Vol. 1. Washington, DC. OCLC 2889148.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)