North Branch/B160.1


North Branch/B160.1





North Branch in WM days was one of the biggest suppliers of local traffic over the entire West Sub. The industries were worked by crews out of Ridgely Yard. There was a 5,499 passing/storage track just to the East that was named North Branch. This location right at the B159 milepost was the start of CTC West to Maryland Jct, and the start of train-orders East to Hagerstown. North Branch also had a connection with the B&O that was used as a emergency connection if a re-routing was necessary. It was taken out of through freight service on January 5, 1976., today North Branch is the only part of the WM's West Subdivision west of Big Pool Jct. that still has track. It's only 1 mile of track, but its all that's left of the original "Cumberland Extension". It was originally left intact after abandonment as a through route to serve the Pittsburg Plate Glass Plant, Celanese, and Beatty Trucking are all now shut down and gone. The only present industry is Superfos located on a spur off western end of the track that usually has a covered hopper containing plastic pellets being unloaded. Today the track sees a engine and two cars maybe three times a month. The industry is usually worked out of Cumberland by the "peddler" crew or the grain train that goes to the South Branch Valley Railroad at Greenspring. It is believed that it is done duing on a morning switch. Hopefully the coal burning AES Warrior Run Power Plant will switch from truck supplied coal to coal by rail or better, coal by the Western Maryland.


This is as far west that the old WM mainline did once go at North Branch. The right-of-way west of the track has been covered over to make way for the new Warrior Run Power Plant. (October 1995)




AES WARRIOR RUN INC.

Looking west into the Warrior Run property that was once the WM mainline. I believe the track was shortened. (October 31, 2005)


This was a new switch to Superfos, a new industry that built a plant in the North Branch industrial park. The old WM main is on the right and only stretched another 3000 or so feet when the first photo was taken in October 1995. Second photo is at the same location on Halloween 2005. I believe the track the was once the WM mainline was shortened or perhaps covered over. At least there are no buildings on the right-of-way as I had previously thought.





The Superfoss branch in Cumberland, Md. first opened it's doors on September 20, 1986. It is a producer of plastic containers and lids. Plastic pellets come in to the plant in railcars from the WM. The pellets are converted to containers by injection molding. The finished containers are then screen printed "in house", pefore being shipped as finished product. The link above will take you to the Cumberland plant.


Looking east just east of the Switch to to Superfoss. A pile of spikes and tie plates is in the foreground along with an old signal base which was most likely part of the short stretch of CTC that ran between MY Tower and the East End of North Branch. (October 31, 2005)

WM tracks looking east in the fog along the 4'x11' building at North Branch. Kinda looks as if it's still a busy mainline railroad. (October 2001)

The WM building here most likely contained a telephone and stove. It was to be used by crews doing switching work here to call the dispatcher at Cumberland and talk to the operator at MY Tower.

A CSX local that had been switching west of here is slowly creeping by the switchers shanty.

The CSX switcher has stopped alongside the WM track into the old Pittsburg Plate Glass plant to the left in the first photo.(12/98)

This is the remains of the former PPG Industries, Inc. plant at North Branch, Md. The building is currently for sale or lease as a whole or in seven seperate sections. The WM and B&O both had a track into the plant. Only the WM track remains today. Sections of the B&O's track remains also, but has been disconnected from the main track. The WM mainline can still be seen on the right hand side in this photo. CSX has removed alot of the "good" ties from the track into the plant to use elsewhere, perhaps up on the WM near here.

Opened in 1957, the PPG Industries plant received sand for glass making solely from the WM. The plant later "down-sized" considerability before finally closing all toeghter in 1992.


The WM and B&O tracks to the plant have been cleared of all brush as if rail service may be expected to return in the future. (October 31, 2005)

Looking into the once open space and tracks that branched out throughout the plant. They are being used to store trailers for FEMA which rents the site from Allgheny County. FEMA is looking to get a long term lease and I bet rail service will resume when they do. More traffic for the West Sub. (10-31-05)


The WM main doesn't look too bad. Just is in need of some ballast that has eroded away since the line was last used as a mainline on January 5, 1976. Since the route east of here was taken out of service in May 1975, westbound WM trains used the B&O to this point where they would switch over to WM rails to reach the WM yards at Knobmount and Ridgely. These photo were taken in September 1996.

The west end of the WM bridge over the B&O at North Branch. The track east of the bridge dissapears into the trees and will later deadend at the edge of the cut that was created when a section of the right-of-way was removed for a road. (4/26/01)

A Western Maryland eastbound train crosses over the B&O RR as it heads for Hagerstown on October 2, 1955. On April 26, 2001 I photographed the bridge from about the same angle as the previous photographer. The track to the left was the B&O's connection to the Pittsburg Plate Glass plant. In 2001, the track had been disconnected since the plant had been closed for many years. CSX still has a track into the plant from a connection the WM had to the plant.

The CSX switcher hold just west of the bridge waiting for clearence back onto the CSX main. (10/98)

Just out of the trees and weeds lying to the east of the WM bridge over the B&O (CSX) is the B160 milepost. I've been up here before and had just seen it rusting away when I took the photo.


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