The Stourbridge Line in Honesdale, PA
The Stourbridge Line takes its name from the "Stourbridge Lion", a locomotive which was manufactured in Stouirbridge, England, by the firm Foster, Rastrick and Company in 1829. The Stourbridge Lion, which had a lion's face painted on the front, was an early steam locomotive. It first operated in Honedale, PA, on August 8th, 1829. It was the first steam locomotive to be operated in the United States.
The Stourbridge Line is a shortline railroad that operates 25 miles of former Erie Lackawanna Railroad between Honesdale and Lackawaxen, Pennsylvania where it connects with Norfolk Southern Railway. Wayne County purchased the line from EL to avoid abandonment in 1976 after the EL was absorbed by Conrail. Several different operators ran the line sporadically through the next several decades all facing various hardships. Today, the Delaware Lackawaxen & Stourbridge Railroad operates the line, under the auspices of Myles Group. The Myles Group began its operations here on May 9, 2015.
The Stourbridge Line has several historic locomotives on site, including an A-B-A set of F's which are in storage. They currently utilize the well known 1949 built EMD BL2, former Bangor & Aroostook 54, and a 1951 built EMD F7, former Canadian Pacific 4040, which is in a black PRR livery.
For more information, visit the Stourbridge Line here on the Web!
