Bay de Verde Branch Line

The Bay de Verde Branch Line was a section of the Newfoundland Railway that finished construction in 1916. The line ran from Carbonear to Bay de Verde.

Newfoundland Railway (Bay de Verde Branch Line)
Overview
HeadquartersCarbonear
LocaleConception Bay North, Newfoundland
Dates of operation1916–1932
Technical
Track gauge3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm)
Bay de Verde Branch Line
mi.0
55
Grate's Cove
49
Bay de Verde
42
Old Perlican
38
Caplin Cove
35
Lower Island Cove
31
Burnt Point
29
Northern Bay
26
Ochre Pit Cove
22
Western Bay
21
Adam's Cove
18
Broad Cove
14
Perry's Cove
10
Salmon Cove
8
Victoria
6
Freshwater
0.0
Carbonear
mi

History

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The Carbonear railway station was upgraded and expanded due to the construction of the line in 1917. The line also passed through communities such as Victoria and Western Bay. Victoria had the distinction of being the only community in Newfoundland that had 3 Railway Stations, one for Freshwater, one for central Victoria and one for Salmon Cove. From 1898 - 1901 an iron ore mine was operated out of Lower Island by the Workington Railway. The railway line ran from the mine in Lower Island Cove to a port in Old Perlican. The mine was shut down in 1901 after the iron ore depleted.[1] Much of the Workington Railway line was repurposed in the construction of the Bay de Verde Branch Line. After several years of operation under the Reid Newfoundland Company, the line was shut down due to lack of funding in 1932. The narrow gauge branch line was soon torn up. Only the trails, a few trestles and two railway stations in Western Bay and Carbonear remain.

Recent

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In 2020, the CBN T'Railway Association began upgrading the abandoned railway line for multipurpose use (ATV, hiking, horseback riding). Restoration began on several trestles, brush cutting and trail grading took place, as well as garbage cleanup.[2][3][4]

References

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  1. ^ "Railway: The Branch Lines".
  2. ^ "Conception Bay North trail work making most of old railway system". SaltWire.
  3. ^ Goudie, Zach (October 7, 2021). "Volunteers driving big changes on CBN T'Railway, giving regional economy a shot of gas". CBC News.
  4. ^ "Old Perlican, Bay de Verde group breathing new life into old trailway". SaltWire.