The , more commonly known as the '''Jersey Central Lines''' or '''CNJ''', was a regional railroad with origins in the
1830s , lasting until
1976 when it was absorbed into
Conrail with the other bankrupt railroads of the
Northeastern United States . Its main line ran from a terminal at
Jersey City west through
New Jersey to
Phillipsburg and across the
Delaware River to
Easton and
Scranton in Pennsylvania. Branches also stretched into southern New Jersey to
Delaware Bay .
The CNJ was acquired by the
Philadelphia And Reading Railway in
1883 . Though that was later canceled, the Reading continued to exert a major influence over the CNJ, and used it for its
New York City -area terminal.
Liberty State Park in
Jersey City, New Jersey includes the site of the CNJ's
Terminal .
The was chartered on
February 9 ,
1831 to build from
Elizabeth on the
Newark Bay (with a
Steamboat transfer to
New York City ) west to
Somerville . The line to
Plainfield was completed in March
1839 , connecting to the
New Jersey Rail Road in Elizabeth. Extensions took it west to
Dunellen in
1840 , just east of
Bound Brook in
1841 and the rest of the way to Somerville in
1842 .
The was chartered
February 26 ,
1847 to continue the line west to Easton. The first extension, to
Whitehouse , opened in
1848 and was leased to the Elizabethtown and Somerville Railroad. On
February 11 ,
1849 the Elizabethtown and Somerville Railroad bought the Somerville and Easton Railroad, and on
February 26 the two companies were consolidated as the '''Central Railroad of New Jersey'''.
The rest of the line to Phillipsburg opened in
1852 , and on
September 8 ,
1855 the upper level of the
Lehigh Valley Railroad 's
Easton Bridge over the
Delaware River , taking the CNJ to Easton. At that time, Lehigh Valley
Coal trains began running over the CNJ to Elizabeth. A similar operation with the
Delaware, Lackawanna And Western Railroad , joining at
Hampton , began
May 27 ,
1856 . This required the addition of a
Third Rail to join the
Broad Gauge DL&W onto the
Standard Gauge CNJ.
On
December 1 ,
1859 the CNJ arranged to run over the New Jersey Rail Road to the latter's
Terminal in Jersey City. That operation began
December 19 , and included a third rail for DL&W trains.
The
South Branch Railroad , controlled by the CNJ, opened
July 1 ,
1864 as a branch from Somerville to
Flemington . The CNJ's extension to
Their New Terminal in Jersey City, including a bridge over Newark Bay, opened on
July 29 ,
1864 , with a ferry transfer to
Cortlandt Street in New York City, ending operations over the NJRR. On
July 23 ,
1869 , the
Newark And New York Railroad opened, providing a straight route from downtown
Newark to the CNJ's Jersey City terminal. The Newark Branch, running north from
Elizabethport to the N&NY in Newark, opened
June 7 ,
1872 .
On
October 6 ,
1873 the CNJ leased the
New York And Long Branch Railroad , which was in the process of building from
Perth Amboy southeast to
Long Branch . At the same time the
Perth Amboy And Elizabethport Railroad was building from Elizabethport on the CNJ south to Perth Amboy. Hostilities at the crossing of the
Pennsylvania Railroad 's
Perth Amboy And Woodbridge Railroad in April
1872 led to an injunction against the PRR interfering with the construction. The CNJ bought the PA&E later that year. The full line to Long Branch opened
September 7 ,
1875 , and was later extended south, reaching
Bay Head in
1881 by acquiring other companies. In
1882 the CNJ and Pennsylvania Railroad agreed to use the line jointly, with
Trackage Rights granted to the PRR over the Perth Amboy and Elizabethport between the Perth Amboy and Woodbridge crossing and its south end at the
Raritan River bridge.
The CNJ leased the
Dover And Rockaway Railroad for 990 years from
April 26 ,
1881 .
The CNJ leased the
Ogden Mine Railroad for 999 years from
January 1 ,
1882 .
The CNJ leased the
Hibernia Mine Railroad for 20 years from
October 1 ,
1890 ; this lease was renewed at least once for another 20 years.
built by
Baldwin in the
1920s .]]
In late
1917 , the following companies were absorbed into the CNJ:
The first commercially successful
Diesel-electric Locomotive manufactured by
Alco in
1924 was built for the Central Railroad of New Jersey.
In 1929, the CNJ began operating its most famous train,
The Blue Comet , which ran from the Jersey City terminal to
Atlantic City . Service ran until 1941.
The
Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) authorized the CNJ to acquire the
Wharton And Northern Railroad and the
Mount Hope Mineral Railroad on
February 4 ,
1930 .
The
Hibernia Mine Railroad was merged into the CNJ on
November 25 ,
1930 .
On
June 6 ,
1935 , the ICC authorized the CNJ to abandon the
Ogden Mine Railroad .
In
1961 the CNJ purchased two portions of the dissolving
Lehigh And New England Railroad from the
Lehigh Coal And Navigation Company . This became the
Lehigh And New England Railway , with two segments -
Lansford to
Tamaqua, Pennsylvania , connecting coal mines to the Reading Railroad, and
Bethlehem to
Bath and
Martins Creek, Pennsylvania , connecting
Cement Mills to the CNJ and Lehigh Valley Railroad.
Paralleling the Lehigh Valley Railroad from the
Hudson River to Scranton, the CNJ was a fierce competitor for
Anthracite Coal and freight traffic. With heavy
Commuter Traffic and short freight hauls, the company was in and out of
Bankruptcy throughout its history. In
1967 , bankruptcy was declared for the last time. In
1972 all Pennsylvania operations ceased and the Lehigh Valley Railroad took over the remaining Pennsylvania trackage. The CNJ was merged into Conrail on
April 1 ,
1976 .
