The beginnings of the Maine Central Railroad start with the charter of the Androscoggin & Kennebec Railroad to connect Danville and Waterville in 1845 (this happend to be at the same time as the Atlantic & St. Lawrence Railroad). A second charter was issued for the Penobscot & Kennebec later in 1945 to extend the line from Waterville to Bangor. Because the only interchange at the time was the Atlantic & St. Lawrence at Danville, the rail line to Bangor was built with the matching "Portland Guage" track width of 5 feet, 6 inches. The railroad reached Waterville in 1849 and Bangor in 1855. Since the two railroads operated together a merger was attmepted in 1856, but due to stipulations required by the State of Maine on the merger the Androscoggin & Kennebec ended up leasing the Penobscot & Kennebec Railroad. The two finally merged in 1862, with the new company being called the Maine Central Railroad. With increasing interchange traffic for Boston and the rest of New England, the railroad converted to standard guage in 1871. The Maine Central served northern New England until 1981 when it was purchased by Guilford Transportation Industries.
Predecessor Railroads • Corporate Timeline • Routes and Stations • Digital Collection
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