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The Franklin and Megantic Railway (F&M) (original name "Franklin and Megantic Railroad") was a narrow gauge railway in northern Maine that branches off from the Sandy River Railroad (SRR) at Strong and served sawmills in Salem township and in the town of Kingfield. == History == The F&M was constructed in 1884 to reach aboriginal spruce forests on the south slope of Mount Abraham.〔Crittenden, H. Temple ''The Maine Scenic Route'' McClain Printing Company 1976 p.47-50〕 The Mount Abram branch was constructed to Soule's sawmill in 1886.〔Crittenden, H. Temple ''The Maine Scenic Route'' McClain Printing 1976 p.56〕 In 1894, the F&M formed the narrow gauge Kingfield and Dead River Railroad (K&DR) to extend rails up the Carrabassett River from Kingfield to Carrabassett. At that time, the F&M owned 2 locomotives, 7 box cars, 21 flat cars, combination car #1 built by the Laconia Car Company in 1885, and baggage car #2 (renumbered #4 in 1903) built by the Portland Company in 1887.〔Crittenden, H. Temple ''The Maine Scenic Route'' McClain Printing 1976 p.64-65〕〔''Railroad Commissioners' Report'' State of Maine 1895 p.78〕 The company was renamed to "Franklin and Megantic Railway" in 1897 due to financial problems. The owners of the Sandy River Railroad purchased controlling interest in the F&M in 1898.〔Crittenden, H. Temple ''The Maine Scenic Route'' McClain Printing 1976 p.66〕 In 1899 the line was extended to a large sawmill in Crockertown (later called Bigelow), as close to the Canadian town of Megantic as it would reach. Twenty new flat cars were purchased from the Portland Company in 1900.〔''Railroad Commissioners' Report'' State of Maine 1900 p.85〕〔Jones, Robert C. ''Two Feet Between the Rails (Volume 1 - The Early Years)'' Sundance Books 1979 p.230〕 Four of the new flat cars and one F&M box car were destroyed when the sawmill burned in 1903.〔''Railroad Commissioners' Report'' State of Maine 1903 p.64〕 F&M received two long passenger cars from American Car and Foundry Company in 1903. Coach #2 and combination #3 were built in a joint order with an identical coach (SR #8) for the Sandy River Railroad.〔Crittenden, H. Temple ''The Maine Scenic Route'' McClain Printing 1976 p.112〕 In 1906 a temporary trestle was constructed over the Carrabassett River to the Hammond Field log yard where timber from the west side of the river was loaded for transport to the Bigelow sawmill.〔Crittenden, H. Temple ''The Maine Scenic Route'' McClain Printing 1976 p.116〕 Log trains shuttled back and forth to the sawmill until the trestle washed out in November 1907. Logging service was rough on equipment, and 22 F&M flat cars were scrapped the following year.〔''Railroad Commissioners' Report'' State of Maine 1908 p.135〕 A crude passenger shelter was constructed adjacent to the main line for woodsmen involved in the logging. Rapid transformation of the landscape during this brief period of activity evoked memories of a local American Civil War veteran who named the shelter Shiloh Number Two.〔Jones, Robert C. ''Two Feet Between the Rails (Volume 1 - The Early Years)'' Sundance Books 1979 p.326〕 F&M locomotives were renumbered in 1905 to avoid confusion with Sandy River locomotives frequently working on the F&M.〔Crittenden, H. Temple ''The Maine Scenic Route'' McClain Printing 1976 pp.114-115〕 The F&M was merged into the Sandy River and Rangeley Lakes Railroad (SR&RLRR or SR&RL) in 1908.〔Crittenden, H. Temple ''The Maine Scenic Route'' McClain Printing 1976 p.121〕 The Maine Central Railroad took control of the SR&RL in 1911.〔Crittenden, H. Temple ''The Maine Scenic Route'' McClain Printing 1976 p.142〕 |} F&M combination #1 became SR&RL #11〔Crittenden, H. Temple ''The Maine Scenic Route'' McClain Printing 1976 p.136〕 F&M coach #2 became SR&RL #21〔 F&M combination #3 became SR&RL #14〔 F&M baggage #4 became SR&RL #6〔 (but was scrapped and replaced by a new baggage-RPO #6 in 1912)〔Jones, Robert C. ''Two Feet Between the Rails (Volume II - The Mature Years)'' Sundance Books 1980 p.355〕 Fifteen of the flat cars built in 1900 were renumbered for SR&RL; but the remaining F&M freight cars were scrapped by 1911〔''Railroad Commissioners' Report'' State of Maine 1911 p.241〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Franklin and Megantic Railway」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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