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Middletown and Hummelstown Railroad

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Middletown & Hummelstown Railroad
Map
Overview
HeadquartersMiddletown, Pennsylvania
Reporting markMIDH
LocaleDauphin County, Pennsylvania
Dates of operation1976–present
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Length7 miles (11 km)
Other
Websitewww.mhrailroad.com/%20mhrailroad.com

The Middletown and Hummelstown Railroad (reporting mark MIDH) is a shortline railroad which operates freight and tourist passenger trains between Middletown to Hummelstown, Pennsylvania.

Passenger excursion trains

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The Middletown and Hummelstown Railroad (M&H) uses both steam and diesel locomotives for passenger excursions. Coaches are 1920s-vintage Delaware, Lackawanna & Western High-Roof MU Trailers. Passengers board at the 1891-era freight station in Middletown for an 11-mile (18 km) round-trip excursion along the Swatara Creek and Union Canal; a narrator relates history of the canal and various sites along the trip.

There is also a collection of heritage railway rolling stock displayed at Middletown Yard. A 1969 engine is used to transport freight trains. Freight service has been provided since 1976 and passenger excursion service has been provided since 1986.

U.S. Route 322 restriction

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Though M&H owns all trackage between its two namesake towns, it only regularly operated as far north as Indian Echo Caverns until 2011. U.S. Route 322, a four-lane limited-access highway, lies between Indian Echo Caverns and the town of Hummelstown, where M&H connects with Norfolk Southern Railway's (NS) Harrisburg Line. PennDOT restricted M&H to just 12 crossings per year. However, M&H had requested additional crossing allowances and was willing to install additional crossing safety hardware.

Freight business is minimal on M&H, primarily due to the restricted access to NS in Hummelstown. M&H has stated that this restriction greatly hampers growing freight potential. PennDOT said it believes more discussion regarding warning devices for the crossing is needed given the volume and type of traffic on Route 322. In addition, the Hummelstown Borough Council has expressed "not in my backyard" concerns with having additional freight trains passing through town.[1]

2011 flood damage

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Historic flooding in September 2011 from Tropical Storm Lee damaged significant parts of the railway along Swatara Creek, including completely washing out the northern approach to the bridge crossing the creek. Repairs have been estimated to cost between $250,000 and $300,000, and thus the route stops short and no longer reaches Indian Echo Caverns or Hummelstown.[2]

2014 transformer delivery

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On Friday, January 24, a leased NS locomotive operated by M&H crew delivered a transformer, using line, to the PPL sub station on Fiddlers Elbow Road. Following extensive track repairs to the line, north of the 322 crossing over the summer, the transformer was delivered by NS Engine GP38-2 #5046. The transformer was brought in from the NS connection line, crossed U.S. Route 322 and then used the spur line to deliver the transformer to the sub station. It would be the first time since 1994 that a transformer was delivered to the substation via M&H.[3]

Equipment

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Locomotives

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Locomotive details[4][5]
Number Images Original owner Original number Manufacturer Type Built Status
1 US Army 7272 GE Transportation 60-ton switcher 1941 Operational
2 Standard Slag and Stone Co. 46 GE Transportation 65-ton switcher 1955 Operational
66 Kansas City Public Service Unknown GE Transportation Steeplecab 1948 Inoperable
91 Canadian National Railway 1013 Canadian Locomotive Company 2-6-0 1910 Undergoing restoration
151 Western Maryland Railway 151 Anerican Locomotive Company S-6 1956 Operational
1016 Newburgh and South Shore Railroad 1016 American Locomotive Company T-6 1969 Operational

Trolleys

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Locomotive details[4][6]
Number Original owner Original number Manufacturer Type Built Notes
9425 South Brooklyn Railway 9425 Unknown Trolley Freight Car 1903 Sold
4550 Brooklyn Rapid Transit 4550 Unknown Unknown 1911 Sold
C121 Philadelphia Rapid Transit Co. C121 Brill Unknown 1923 Sold
77 Philadelphia Suburban Transit 77 Brill Unknown 1932 Sold
86 Philadelphia Suburban Transit 86 Brill Unknown 1932 Sold
3323 Dallas Railway and Terminal Co. 3323 Brill Unknown 1945 Sold
162 York Railways 162 Brill Unknown 1924 Donated to the Rockhill Trolley Museum in January 2025.
441 Rio de Janeiro Tram Co. 441 Unknown Single Truck Trolley 1909 Sold
1719 Rio de Janeiro Tram Co. 1719 Unknown Unknown 1911 Sold to the Fox River Trolley Museum in March 2025.

Coaches

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Rolling stock details[4]
Number Original owner Original number Manufacturer Type Built Notes
302 Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad 2302 Pullman Company DL&W High Roof MU Coach Type 1 1916-1920 Erie Lackawanna #3302, NJ Transit #4302
307 Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad 2307 Pullman Company DL&W High Roof MU Coach Type 1 1916-1920 Erie Lackawanna #3307, NJ Transit #4307
329 Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad 2329 Pullman Company DL&W High Roof MU Coach Type 1 1916-1920 Erie Lackawanna #3339, NJ Transit #4339. Equipped with a bell and ditch lights
330 Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad 2330 Pullman Company DL&W High Roof MU Coach Type 1 1916-1920 Erie Lackawanna #3330, NJ Transit #4330 Lettered as Gettysburg 330
343 Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad 2343 Pullman Company DL&W High Roof MU Coach Type 2 1920 Erie Lackawanna #3343, NJ Transit #4343 originally built by Pullman in 1920, Converted to MU car and renumbered along with 29 other cars in 1930
352 Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad 2352 Pullman Company DL&W High Roof MU Coach Type 2 1920 Erie Lackawanna #3352, NJ Transit #4352 originally built by Pullman in 1920, Converted to MU car and renumbered along with 29 other cars in 1930
366 Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad 2366 Pullman Company DL&W High Roof MU Coach Type 2 1920 Erie Lackawanna #3366, NJ Transit #4366 originally built by Pullman in 1920, Converted to MU car and renumbered along with 29 other cars in 1930
9269 Pennsylvania Railroad 9269 Unknown Baggage Car Unknown
726 Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad Unknown Unknown "Boonton" Combine Unknown In Gettysburg Livery

Cabins

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Rolling stock details[4]
Number Original owner Original number Manufacturer Type Built
18871 Central Railroad of New Jersey 18871 Unknown Cupola Unknown
95123 Lehigh Valley Railroad 95123 Unknown Cupola Unknown

Freight cars

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Rolling stock details[4]
Number Original owner Original number Manufacturer Type Built
407 Philadelphia and Western Railroad 407 Unknown Flatcar Unknown
99398 Detroit, Toledo and Ironton Railroad 99398 Diffco Side-dump car Unknown
106362 Chesapeake and Ohio Railway 106362 Unknown Hopper car Unknown
90388 Pacific Fruit Express 90388 Unknown Refrigerator car Unknown
7769 Railway Express Agency 7769 Unknown Refrigerator car Unknown

References

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  1. ^ pennlive.com "Hummelstown wants hearing on M&H Railroad"
  2. ^ Diana Fishlock "Weekend railroad ride takes passengers back in time", The Patriot-News, October 09, 2012.
  3. ^ Drew Weidman, [1], "The Sun Newspaper", January 30, 2014.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Middletown & Hummelstown Railroad Company - About". mhrailroad.com. Middletown & Hummelstown. Retrieved 2015-01-04.
  5. ^ "Western Maryland 151 Restored To Original Colors". Middletown & Hummelstown Railroad. 2009-12-07. Retrieved 2015-08-08.
  6. ^ Franz, Justin (2025-02-05). "Rockhill Trolley Museum Adds Pennsylvania Trolleys to Collection". Railfan & Railroad Magazine. Retrieved 2025-02-06.
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