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October 1, 2019
Local historian Phil Jaeger will present the history of the Caldwell Railway, which began service in 1891. The line started in Great Notch and passed through Cedar Grove, Verona and Caldwell before ending in Essex Fells. By the end of the decade, the line had become the Caldwell Branch of the Erie Railroad's Greenwood Lake Division. The demise of the railway in 1966 and why it failed will also be discussed.
Phil rode one of the last trains on the last day of service on the line in 1966. His PowerPoint program contains old pictures of the railway and the remains that can still be seen today. Learn what part the railway played in the building of both Overbrook and the Newark Reservoir, and what were the reasons for its eventual demise. There will be a short business meeting before the program.