On my travels to hike
Pine and
Wooster Mountain in Danbury yesterday, I noticed the old roadbed of the trolley alongside
George Washington Highway. So I returned today to try and document what I could find.
From my
previous research, I knew the Right-of-Way (ROW) traversed
Benson Road and the
Sarah Bishop park, so I visited those locations as well.
Just north of the George Washington Highway
There's a good stretch of the ROW visible from the highway on a winter day. Foliage would obscure the presence of the ROW in the summer and fall. I scrambled through the brambles to take these photos.
Ridgebury Road
As mentioned, the ROW then continued on what is now
Old Trolley Road and veered south on a diagonal to Ridgebury Road. There was a nice stretch of the ROW visible at this location.
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The Town of Ridgebury
(not much too it!) |
Benson Road
There was very little to see off
Benson Road. Do abandoned trolley roadbeds attract only prickler bushes! :-( The brambles were thick everywhere along the old ROW. The ROW was there but pretty hard to distinguish with all the overgrowth.
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| Looking west at the first curve on Benson Road. |
Parley Road and the Sarah Bishop Park
I had much better luck at the next location....
#1 on map
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| Looking Northeast at the Parley Road curve |
#2 on map
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| Looking southwest at the next Parley Road curve |
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| A short way in reveals this lovely trail - looks like an easy bike ride on a dry day! |
Chestnut Hill Road
On April 28th, 2018, I was in the area so I snapped three photos of the view of the railbed north of Chestnut Hill Road. They have been stitched together as a panorama,
Off Finch Road
There appears to be a horseback riding area here that takes advantage of the old ROW.
#3 on map
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| This is a "horse" trail (rutted by horse hooves) |
About the Trolley Line
The Danbury and Harlem Traction company was an interurban line intended to connect Danbury, Connecticut, with the New York Central Railroad station at Goldens Bridge, New York.
From 1900 to 1901 the company purchased land, graded the line, laid track and erected wire, and built a powerhouse. Tracks were laid from Danbury as far to Ridgebury and apparently there was trolley service between Danbury and Ridgebury for a year or so. But by 1909 the Bridgeport Herald reported the track ended six miles short of Goldens Bridge.
Sadly, due to financial difficulties, the rails beyond Ridgebury were never laid. Finally, the investors pulled the rails between Danbury and Ridgebury sometime between 1910 and 1915 to try and recoup their investment and the entire project was abandoned.
