Lehigh and New England RR

The Lehigh and New England Railroad is an important part of my route. Although closed down in 1961 i included it with all its parts, not only the ones that were taken over by other railroads after 1961.

Center of the LNE's activities in the cement belt is Tadmor yard between Nazareth and Bath. Here a mixed train is about to leave the yard.

Penn Dixie Cement can be seen in the background as the train leaves the yard.

The Delaware, Lackawanna and Western' s Bangor and Portland branch crosses over the LNE at several locations to reach the various cement plants.

At Bath the line joins the Bethlehem branch, wich follows Monocacy Creek from the source at Summit to the mouth in Bethlehem.

Between Bath and Summit is the steepest grade on the LNE reaching 2.74% for the 2.5 miles between Chapmans and Summit.

During steam days freight trains regularly used the siding at Chapmans to "double the train" uphill

When Summit is reached the traich accelerates for the last miles to the main line at Bender's Junction.

After reaching the LNE main line at Benders Junction the train drives thru the countryside at the bottom of Blue Mountain passing forests...

... and rural communities like Danielsville, PA, where a passing siding is located and the Slatington Branch, originally the mainline of the LNE, branches off.

Finally the train reaches the scenic Lehigh Gap.

Virtual Lehigh Valley