Friends of White Clay Creek State Park

The Pomeroy and Newark Railroad

by Debbie Paruszewski Keese

Special Newsletter Supplement - Friends of White Clay Creek State Park (FWCCSP RECORD, Vol. 5, No. 2, November 2002, p. 9)

In today's world we have so much on our minds that we tend to forget the importance and the historic fascination humans have with trains. After all, trains still figure largely in the transport of goods in our country, and they still carry coal to power plants that generate electricity. In researching the historic record for descriptive images of life in the White Clay Creek Valley, I caught a little bit of the excitement and reverence felt by our earlier residents when the train came through. As I stood below the concrete supports of a long-gone railroad trestle over White Clay Creek, I found myself thinking about that train and asking, "Where did it come from? Where was it going? What exciting adventures did it hold?"

The trestle once supported the traffic of a railroad line that was referred to as the "railroad that should never have been built." It was known locally as the Pomeroy and Newark Railroad. The passenger car of that line was fondly called the "Pumpsie Doodle" or the "Pommy Diddle." It ran between the towns of Pomeroy, Pa., and Newark, Del., for a 26-mile length, and on to Delaware City, Del., a total of 39 miles.

Why should it never have been built? Budget constraints in building the road dictated that the bed follow the flattest grade possible, which meant that it followed the banks of the White Clay Creek, crossing and re-crossing the stream and surrounding wetlands. In its 26-mile run, there were 65 wooden bridges that were hard to maintain and very expensive to replace. When you follow the actual course of the railroad, it is mind-boggling to imagine how difficult a job it was to build this line. Building up ballast for the bed, traversing swampy areas, cutting through rock outcrops, and getting wet in the creek during winter months must have tested the endurance of the work gangs.

Construction of the rail line by two different railroads began between 1868 and 1871. The Doe Run and White Clay Creek Railroad Company built the segment from a point along the Philadelphia and Columbia Railroad near Pomeroy to the Delaware state line. The Delaware and Pennsylvania Rail Road Company built the segment from the state line to Delaware City. The ownership of this line and its official name have changed so often through its history as to make the most organized and agile mind weary, so I will refer to it in this essay as the "Pomeroy Railroad."

Builders of the Delaware City portion claimed that this line would make Delaware City the "Norfolk" of the Delaware River, a thriving coal port. Shipped via Pomeroy at a savings of 60 miles, anthracite would land 30 miles nearer the sea than if it went to Philadelphia. Delaware City was preferable to Philadelphia also because it was ice free in winter months. The line could also supply coal locally and move the substantial lime, marble, kaolin, and agricultural production that was growing in the region. Unfortunately for Delaware City, however, the great success of the railroads up until 1872 came to an abrupt halt in 1873, the year the Pomeroy Railroad was completed and the year a great depression hit the country, lasting until 1880.

The first train was scheduled to run on May 1, 1873. It was not without event. Bedecked in flags, wreaths, and flowers, in honor of the occasion, the mixed freight and passenger train struck a cow belonging to John Dorsey, living at Doe Run, and "completely decapitated her without injury to the train." The train made two trips per day to Pomeroy. Leaving Delaware City about 7 a.m., it would arrive in Pomeroy at approximately 9:30. It would depart again traveling to Newark and back again to Pomeroy. In the evening it would depart Pomeroy and run the length of the line to Delaware City.

The company underwent foreclosure in 1879, but was reorganized. In 1880, a bill was introduced in the Delaware legislature to legalize the sale of the line south of Newark. An advantage would be gained in the transport of peaches, because it shortened the distance west to Baltimore. In fact, it was the north-south route of the railroad that changed Delaware into the Peach State, making the peach blossom the state flower. In anticipation of the railroad construction, farmers planted peaches in more rural areas. Prior to this, peaches were only grown in Wilmington and in Delaware City, because of access to steamboat transport. Peach production became a part of the Delaware economy, and most peaches were shipped by rail. Unfortunately, a disease called the “yellows” struck the trees and ended the peach endeavor in the 1890s. Farmers then switched to apples.

To reduce operating expenses, in 1901 the railroad withdrew steam passenger cars and substituted a gasoline car operated by two men which made round trips daily between Newark and Pomeroy, except Sunday. The single car transported passengers, mail, and light freight. By 1928, however, improved highways and competition from automobiles had caused the patronage of the Pumpsie Doodle to shrink. The passenger line was abandoned, and the line carried only freight The government had anticipated this move, and had already arranged for mail transport by trucks.

In the ensuing years, as mills began closing and another depression hit the country, railroads suffered, and smaller lines were abandoned. In a series of letters written in 1935 by railroad officials, the abandonment of the line between Avondale and Newark was discussed. Ties and bridge ties had been removed between Landenberg and Thompson and used for repairs elsewhere on the line, and it was recommended that this be followed by removal of rails and old bridges. Ensuing correspondence revealed that the plan was to abandon the line from Avondale to Newark but use or reclassify Avondale to Landenberg and Thompson to Newark as sidings. Then they could be removed or closed down without approval from the Interstate Commerce Commission.

The line from Landenberg to the Delaware state line was officially abandoned in 1937. In 1939 the segment from the state line to Newark was abandoned. The track from Newark to Delaware City remained active until 1982 when N.V.F. went to trucking. Curtis Paper, Newark Lumber, and Dayette Mill ceased use of the track when Conrail pulled it up in 1984. Sections of the track around Reybold were still in use in 1997, revitalized to support the oil refineries. The line was beset by economic and geographic problems from the very beginning. Although gradients were not a problem, the number and tightness of the curves were too difficult for longer, more efficient trains that would operate at faster speeds. Competition from improved highways and other newer rail lines to the east and west, and a difficult economy overall spelled death for the enterprise.