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On a cold, clear night in the North Woods of Maine, the mournful sound of a lonely train whistle will be heard breaking the deep silence. It it a solitary freight train traversing northern Maine on the so-called "Short Line" from Quebec to New Brunswick. But in the days of yore, it was a different story. In earlier days, several trains a day came to the Moosehead region on the Bangor & Aroostook Railroad, the Maine Central Railroad and the Canadian Pacific. Thousands of summer visitors would arrive by train at Greenville Junction, step off the coach and onto a waiting steamer at the Junction Wharf. From there, they would travel up Moosehead Lake to Kineo, Seboomook and other points. A new book by Greenville author Dr. Everett L. Parker offers a concise and interesting history of railroading in the region. Titled "Railroads of the North Woods," and published by Moosehead Communications, Inc. of Greenville, the book is currently available at select sites and through the publisher. The book covers the network of so-called "lumbering railroads" that began with the Ox Railroad at Northeast Carry in the mid-1800s and eventually included such exotic-sounding lines as the Seboomook Lake & St. John Railroad, the Chesuncook-Chamberlain Railroad, and the Eagle Lake & West Branch Railroad. All of these are included as well as The Tramway at Eagle Lake. There are many rare photographs included in the book, primarily from the collections of the Moosehead Historical Society in Greenville, where the author serves as executive director. Together with these photographs, the story of these old railroads, now ghost lines, makes this book a must read for anyone interested in history of the Moosehead region. The 8.5 x 11 inch softbound book is available for $10.95 postpaid from Moosehead Communications, HC 76, Box 32, Greenville, ME 04441-9727. |