Wikipedia:WikiProject Trains/ICC valuations/Buffalo, Bradford and Pittsburgh Railroad

Interstate Commerce Commission, Valuation Reports, Volume 33

The Buffalo, Bradford and Pittsburgh Railroad

Location and General Description of Property

The railroad of The Buffalo, Bradford and Pittsburgh Railroad Company, herein called the Buffalo, Bradford and Pittsburgh, is a single-track line and extends from Carrollton, N. Y., to Alton, Pa., with a branch line projecting from Bradford to Nusbaum, Pa., aggregating 30.709 miles of road. This property forms a part of the main line between Carrollton, N. Y., and Johnsonburg, Pa.

Introductory

The Buffalo, Bradford and Pittsburgh is a corporation of the States of New York and Pennsylvania, having its principal office at Bradford, Pa. No general accounting records of the company were obtained. Therefore, no information can be given from its accounts regarding its financial dealings, corporate operations, or investments. However, certain data indicated hereinafter were obtained from a balance sheet statement as of date of valuation, certified by the comptroller of the company, filed with us, and from other sources.

The Buffalo, Bradford and Pittsburgh is controlled by the Erie through ownership of a majority of the outstanding capital stock. The records reviewed do not indicate that this company controls any common-carrier corporation.

The property of the Buffalo, Bradford and Pittsburgh was operated by the Erie Railway Company and its receivers from the date it was placed in operation, January 1, 1866, to June 1, 1878. From that date to December 1, 1895, it was operated by The New York, Lake Erie and Western Railroad Company and its receivers, and from the latter date to December 31, 1917, it was operated by the Erie. The common-carrier property of this company was taken over for operation by the United States Railroad Administration on January 1, 1918, as part of the system of the Erie, and it is so operated on date of valuation.

Corporate History

The Buffalo, Bradford and Pittsburgh was incorporated under the general laws of New York and Pennsylvania, through an agreement of consolidation and merger, dated February 26, 1859, filed in New York March 22, 1859, for the purpose of acquiring the property, rights, and franchises of the Buffalo and Pittsburgh Rail Road Company and The Buffalo and Bradford Railroad Company, which was done. The agreement of consolidation and merger was not filed in Pennsylvania.

The Buffalo and Pittsburgh Rail Road Company was incorporated October 13, 1852, under the general laws of New York, and The Buffalo and Bradford Railroad Company was incorporated March 14, 1856, under special act of Pennsylvania. The date of organization of the Buffalo, Bradford and Pittsburgh was April 20, 1859.

Development of Fixed Physical Property

The owned mileage of the Buffalo, Bradford and Pittsburgh, 30.709 miles, was acquired partly by construction and partly by consolidation. The company acquired two partly constructed roads from its predecessors, but the extent of construction work performed by these predecessors, or the extent of original construction performed by the Buffalo, Bradford and Pittsburgh, has not been determined. The entire road of this company was completed and opened for operation on January 1, 1866. The construction work was performed by forces of the Erie Railway Company and by numerous contractors. There is a difference of 0.007 mile between the mileage recorded by this company, 30.716 miles, and the mileage, 30.709 miles, inventoried as of date of valuation.

Leased Railway Property

The common-carrier property of the Buffalo, Bradford and Pittsburgh is operated on date of valuation by the United States Railroad Administration as part of the system of the Erie. Details with respect to the operation of this property are given in the chapter on leased railway property in the report on the Erie.

Predecessor Companies

Buffalo and Pittsburgh Rail Road

No accounting records of the company were obtained. Therefore, no information can be given from its accounts regarding its financial dealings, corporate operations, or investments. The records reviewed did not indicate whether the Buffalo and Pittsburgh Rail Road Company was controlled by any individual or corporation on March 22, 1859, the date of its demise, nor, on the other hand, whether it controlled any common-carrier corporation. The property of the company consisted of a partially constructed railroad between Buffalo, N. Y., and the New York-Pennsylvania State line, but the extent of construction work, or by whom performed, could not be ascertained from the records reviewed.

The Buffalo and Bradford Railroad

No accounting records of the company were obtained. Therefore, no information can be given from its accounts regarding its financial dealings, corporate operations, or investments. The records reviewed did not indicate whether The Buffalo and Bradford Railroad Company was controlled by any individual or corporation on March 22, 1859, the date of its demise, nor, on the other hand, whether it controlled any common-carrier corporation. The property of the company consisted of a partially constructed railroad between a point on the Pennsylvania State line in McKean County to the coal mines in LaFayette Township in the latter county, but the extent of construction work, or by whom performed, could not be ascertained from the records reviewed.