User:Mackensen/Bethlehem Branch

The Bethlehem Branch was a railway line in Pennsylvania. It was the main line of the North Pennsylvania Railroad, running from Philadelphia to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The line was built between 1855 and 1857. The Philadelphia and Reading Railroad took control of the North Pennsylvania Railroad in 1879 the line became part of the Reading Company system. With the Reading's final bankruptcy in 1976 the line was split between Conrail and SEPTA. The portion between Tabor Junction (near Fern Rock Transportation Center) and now forms part of the SEPTA Main Line.

History
The North Pennsylvania Railroad opened the first 18 mi between Philadelphia and Gwynedd Valley, Pennsylvania, on July 2, 1855. The Philadelphia terminus was at Front and Willow, on the Delaware River waterfront. Another 35.5 mi to Freemansburg, Pennsylvania, within the Lehigh Valley, opened on January 1, 1857. The final 4 mi to South Bethlehem, branching off at Hellertown, Pennsylvania, opened on July 7, 1857.

Stations
Stations on the Bethlehem Branch can be organized into three groups: those between the original southern end at Front and Willow and the junction with other Reading lines at Tabor Junction, those between Tabor Junction and Lansdale, and those north of Lansdale. The Reading ended passenger service south of Tabor Junction in 1893 when the Reading Terminal opened. SEPTA ended passenger service north Lansdale in 1981.

This listing includes all current and former stations on the historical route of Bethlehem Branch, including stations opened by SEPTA after the era of Reading ownership.