B&M NH Division
Symbol Freights, 1925-36
Introduction
Elsewhere on this site is a compilation of early Freight Train Symbol Books and related information, a work in progress for two decades. Despite the significant data that has been compiled, there remain important holes in the record, particularly what changes occured during the late 1920's system-wide modernization program enacted under President George Hannauer, prior to the Depression era service cutbacks. This is most acute between FTSB #16, 10/31/27, and FTSB #22, 9/25/32, as there are no available complete symbol books between those dates (but see note about FTSB #20 on the link above.) With my B&M research interest in the NH Division mainline in 1930, determining interim details of the freight operating plan has proved rather elusive, yet by studying the sum of the data available, patterns can be better understood, and reasonable assumptions can begin to be made.
The Chart
Depicted above is a list of all symbol freight trains that are known to have existed which operated through, from, or to Concord NH, from FTSB #14, effective 12/20/26, to FTSB #27, effective 4/28/35. The following notes are to explain the conventions used in the chart: documented trains and information are denoted with black text, while gray text indicates an inference. A dash indicates a known lack of a train operating. The record is supplemented by fragments of other symbol freight schedules that have been accumulated from a number of other sources, and that data is also included on the chart. Under the date, "All" denotes a complete FTSB; "Limited" and "Individual" convey that only data is available for some trains because of a gap in the historic record (individual FTSB sheets that have survived, for example,) while "Select" is noted when a source intentionally offers only a portion of the overall freight operating plan, such as two issues of an LCL pamphlet published by the road.
The chart is color coded to show specific services over time; however such service may have evolved over time and so the train symbols are not constant. A northbound train and its southbound counterpart share the same color. Hence in 1926, the NH Division main had 7 symbol freights in each direction. A year later, as some changes began to be effected, this was reduced to 6 round trips. It appears that by the onset of the Depression, that may have been further reduced to only 5 round trips, but that is not known definitively. However, by the spring of 1931, trips appear to be down to only 4, and finally, the 1932 FTSB defines the operating plan as now down to only 3 round trips.
Not shown in this chart are the scheduled milk trains that ran between the north country and Boston. Despite hauling valuable freight, these operated with passenger train numbers, albeit second class, gaining authority to operate as they were listed in Employee Time Tables during the beginning of the period shown. Two, Trains #352 and #354 operated from White River Junction, returning the empties as #351 and #353, while Trains #48 and #49 plied the old Concord & Montreal route to Woodsville. However, Trains #353 and #354 appear to have been discontinued, no longer being shown in the Employee Time Table by 9/25/27 nor in any later documentation, such as Bulletin Orders. The other four continued to be run during much of the period of covered in this article and were known to continue running well after WWII. Second class milk trains 48, 49, 351, and 352 were last listed in ETT #6, effective 4/27/1930. Subsequently, Bulletin Orders were issued for these trains as extras, specifying terminal departure and arrival times and work to be done (see BO #91, 5/22/1930, #109, 9/10/1930, and #122, 9/27/1931 as examples.) Despite that formalized change, they frequently continued to be referenced using their former passenger train numbers. These milk services evolved over time with the B&M beginning to co-mingle fast freight and milk traffic as time went on. Indeed, by the time FTSB #22 was issued in the fall of 1932, Trains B-U 1 and J-B 490 were explicitly listed as hauling milk cars one day per week from and to Boston, respectively, and north of Concord daily for BU-1. Before the next winter ended, traffic changes demanded service changes, and even 351 and 352 were briefly cancelled entirely with a complex network of passenger and nominally freight trains still getting the milk delivered to the urban areas.
While the mid 20's featured freights that operated out of Lowell, which could operate in conjunction with freights traversing the system to and from Portland, ME, and the crucial interchanges at Worcester and in NY, these were some of the first services to be terminated. The C&M route also enjoyed a healthy freight service with up to three roundtrips. The earlier years also had trains scheduled to run between Concord and Mechanicville directly, but that service and the trains to Woodsville would be combined by the spring of 1931, and cancelled entirely shortly thereafter.
One trend that can be observed is that as service to Woodsville over the C&M was curtailed, the continuing traffic to the interchange with the Canadian Pacific was maintained by extending symbol freight runs that had previously terminated at the connection with the Central Vermont in White River Junction, VT, to run north along the Connecticut River Div to Wells River, VT. B-J 3 and J-B 2 (previously J-B 480,) made this change by the summer of 1928, becoming B-U 1 and U-B 2, respectively. It is not known just when B-J 1 and J-B 490 would be extended north (hence the green question marks in the chart,) but it occurred no later than the fall of 1932. Only the north bound run was renamed (to B-U 3,) while J-B 490 kept its explicit reference to the CV freight it took its name from. This made more effective use of the existing trains, and was supported by the acquisition of additional heavier locomotives and the installation of the improved infrastructure required by those purchases, notably including new bridges in many locations. Such improvements represent and define the freight scheduling changes of the Hannauer era.
Posted 8/23/24. Copyright retained by Earl Tuson.