[ Text updated through May 7th 2005 by George L Kenson ]

The trackage between Northfield and Lincoln is operated by The Hobo and Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroads and was part of the Boston, Concord and Montreal Railroad, with construction beginning in 1846. The line reached Tilton on May 22, 1848, Laconia August 8, 1848, Meredith March 19,1849 and Plymouth June 21, 1850. The main line of the BC&M continued on to Wells River, Vt. reaching that point on May 10, 1853.

The line from Plymouth to Lincoln was constructed as the Pemigewasset Valley Railroad which was chartered July 9, 1874. Construction began in 1882, with the line opened to Woodstock March 1, 1883. It was leased to the BC&M a month later.

In 1884 the Boston and Lowell RR leased the BC&M, which was later combined with the Concord RR in 1889 to form the Concord and Montreal RR. The BC&M was leased to the Boston and Maine RR in 1895, being subsequently purchased by and merged into the B&M on December 1, 1919.

In the early part of the twentieth century, the line hosted many passenger trains as well as local freights serving the on line towns and continuing to northern New Hampshire, Vermont and Canada, however the favored route for through traffic was the former Northern RR between Concord and White River Jct, Vt. The trackage between Plymouth and North Haverhill, N.H. was abandoned on October l, 1954. Passenger service was cut back from Plymouth to Laconia (Meredith in the summer) and eventually ceased altogether on January 5, 1965.

In June 1970, the Franconia Paper Co. mill at Lincoln shut down for the first of several times due to pollution control problems. The B&M continued service as required, but heavy rains in the summer of 1973 caused several washouts north of Meredith which the B&M could not justify repairing, thus the northern portion of the line was embargoed.

In 1975, the Profile Paper Co. announced intentions to re-open the mill at Lincoln provided that rail service was available. The State of New Hampshire purchased the Concord to Lincoln trackage on October 30, 1975, repaired it, and resumed service with the Wolfeboro Railroad serving as the first of several operators. The Lincoln paper mill closed for good in 1977, with much of the mill site becoming condominiums and outlet stores in the years since then. Freight service, as required, is provided by the Concord based New England Southern Railroad, and passenger excursions are operated by the Clark family of Lincoln as the Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad between Meredith and Laconia and the Hobo Railroad in the Lincoln - Woodstock area.

In 1986 the Plymouth and Lincoln Railroad was formed with the purpose of operating a theme park and railroad out of Lincoln NH. Edward Clark and his wife Brenda Clark were the owners. Trains have been operating since then between Lincoln and Woodstock a distance of 7 miles. The former Wolfboro Railroad S-1 Alco 1186 was utilized with State of NH owned 1008 following soon. The third Alco was added after the demise of the North Strattford Railroad of northern NH. This engine was Maine Central 959 which was owned by the State of NH and. It was quickly repainted and brought the number of Alco's to three.

After a few years of operating the railroad in Lincoln, The Hobo Railroad was invited to bid on the lease for the state owned trackage from Tilton to Plymouth which would give the two railroads a 54 mile main line. They won the bid and The Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad was formed. They operated between Meredith Station and Lakeport siding at the end of Paugus Bay [ Lake Winnipesaukee ]. Intermediate stops were made at Weirs Beach.

In the summer of 1998 Mr Edward Clark, the founder passed away. Benjamin, his only son assumed the post of President and promoted the business heavily. In late 1998 Ex Rock Island, Ex New England Southern GP7 #302 was purchased and brought to the Lincoln shops where the crafty mechanics brought it back to life. Cosmetic changes such as a chopped nose, ditch lights and a "spiffy" maroon and silver paint job was applied.

From the mid 90's the Lincoln Shops has grown to be a major source of off season revenue by its quality refurbishing and repair of numerous customer railroad equipment. Two Russell Snow Plows, and some subway tampers were rebult for the MBTA. The privatey owned ex New Haven Trainset "Roger Williams", was in for major restoration to like new condition along with 4-5 caboose repaintings. Their reputation for perfection made them into a faclity much in demand which made it a 12 month railroad. Plans are underway for the Flying Yankee restoration to move to the Lincoln NH Shops for completion. In 2000 the "Boise Budd Rebuild Prototype" was purchased from two employees who had saved it from the scrapers torch 4 years earlier. The MBTA was cleaning house for their new Engine Terminal by scrapping all the ex B&M Budd Cars in storage. Budd 6148 is unique in that it had no motors or radiators, making it a true coach made from a RDC. Hobo Railroad has replaced the windows with sliding type, equipped it with tables and chairs for a touring/dining car for their expanding business. Also in 2000, a gradall and tamper were added to the maintenance fleet. The gradall got immediate use in performing drainage work to eliminate flooding problems and its brush cutting ability is superior.

Alco S1 ex MEC958 came on the property in 2001 by lease from the former operators of the defunct Maine Coast Railroad. This was the second Maine Central S1 joining #959 which came to the railroad after the North Strattford Railroad shut down due to loss of its largest customer, Ethan Allen Furniture. It was at first mostly a Lincoln NH native but ventured south during 2002 on special occasions. It functioned well during christmas season to help in this annual ritual. An ex Maine Central S1, 958 had some modifications that were necesary due to its work in Maine. The locomotive came with Ditch Lights, a 26L Brake System and FRA glazing. The lease eventually turned into a purchase and in the winter of 2004/2005 it was repainted in the traditional Hobo/Wiipesaukee Railroad design. Now the roster had 4 Alco S1's, an EMD GP7 and a GE 44 Ton locomotive .Over the years since 1998 the railroad has acquired a tie insertor, ballast regulator and a Hy-rail boom truck for handling ties and rails etc. In 2003 the railroad utiized the trackage North of the Meredith Station due to the rapid success of their Fall Foliage Excursions. More trains were scheduled to handle the increase in demand. The restored Plymouth Station,now a "Senior Center" benefited by leasing their dining hall on weekends for a Hot Buffet served to the Foligage train passengers.

one can read Len Bachelder's route description for the "Pemigewasset Valley Special", November l, 1986, operated by the Massachusetts Bay Railroad Enthusiasts, Inc., which follows. Another source of information was published in the winter 1975-76 Bulletin of the Boston and Maine RR Historical Society, PO Box 469, Derry, NH 03038-0469 (B&MRRHS Web Site) . This article was simply titled "The Pemi", by H. Bentley Crouch.

For a brief description of the route of the trackage operated by the Hobo Railroad and the Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad between Northfield New Hampshire and Lincoln New Hampshire, a distance of 54 miles click here.

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