Produced by David Edwards and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive.) THE STORY OF THE ROME, WATERTOWN AND OGDENSBURGH RAILROAD [Illustration: THE FLEET LOCOMOTIVE ANTWERP When She Dug Her Red Heels into the Track the Railroad Men Reached for Their Watches.] THE STORY of the Rome, Watertown and Ogdensburgh Railroad _By_ EDWARD HUNGERFORD AUTHOR OF "THE MODERN RAILROAD," "OUR RAILROADS--TOMORROW," ETC., ETC. _ILLUSTRATED_ NEW YORK ROBERT M. McBRIDE & COMPANY 1922 Copyright, 1922, by EDWARD HUNGERFORD _Printed in the United States of America_ Published, 1922 TO THOSE PIONEERS OF OUR NORTH COUNTRY WHO _Labored Hard and Labored Well In Order That It Might Enjoy the Blessings of the Railroad, This Book Is Dedicated by Its Author_. CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I BY WAY OF INTRODUCTION 1 II LOOKING TOWARD A RAILROAD 5 III THE COMING OF THE WATERTOWN & ROME 24 IV THE POTSDAM & WATERTOWN RAILROAD 59 V THE FORMATION OF THE R. W. & O. 79 VI THE R. W. & O. PROSPERS--AND EXPANDS 102 VII INTO THE SLOUGH OF DESPOND 128 VIII THE UTICA & BLACK RIVER 143 IX THE BRISK PARSONS' REGIME 171 X IN WHICH RAILROADS MULTIPLY 203 XI THE COMING OF THE NEW YORK CENTRAL 227 XII THE END OF THE STORY 246 APPENDIX A 263 APPENDIX B 267 ILLUSTRATIONS The Fleet Locomotive _Antwerp_ _Frontispiece_ FACING PAGE Orville Hungerford 31 The Cape Vincent Station 51 Early Railroad Tickets 71 Watertown in 1865 81 The Birth of the U. & B. R. 148 Hiram M. Britton 186 Snow Fighters 231 PREFACE Some railroads, like some men, experience many of the ups and downs of life. They have their seasons of high prosperity, as well as those of deep depression. Such a road was the Rome, Watertown & Ogdensburgh. In its forty years of life it ran a full gamut of railroad existence. Alternately it was one of the best railroads in creation; and one of the worst.