Gordon Pond Railroad, New Hampshire – Owned by the Johnson Lumber Company (George Johnson) the Gordon Pond Railroad was a logging railroad in the towns of Lincoln and Woodstock New Hampshire. It was in operation from 1907-1916, and it was roughly fifteen miles long. And even though the railroad was only about fifteen miles long it is one of the more complicated logging railroads I have documented.

The history books cover the paper trail of the Gordon Pond Railroad fairly well, so there is no reason for me to repeat that information here. With that being said, I will give you a quick run down on the abandoned Gordon Pond Railroad. And then take you on a photo tour of how the railroad looks today.

Johnson Lumber Company's first sawmill was located in North Lincoln. The Boston & Maine Railroad already had a branch, the Whitehouse, Hall and Burns Branch, leading into North Lincoln. An agreement was worked out between the two so that Johnson Lumber Company could run their trains over this branch of the Boston & Maine. A small settlement formed around the North Lincoln sawmill known as “Johnson”. And at some point, a spur line was built so Hardwood Ridge could be logged. From North Lincoln, the Gordon Pond Railroad traveled into the Moosilauke Brook and Lost River drainages in Woodstock. The railroad went beyond their second sawmill that was located on the Lost River and ended below the Lost River Reservation in Kinsman Notch.

Also in North Lincoln, near Harvard Brook, along the Gordon Pond Railroad, was another small settlement around the Mattson Flooring Company and the Pennsylvania Wagon Hub Company. Today, remnants of the flooring company (above) and the wagon hub company are still visible.

One of the many mysteries of the Gordon Pond Railroad are the logging camps that were located along it. We know they existed because there are vague references and pictures of them in history books, but the exact whereabouts of most of them are unknown for the most part. However, we do know the location of one of the Johnson Lumber Company camps that was in the Pemigewasset Wilderness, which I will mention later on.

The Gordon Pond Railroad also laid track up the Gordon Pond and Walker Brook drainages, and into the Elbow Pond and the Jackman Brook area. In some of these areas, you can still find evidence of the old railroad bed. Elbow Pond (above) is a picturesque pond that is worth a visit if this is the first hearing of it.

The terrain in Kinsman Notch (Lost River drainage) is very rugged but with the use of steam donkeys and snubbing winches the Johnson Lumber Company was able to log the steep mountainsides that line Kinsman Notch. These fascinating contraptions were used to lower sleds loaded with logs and horses down steep sled roads. The above artifact is possibly part of an old snubbing winch that remains along an abandoned sled road.

An interesting feature of the Gordon Pond Railroad are the abandoned sled roads (or skid roads). Sled roads were man-made cut roads that horse teams used to drag logs to the landings. Kinsman Notch has some of the best preserved sled roads (above) I have been on in the White Mountains. I will also add that some of the steepest sled roads I have been on are in Kinsman Notch.

The Johnson Lumber Company owned a stand of spruce on the Pemigewasset Wilderness side of Mount Liberty. They couldn’t reach this stand of spruce from the Gordon Pond Railroad because the terrain was to steep and it was surrounded by land owned by the East Branch & Lincoln Railroad. George Johnson made a deal with J.E. Henry & Sons, owners of the East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, to haul the timber out using the East Branch & Lincoln Railroad. Today, the Johnson Lumber Company camp (above) on the side of Mount Liberty is one of the few camps of the Gordon Pond Railroad that can be verified.

The artifacts are far and few and the ones that do remain help tell the story of the abandoned Gordon Pond Railroad. The above artifact is possibly a “rave”, which is part of a logging sleigh. Even though logging sleighs were used throughout the White Mountains, I don't find many "raves" in the forest.

The Gordon Pond Railroad is like no other logging railroad in the New Hampshire White Mountains. And today, this railroad is a one-hundred year old jigsaw puzzle that has left me with many questions that unfortunately will never be answered.

All of the above images can be licensed for publications by clicking on the image you are interested in. And you can view more scenes from along the Gordon Pond Railroad here.

Happy image making..

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Erin Paul Donovan

Owner of ScenicNH Photography LLC

Erin Paul is a professional photographer, writer, and author who specializes in environmental conservation and historic preservation photography mainly in the New Hampshire White Mountains. His work is published worldwide, and publication credits include: Appalachian Mountain Club, Appalachian Trail Conservancy, Backpacker Magazine, and The Wilderness Society.