East Branch & Lincoln Railroad


The East Branch & Lincoln Railroad (1893-1948), ScenicNH Photography has an extensive image collection that showcases this legendary railroad in its current state. Built by timber baron James E. Henry, the East Branch & Lincoln was a logging railroad in the towns of Lincoln and Franconia, New Hampshire with much of it being in today’s Pemigewasset Wilderness. Documenting the logging railroads in the White Mountains is one of our ongoing projects. And while the East Branch & Lincoln is the main focus, we have documented many other railroads in the region. Below is a list of articles, logging camps, and other features of the railroad. Feel free to contact Erin Paul to discuss projects or with questions. And if you enjoy the history of railroads, see our East Branch & Lincoln Railroad Book.


East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, Utility Poles

East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, New Hampshire
East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, Utility Poles - Telephone wires were strung from utility poles along the East Branch & Lincoln Railroad to the numerous logging camps. In some areas along the railroad, side mounted wooden telephone peg holder pins nailed directly to trees were used in place of utility ...

East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, Trestle 17

Trestle No 17 - East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, New Hampshire
East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, Trestle 17 - Built in the early 1900s, probably 1906-1908 (one reference states 1908) trestle 17 was located along the Upper East Branch of the East Branch & Lincoln Railroad. It spanned the East Branch of the Pemigewasset River near the site of logging Camp ...

EB&L Railroad, Narrow Gauge Line

Osseo Trail - White Mountains, New Hampshire
East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, Narrow Gauge Line - The EB&L Railroad was a standard gauge railroad, but in 1901 J.E. Henry and Sons attempted to use a narrow gauge railroad to harvest timber. With the exception of a May 1902 article by Albert W. Cooper and T.S. Woolsey, Jr ...

1907 Owl’s Head Mountain Fire

Pemigewasset Wilderness - Mount Lberty, New Hampshire
1907 Owl's Head Mountain Fire, White Mountains – During the late 1800s and early 1900s, logging activities from railroad logging contributed to a number of forest fires in the New Hampshire White Mountains. Sparks from locomotives were responsible for starting fires along the railroads. And the logging slash (unwanted part ...

East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, Trestle 7

Trestle 7 - East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, New Hampshire
East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, Trestle 7 - During the days of the East Branch & Lincoln (EB&L) Railroad, there were two trestles built at this crossing of Franconia Brook (above). And each trestle serviced different areas of today’s Pemigewasset Wilderness. The first trestle built serviced the Franconia Brook and ...

Preserve History, Don’t Remove Artifacts

Charles B. Keyser Homesite - Benton, New Hampshire USA
Don't Remove Historic Artifacts - Here in the New Hampshire White Mountains, outdoor recreation is growing at an alarming rate. And there has been a huge surge of people exploring the many historical sites that are in the region. For historic preservation to be successful, it is imperative that we ...

Trails of the Pemigewasset Wilderness

Pemigewasset Wilderness, New Hampshire by ScenicNH Photography LLC
Trails of the Pemigewasset Wilderness - At 45,000-acres, the Pemigewasset Wilderness is one of six designated wilderness areas in the White Mountain National Forest. Wilderness areas are governed under the National Wilderness Preservation System and the Wilderness Act of 1964. They are managed much differently than other parts of the ...

East Branch & Lincoln, Forgotten Trestles

Abutments from Trestle 7 of the East Branch & Lincoln Logging Railroad are used to support the foot bridge along the Lincoln Woods Trail in New Hampshire.
East Branch & Lincoln, Forgotten Trestles - In October of 2015, I wrote about the forgotten spur lines along the East Branch & Lincoln (EB&L) Railroad in New Hampshire, and today I am going to continue with this theme and focus on the timber trestles of the railroad. The EB&L ...

East Branch & Lincoln, Abandoned Spur Lines

Owl's Head - Pemigewasset Wilderness, New Hampshire
East Branch & Lincoln, Abandoned Spur Lines - The East Branch & Lincoln Logging Railroad (1893-1948) in the New Hampshire White Mountains has been fairly well documented. And with the current documentation we can get a good idea of the layout of the railroad, first hand accounts from loggers who ...

February 1959 Plane Crash, Pemi Wilderness

Pemigewasset Wilderness - Memorial to Dr. Ralph E. Miller and Dr. Robert E. Quinn in the Thoreau Falls Valley of Lincoln, New Hampshire. The doctors successfully crash landed their plane in this location and survived for four days before dying of exposure.
February 1959 Plane Crash, Pemigewasset Wilderness - On Saturday, February 21, 1959 a Piper Comanche airplane took off from the Berlin, New Hampshire Airport, around 3:30 p.m., destined for Lebanon, New Hampshire Airport. The pilot was Dr. Ralph E. Miller and his passenger was Dr. Robert E. Quinn. Both were ...

East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, Lincoln

Porter 50 ton saddle tank engine locomotive on display at Loon Mountain along the Kancamagus Highway in Lincoln, New Hampshire USA.
East Branch & Lincoln Railroad - The East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, built by timber baron James E. Henry, was a logging railroad that operated from 1893-1948 in the New Hampshire towns of Lincoln and Franconia. Much of the railroad was in the area we know today as the Pemigewasset ...

East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, Trestle 16

Pemigewasset Wilderness - Black Brook Trestle (Trestle 16) along the old East Branch & Lincoln Railroad in Lincoln, New Hampshire USA just pass the old Camp 16 location. This was a logging railroad which operated from 1893 - 1948.
East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, Trestle 16 - Trestle 16 is located along the abandoned East Branch & Lincoln Railroad in the Pemigewasset Wilderness of New Hampshire. It is also referred to as Black Brook Trestle and the J.E. Henry Trestle. Trestle 16 is one of the few remaining trestle ...

James E. Henry, White Mountains History

J.E. Henry Burial Site - Glenwood Cemetery, Littleton, NH
James Everell Henry, East Branch & Lincoln Railroad - J.E. Henry died at his home in Lincoln, New Hampshire on April 18, 1912. He was a 19th and 20th century timber baron best known for his logging practices and building of the Zealand Valley and East Branch & Lincoln Railroads ...

East Branch & Lincoln, Corduroyed Roads

East Branch & Lincoln, Corduroyed Roads
East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, Corduroyed Roads - Have you ever come across something in the forests of New England you know was man made, but have no idea what it is? Here is something for you to look for the next time you are exploring one of the abandoned ...

Maps
 

East Branch & Lincoln Railroad Map

East Branch & Lincoln Railroad Map

Built by timber baron James E. Henry, the East Branch & Lincoln Railroad was a logging railroad that operated from 1893-1948 in the New Hampshire White Mountains. Much of the railroad was in the area we know today as the Pemigewasset Wilderness. Including sidings and spur lines, the railroad was estimated to be between 50-60 miles long and had at least forty-one logging camps. This map shows the general layout of the railroad ...
Narrow Gauge Railroad Map - EB&L Railroad

East Branch & Lincoln Railroad – Narrow Gauge Map

The East Branch & Lincoln Railroad was a standard gauge railroad, but in 1901 J.E. Henry and Sons attempted to use a narrow gauge line at Camp 8 to harvest timber from the slopes of Whaleback Mountain. This roughly 1.25 mile +/- long line, consisting of a series of switchbacks, traveled into the Osseo Brook drainage. It lasted only for a few years and was discontinued after a brakeman was killed when a loaded log car ran out control down the track. This map shows the general layout of the Narrow Gauge line ...

Books
 

East Branch & Lincoln Railroad Book by Erin Paul Donovan
East Branch & Lincoln Railroad Book
by Erin Paul Donovan With the use of black and white and color photographs, this book explores the history of the East Branch & Lincoln Railroad, while showing the abandoned ...
The Boston and Maine A Photographic Essay by Philip Ross Hastings
The Boston & Maine: A Photographic Essay
The Boston & Maine: A Photographic Essay by Philip Ross Hastings. This 206 page book was published by Locomotive & Railway Preservation in 1989. It looks to be a first ...