The Central Railroad of New Jersey, The Big Little Railroad

The Central Railroad of New Jersey has gone by a number of different names from CRRNJ and CNJ to Jersey Central and the aforementioned. Regardless of its many names the CNJ was a New Jersey institution for years although it was only regional in operation and was, at its peak, only 711 miles in length. The Jersey Central served much of New Jersey along with northwestern Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, and Washington D.C. via a partnership with the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. The demise of the CNJ was the result of a number of factors including a region too saturated with railroads, stiff government regulation, and markets already served by more efficient competitors (such as the Penn Central). However, for all of these setbacks it did not help that the railroad was taxed so stiffly by the State of New Jersey that this also ultimately led to the railroad’s bankruptcy and inclusion into Conrail in 1976.

At its peak the Central Railroad of New Jersey connected to points including Wilkes-Barre, Reading (via the Reading Railroad), Allentown, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Washington D.C. via the B&O; southern New Jersey; and the New York City Tri-State area by virtue of a grand terminal, which set along the banks of the mighty Hudson River from downtown Manhattan at Jersey City, known as the Jersey City Terminal. Following the turn of the century in 1901 the Reading Railroad took control of the CNJ, which lasted until 1976 and Conrail. The railroad itself was built predominantly to haul anthracite coal from western Pennsylvania coalfields although it did have a range of merchandise and commuter traffic from the New Jersey, Tri-State, and Philadelphia regions. While the railroad was successful during its early years, following the fallout of anthracite after roughly World War I the Central Railroad of New Jersey fell on hard times and emerged from bankruptcy a number of times throughout the rest of its life. Its biggest disadvantage was its location and overall size whereby larger competitors stole away potential traffic, and its size left the CNJ with short-haul freight, something that is not very profitable.

While the Jersey Central had friendly connections with both the Reading and B&O (later the result of the B&O owning a controlling interest in the Reading) there simply was not enough traffic to keep the railroad away from the red ink. Coupled with a commuter service and state taxes that were simply bringing the railroad to its knees, it comes as no surprise that the CNJ entered its final bankruptcy in 1967.

In a last ditch attempt to cut the flow of red ink the Central Railroad of New Jersey embargoed all lines in Pennsylvania in 1972, which were picked up by the Lehigh Valley. In the end nothing worked for the CNJ and the railroad, which boasted perhaps the most patriotic of all railroad logos, the Lady Liberty and the railroad she represented quietly disappeared into Conrail on April 1, 1976.

Sadly, the 1970s, State of New Jersey, and politicians were not kind to the Central Railroad of New Jersey. Today its four-track main is but a memory with only sparse sections still in use. The Jersey City Terminal is still standing as a museum but has not seen a train call to her sheds since the controversial Aldene Plan went into effect in 1967, and its massive and impressive Newark Bay Bridge (which should have become a National Historic Landmark and still serving commuters today) is completely gone, torn down in the 1980s (the only remains are a few approach support piers). In the end many see the railroad as cheated and shredded apart by the state and politicians when most of its Tri-State and New Jersey lines could still be serving the public good and relieving nearby highways and interstates of choking amounts of traffic and commuters. Having said that, while the Jersey Central today is but a memory a few of its lines around the Tri-State area continue to serve a number of different commuter operations.

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For an all-time diesel locomotive roster of the Central Railroad of New Jersey please click here. Also, for an excellent listing of EMD-built diesel locomotives, including those owned by the CNJ please click here. Lastly, please click here to locate preserved CNJ diesel locomotives.

The American Locomotive Company

The Baldwin Locomotive Works

The Electro-Motive Corporation/Electro-Motive Division

Fairbanks Morse

General Electric/Ingersoll-Rand

For a more complete roster of Central Railroad of New Jersey steam locomotives please click here. Also, for information regarding surviving CNJ steam locomotives please click here.

(A deep thanks to the Museum of the Rockies at Montana State University for allowing Ron Nixon's historic collection of the Central Railroad of New Jersey to be featured here. Please note that the photos featured on this page feature their corresponding image number so that you may quickly and easily find more information about it from their website. To view Ron Nixon's entire collection please click here.)

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