Delaware Railroads and Railfanning In "The First State"

Delaware railroads feature one of the nation’s first railroads and while today it has nearly the fewest rail miles of any state its rails are critically important to the Northeast. Even during the heyday of the railroad industry the state's rail network was never that extensive featuring less than 400 miles of trackage. However, even today when it comes to Delaware railroads, big things come in small packages. Few states offer such a wide variety of trains and railroads as the First State (both Class Is operated in the state along with about a half-dozen shortlines). Whether you are interested in high-speed trains, bucolic steam locomotives, or coastal railroad operations, Delaware offers all three! Please be aware, that throughout this page you will find various links to other pages here at the site. These pages simply cover various railroad subjects related to the state of Delaware if you are perhaps interested in checking them out.

Although Delaware has never held many miles of railroad it has been home to several classic railroad companies. These include the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, Pennsylvania Railroad (and later Penn Central/Conrail), and Reading Railroad. Of note, other companies like the Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines came close to operating lines into Delaware but never quite reached across the border. To learn more about these railroads please check out the below links, which provide a brief overview (and system map) of each system:

Baltimore & Ohio

Pennsylvania Railroad

Conrail

Penn Central Transportation

Reading Railroad

In terms of Delaware’s route miles throughout the years please refer to the table below. While the B&O’s main line to New York City stretched through Delaware (the route operated from Newark to Carrcroft, a distance of just 15.7 miles according the railroad's official timetable) and the Reading operated a branch between Birdsboro, Pennsylvania and Wilmington it was the Pennsylvania Railroad that owned most of the state’ trackage, sprawling all over the state with a main line that stretched south from Wilmington, Delaware to Cape Charles, Virginia. In any event, as you can see in the below chart, the state's rail system has never been that extensive and today most of the original network remains intact and in use.

As many who study at least a little railroad history are well aware, the Pennsylvania Railroad was one of the most powerful companies of its times, nearly until its merger with the New York Central in 1968 to form the Penn Central. While the PRR stretched to Detroit, Buffalo, northern Michigan, Chicago, St. Louis, Cincinnati, and a myriad of other eastern/Midwestern cities it had a high concentration of branch lines and routes in New Jersey, eastern Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Delaware. Its secondary main line between Wilmington and Cape Charles provided interchanges with southern lines, Norfolk & Western, the original Norfolk Southern, and Chesapeake & Ohio all of whom served the ports of Norfolk/Newport News/Virginia Beach.

Additionally, the PRR had several branch lines (five) diverging from this main line through Delaware. Most of these routes served one or more towns in nearby Maryland such as Chestertown, Centreville, Queenstown, Queen Anne, McDaniel, Hurlock, Cambridge, Vienna, Ocean City, and Franklin City. However, a few served locations directly in Delaware such as Smyrna and Rehoboth Beach. Today, many of these branches have since been abandoned. However, the main line to Cape Charles is still fully intact operated by Class I, Norfolk Southern through most of Delaware while CSX Transportation operated the rest through Maryland.

Along with the current operations of CSX and Norfolk Southern, Delaware is also home to the remains of the Conrail system, Conrail Shared Assets (a jointly run railroad between NS and CSX) as well as shortlines, Delaware Coast Line, East Penn Railway, Wilmington & Western Railroad, and the Maryland & Delaware Railroad. These small railroads operate the remains of the PRR's branch line network in the state. To learn more about these railroads please click here. This page is primarily meant to help those looking for work with one of Delaware's operating railroads. However, it also lists contact information for these companies in the event you may be looking for such. For more historical information about Delaware railroads please check out the below links, which will take you to pages highlighting the state's interurbans and surviving railroad stations:

Delaware Interurbans

Surviving Delaware Train Stations

Lastly, Delaware is home to just one tourist railroad (and no railroad museums), the Wilmington & Western Railroad. This steam-powered line has been in operation since 1966 (although historically the W&W name dates back to the 1860s) and offers visitors an incredible journey along 10.2 miles of what was the B&O's Landenberg Branch between Greenbank Station and Mt. Cuba. To learn more about the railroad and planning a visit please check out their website. In all Delaware railroads offer a little of everything for a train lover, whether your railroading interest(s) might be railfanning, tourist railroads, or simply sightseeing. Finally, for more information about Delaware's railroad history please click here to visit AbandonedRails.com, a website which regularly adds information regarding abandoned rail lines from across the country (broken down state-by-state).

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