Narrow Gauge Railway Along Stonewood Road in Springettsbury Township and Plot of Daniel Brubaker’s 280-Acres; i.e. location of Camp Security
I was doing research for another subject, using this topographic map, when the railway along Springwood Road peaked my interest. I remembered reading sometime ago that this was a narrow gauge railway. Suddenly I was obsessed with discovering the gauge distance.
My quest progressed from the Springettsbury Township Centennial Booket and continued through two written Histories of York County, the Archives of the York County Heritage Trust, and Deed Research at the York County Archives. Each source provided additional information, however it was in a Chicago trade publication that I discovered this was a 3’-0” narrow gauge railway.
Related posts include:
- Narrow Gauge Railway Along Stonewood Road in Springettsbury Township to the Stony Brook Slate & Brick Company
- Stony Brook Slate & Brick Company with a Narrow Gauge Railway in Springettsbury Township
The Narrow Gauge Railway along Stonewood Road is pointed out on the map, along with three Areas of Detail to be examined and compared to current photos in this post. While annotating the map, even though not in the same time period as the railway, I thought I’d also plot the 280 Acres of Daniel Brubaker as they existed in 1781; see details later in this post. Documents indicate that Camp Security, the revolutionary war prisoner of war camp, is located somewhere within these 280 acres.
The Stony Brook Slate & Brick Company constructed the narrow gauge railway in 1905. Prior to that year, slate was hauled from the quarry to a siding on the Railroad between York & Wrightsville by horse and wagon. The brick plant at this siding was constructed in 1904 when the owners of the shale operation discovered that their shale waste by-product become more valuable as bricks than their original shale business.
The main railroad between York & Wrightsville runs from left to right in the 1908 Map Detail and Stonewood Road runs from top to bottom. Note the main railroad siding drawn next to the two structures representing the brick plant. The narrow gauge railway runs parallel to and on the west side of Stonewood Road.
The arrow represents the point of view of the 2012 photograph. The Brick Plant would have been located where the Campbell Employee Parking Lot now exists just north of their warehouse.
In this 1908 Map Detail, Stonewood Road and the Narrow Gauge Railway run from top to bottom. The narrow gauge railway runs parallel to and on the west side of Stonewood Road before crossing to the east side of Springwood Road at this point. This zig in the road was there long before the railway, however it did make a convenient crossing point.
The arrow represents the point of view of the 2012 photograph; roughly opposite 335 Springwood Road. Into the 1970s Springwood Road ran through this strip of land with tall fence-row trees on either side, before the road was somewhat straightened to remove the back-to-back blind-sharp turns.
This 1908 Map Detail has Stonewood Road running from the top and out to the right; Mountain Road continued off to the bottom. The narrow gauge railway runs parallel to and on the west side of the creek and Stonewood Road, before swinging directly into the quarry site.
The arrow represents the point of view of the 2012 photograph. The quarry has since been filled in; at least to an elevation level with the roadway.
I’ll continue posts about the Stony Brook Slate & Brick Company and this Narrow Gauge Railway on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The plot of the 280 Acres of Daniel Brubaker as they existed in 1781 was done using metes and bounds from the 1765 survey of 200 acres to John Shultz and the 1769 warrant of 80 acres to John Shultz; these 80 acres later surveyed as 77.12 acres. Documents indicate that Camp Security, the revolutionary war prisoner of war camp, is located somewhere within these 280 acres. See related post: Camp Security, the Schultz House & Henry Ford.
There is only one building up on the hillside that barely falls within the 280 acres; structure symbol is near the base of the 2 in the 280 Acres label. Today, this structure would be approximately on the eastern part of Cimmeron Road in Penn Oaks. All the other structures within the 280 acres are scattered west and north of the Shultz house.
Go to this post for an index of everything on YorksPast that is railway related or about 19th Century Rail Car Builders of York, Pennsylvania. Check back often, as the posts on these subjects expand.
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