Western New York and Pennsylvania Traction Company

The Western New York and Pennsylvania Traction Company is a former regional railway in Western New York and North Central Pennsylvania.

History

The Western New York and Pennsylvania Traction Company was a consolidation of two agencies; the Olean Street Railway and Bradford Street Railroad, formed on November 17, 1906.

The agency was reorganized as the Olean, Bradford and Salamanca Railway Company on October 1, 1921.

Timeline

Corporations

• March 15, 1879: Bradford and Kendall Street Railway formed.
• April 5, 1880: Olean Street Railway formed.
• June 7, 1894: Bradford Electric Street Railway purchases Bradford and Kendall Street Railway 
• May, 1897: Olean, Rock City and Bradford Railroad (NY) and Olean, Rock City and Bradford Railroad (PA) formed.
• June 22, 1897: Both Olean, Rock City and Bradford Railroads consolidate as Olean, Rock City and Bradford Railroad.
• 1901: Salamanca and Little Valley Railroad formed.
• March 19, 1903: Shinglehouse Railroad formed.
• July 14, 1906: Rock City Railroad formed as a reorganization of Olean, Rock City and Bradford Railroad Company.
• November 14, 1906: Bradford Street Railroad Company formed. A consolidation of the Rock City Railroad and Olean Street Railway occurs, continuing the name of the Olean Street Railway.
• November 17, 1906: The Western New York and Pennsylvania Traction Company is formed as a consolidation of the Bradford Street Railroad Company and Olean Street Railway Company.
• June, 1921: Western New York and Pennsylvania Traction Company sold, then on...
• October 1, 1921: A reorganization of the Western New York and Pennsylvania Traction Company forms the new Olean, Bradford and Salamanca Railway.

Car line history

This section is incomplete.

• September 12, 1879: Bradford service commences between the St. James Hotel and American House. Two cars would operate until they met mid-way through the route, transferring passengers before returning to the origin. A siding for passing was installed by 1880.
• Fall, 1880: Olean service begins in their inagural run between Erie Depot, down North Union Street to State Street.
• 1892: During paving of North and South Union Streets in Olean, rail tracks were laid down from Henley Street to Bonds Corner (the city line).
• June 22, 1893: Olean service on West State Street commences.
• July 16, 1893: Olean service on North Union Street commences to the Erie Railroad Depot.
• 1894: Olean service extends to Allegany after permission was given to install a crossing over the Erie Railroad tracks.
• November, 1897: Olean service to Portville commences.
• 1902: Olean service to Portville extended further to Ceres and Bolivar.
• September 9, 1903: Shinglehouse service from Bolivar commences.
• January 1, 1905: Service to Salamanca from Allegany and Olean commences.
• October 17, 1908: An extension of the Olean and Salamanca line to Little Valley commences.
• 1925: Little Valley branch service abandoned.
• 1926: Bolivar branch service abandoned.
• 1927: Remaining interurban service abandoned.
• 1928: Olean local service abandoned.

Operating divisions

• Allegany-Salamanca division
• Bradford division
• Bolivar division
• Carrolton-Bradford division
• Little Valley division
• Olean, Rock City and Bradford division

Roster (all subsidiaries)

Fleet number(s)	Road	Thumbnail	Year	Builder	Type	Ends	Motors	Trucks	Notes
1, 3	OSR		1892		Closed				Order number _.
2, 4, 6, 8, 10	OSR		1892		Open				Order number _.
1-4 (2nd)	OSR		1924	Brill	Birney			Brill 79E1	Order number 22008.
5, 7, 9, 11	OSR		1893	Brill	Closed			Brill 21	Order number 4870. 11 retired in 1913.
11 (2nd)	WNY&PTC		1913	Brill	Closed			Brill 21E	Order number 18841. Replacement for original 11.
12									Order number _. Retired in 1912.
12 (2nd)	WNY&PTC		1912	Brill	Closed			Brill 21E	Order number 18392. Replacement for original 12.
14, 16	WNY&PTC		1909	Brill	Closed			Brill 27E	Order number 16774.
15, 17, 19, 21	OSR		1897	Brill	Closed			Brill 21E	Order number 8055.
18									Order number _.
20, 22-25	ROCK								Order number _.
26-27	ROCK		1897	Wason	Combination				Order number _.
28-29	ROCK								Order number _.
30	BSR		1897	Brill	Combination			Brill 22	Order number 8056.
31, 33, 35, 37	BSR								Order number _.
32, 34, 36, 38	OSR		1902	Stephenson	Combination				Order number _.
39-40									Order number _.
41	OSR		1903	Brill	Freight/ Plow			Brill 27G1	Order number 13010.
42	SHIN		1903	Brill				Brill 27G1	Order number 12809.
43									Order number _.
44				Kuhlman	Freight/ Plow				Order number ? Research shows that the plow/freight car could possibly be from a cancelled order from the Slate Belt Electric Railway in PA (orders cancelled are from 13877, 13891 and 13892). This is, however, unconfirmed.
45									Order number _.
46			1906	Brill	Freight/ Plow			Brill 27E1	Order number 15258.
47	WNY&PTC		1913	Wason	Freight				Order number 13625.
48-49									Order number _.
50-53	OSR		1906	Cincinnati	Combination			Brill 27G1	Order number 620.
54-55	OSR		1906	Cincinnati	Closed			Brill 27E1	Order number 615. 55 retired in 1919 following fire at Riverhurst Park in 1918.
55 (2nd)	WNY&PTC		1919	Brill	Combination				Order number 20720. Replacement for original #55.
56-58	WNY&PTC		1906	Brill	Combination			Brill 27E1	Order number 15377.
59-61	WNY&PTC		1906	Brill	Closed			Brill 27E1	Order number 15379.
62-63	OB&S		1917	Brill	Combination			Brill 27MCB1	Order number 20174.