Gettysburg Railroad (1976–1996)

The railroad was built in the late 19th century and opened in 1891 as the Gettysburg and Harrisburg Railway. The line was later leased to the Reading Railroad and operated as the "Gettysburg Branch." Following the Reading's bankruptcy in 1971, it sold portions of its assets to the new-formed Conrail in 1976, however the Gettysburg branch was not included in the transfer. The branch was acquired by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, which then sold the line to a new company, the Blairsville & Indiana Railroad, in 1976. The latter company subsequently changed its name to Gettysburg Railroad.[1]

By 1995, Gettysburg Railroad had two steam engines in use (engine No. 1278 and engine No. 76); and two diesels (engine No. 39 and engine No. 70).[2] Between January and June 1995, all four were inspected by the Federal Railroad Administration, and deemed to be in good enough working order to remain in service.[2]

The Gettysburg Railroad was sold to Delaware Valley Railroad Company, a subsidiary of RailAmerica, in 1996. Delaware Valley created a new operating company, the Gettysburg Railway.[3]

On June 16, 1995, steam engine No. 1278 suffered a boiler backdraft explosion while hauling an excursion train, seriously injuring the engineer and both firemen, however, no passengers were injured.[4] The excursion train was delayed 45 minutes until a diesel could be connected to complete the train's trip.[4] The National Transportation Safety Board concluded that the explosion occurred because the crew had allowed the water level in the boiler to drop too low, causing the boiler's crown sheet to fail. The NTSB also determined that poor maintenance of the locomotive, as well as inadequate training, were contributing factors to the accident.[5] The accident kept the railroad from running excursion trips for approximately one week, before they were resumed using engine 76 with diesel engine assistance.[4]