Buffalo and Erie Railroad

First Buffalo and Erie Rail Road

The Buffalo and Erie Rail Road was incorporated on April 14, 1832 with the authorization to build a railroad from Buffalo through Chautauqua County to the Pennsylvania state line.  Residents of the area purchased stock in the company and the line was surveyed in 1937, but the road was never built.

Second Buffalo and Erie Railroad

Residents of the area recognized the need for a railroad to connect Buffalo with Erie, Pennsylvania and points west.  The Buffalo and State Line Railroad was established to build from Buffalo to the New York - Pennsylvania state line while the Erie and Northeast Railroad built from Erie to the State line.  The two companies cooperated from the beginning, including initially building both railroads with a six-foot gauge and later agreeing to narrow their rails to standard gauge in 1853.  In 1853 the roads agreed to be operated as a single railroad under the name of the "Buffalo and Erie Railroad" with the net profit being divided based on the capital investment of each company. 

In 1857 the Buffalo and State Line Railroad purchased the Erie and Northeast Railroad but left the company in place and continue to operate the two companies jointly under the Buffalo and Erie Railroad name.  In 1867 the two companies formally merged to form the Buffalo and Erie Railroad.  In 1869 the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern purchased the Buffalo and Erie.

The two companies appeared to have operated under both the "Buffalo and Erie Railroad" and "Buffalo and State Line Railroad" names at the same time, as shown by these examples:

An unused stock certificate from "186_"

Note: There was also a Buffalo and Erie Railway, an interurban line between the two cities.

References