Railroad history hike

Weather permitting — the rail trail is not snow-shoveled — we’ll walk from south to north, tracing the route of the former railroad, built in 1869 to connect the Cheney silk mills to the main rail line in the North End. At 2.5 miles, it was the shortest private freight-and-passenger railroad in the United States. We will see the Town of Manchester improvements at the Park Street bridge and trestle over Center Street. Some of the hike will be along roads. About three miles round trip. Extreme weather cancels. No dogs, please. FREE. 1900 photo at right shows the depot of the South Manchester Railroad, located at that time just to the east of Cheney Hall. The depot was moved farther north in 1910, and is no longer in existence.
To enjoy the trail on your own, here’s a copy of this railroad map.