European and North American Railway Company Records

The collection contains records of the European and North American Railway Company, organized in Bangor, Maine, with track from Bangor to Vanceboro, Maine.

The European and North American Railway Company was chartered by the Maine legislature in 1850 to construct a railroad to an ice free harbor in New Brunswick or Nova Scotia in order to shorten ocean voyages between North America and Europe. The company was incorporated in 1853 with John A. Poor as president. Building plans languished for years but were revived in 1864 when funding was secured. The company received credit of $1,000,000 from the city of Bangor to build the line and was also granted rights to timber and land owned by the state of Maine on the Penobscot and St. John Rivers.

In 1864 the European and North American also acquired the rights, roadbed, right of way and all other property of the Penobscot Railroad Company. This railroad had been chartered in 1847 to build a railroad from Bangor to Milford but work had ceased by about 1858. The European and North American continued this work, and the line opened in 1871 in Maine. In 1872 the Maine and New Brunswick divisions were consolidated under one management with a mortgage created to cover all of the property. Financial difficulties led to a default on this mortgage in 1875, with dissolution of the legal association between the Maine and New Brunswick companies in 1876. In that year, the trustees of the Maine division took over its operation, with Hannibal Hamlin and William B. Hayford operating it for several years. In 1880, bondholders organized a new company with the same name, receiving stock in exchange for bonds and coupons in the amount of $2,000,000. In 1882 the line was leased to the Maine Central Railroad for 999 years; the Maine Central acquired it in 1955.