Heritage meets history at Johnsonville, New York as the Norfolk Southern Nickel Plate Heritage ES44AC 8100 passes the former Boston & Maine Johnsonville Tower. The tower once stood proud to protect the B&M mainline (between East Deerfield, MA and Mechanicville, NY) and the 'Passenger Main' which branched off as the Troy Branch to Troy, New York. Freight and passenger trains making connections to the New York Central Railroad over the Troy Branch frequently used the services of the Johnsonville Tower, which was built in 1931 as part of the B&M’s initial Centralized Traffic Control (CTC). The tower was manned until retirement in 1962 and was later used for storage until the mid-1970's when it was completely abandoned.
Oh the stories these special buildings could tell. Originally the brains of the rails they monitored, working to insure effecient rail service for our nation! A tribute!
