Rolling Through History: In the last rays of sunlight, freshly-painted MEC SD40-2 #614 leads ST Train XO-1 across State Route 67 and the Walloomsac River at Walloomsac, NY. The train is on the return leg of a round trip between Mechanicville, NY and North Bennington, VT to interchange with Vermont Railway. Ultimately, the train will return to Rotterdam Junction, where Pan Am Southern interchanges with CSX. Walloomsac is notable for being the location of the Revolutionary War Battle of Bennington. As British General John Burgoyne led his troops from Canada towards Albany in the summer of 1777, he sent a detachment of both British and Hessian soldiers to secure supplies at Bennington, Vermont. However, this detachment was headed-off by militia under American General John Stark here at Walloomsac. The British loss in the Battle of Bennington was one of many contributing factors to the American victory at the Battle of Saratoga, which is considered the turning point of the war.
