Maine Central Railroad

The Maine Central Railroad was a United States Class I railroad headquartered in Portland, Maine, formed in 1862 through the merger of two smaller railways and beginning operations that same year. The railroad served central and southern Maine along with connecting portions of New Hampshire, Vermont, New Brunswick and Quebec, forming one of the principal rail networks of northern New England. At its peak around 1917 the Maine Central operated more than 1,358 miles of track; by 1970 that network had contracted to about 921 miles as branch lines and secondary routes were abandoned in the face of competition from road transport. The company ceased independent operations in 1981, when it was purchased by Guilford Transportation Industries, which later became Pan Am Railways; Pan Am Railways was itself acquired by CSX Corporation in 2022, so the Maine Central's former lines remain part of the active national freight rail network today under a different operator.