Opening A New Line

Depends on what was needed there and other facilities on the line. Locomotives, cars and materiel used to construct the line would have wound up there. Building facilities for them was another question entirely.

The renowned Silverton Branch of the D&RG narrow gauge had few facilities at Silverton. Even the station was at the far end of town. Extensive facilities were built at Durango and Chama.

The East Broad Top shops and offices were located in Orbisonia / Rockhill Furnace in the middle of the main line south to Alvan and Robertsdale and north to an interchange with the Pennsy at Mt. Union.

The Strasburg Rail Road yard and engine facilities were located at Strasburg.

My favorite railroad, the Reading, had shops in Reading and smaller shops in St. Clair. Maintenance was also done in Bethlehem Engine Terminal and Rutherford (between Hershey and Harrisburg).

Green Street Enginehouse in Philly north of Reading Terminal at 12th & Market Streets assigned locomotives to trains to Jersey City Terminal, to branches fanning out to Philadelphia suburbs, to the Bethlehem Branch, and the Main Line to Reading, Pottsville and Shamokin. This was a remarkably compact facility because of limited space. Imagine compressing the Pennsy's Enola Yard by Rockville Bridge north of Harrisburg to an 0-27 Christmas layout and you've got it.

As anthracite traffic declined, the Reading used the Philadelphia, Harrisburg & Shippensburg Branch between Rutherford and Lurgan. From there, the "Dutch Line" joined owned by the Reading and the Western Maryland extended to Hagerstown. This line was nicknamed "The Alphabet Route" because cars from just about every Midwestern and Western carrier ran to and from the East. Rutherford Yard had two humps, one for easbound cars; the other, for westbound. Norfolk Southern has a huge intermodal yard there today, going 24/7.

I have seen photos of massive Western Maryland Potomac 4-8-4's at the Reading roundhouse in Rutherford. I suppose the Western Maryland worked n locomotives and cars at Hagerstown. That was a major junction.

Shops, roundhouses, turntables and engine facilities were huge investments. A lot of planning determined where they were built.

As locomotives and trains became bigger and faster, small facilities were consolidated into larger ones.