Lifeline of the Valley: The Cumberland Valley Railroad

Lifeline of the Valley: The Cumberland Valley Railroad. Shippensburg Civil War Trail. The Cumberland Valley Railroad operated between Harrisburg and Virginia beginning in the 1830s, and during the Civil War it permitted the Union to move troops and supplies rapidly up and down the valley. The railroad's tracks ran down the center of Earl Street, also known as Railroad Street. Before Antietam, Secretary of War Edward M. Stanton ordered the railroad to transport a load of ammunition from Harrisburg to Hagerstown, "to be run through with the fastest possible speed...as General McClellan needs the ammunition to be used in the battle fought tomorrow." On September 16, 1862, that ammunition train rushed through Shippensburg, reaching its destination in record time. The railroad also provided the Union with important logistical support during the Confederate invasion of 1863. On June 19, Captain Boyd's 1st New York Cavalry detrained in Shippensburg and then continued south to delay the Confederate advance. The railroad sustained considerable damage during the Confederate invasion, including the destruction of its Scotland Bridge across the Conococheague Creek south of Shippensburg., Did you know? , According to local legend, the crew of the Cumberland Valley Railroad was so determined to get their load of ammunition to the Union forces in time for the Battle of Antietam that they threw slabs of bacon into the firebox to force the train's engine to burn hotter and run faster. [Photo caption reads] C.V.R.R.'s The Pioneer and coach c.1855, [Photo/illustration captions, left to right, read] , . Cumberland Valley Railroad's bridge across the Susquehanna in 1855, . C.V.R.R. on North Earl Street, c. 1900