Lehigh Trail

Lehigh Trail. . , Due to an unprecedented construction boom after World War II, Lehigh Portland Cement Company expanded its Allentown, Pennsylvania operation. To curtail the cement shortage they opened new plants across the United States, Bunnell, Florida being the location of their south east operation., In 1952, track was laid creating a rail spur from the cement plant just east of present day Colbert Lane, heading west tying into the Florida East Coast Railway in Bunnell. An average of one hundred and fifty rail cars of cement were transported daily. One lone stack remains today as a sentinel over the land where the plant once stood., The eastern end of the Lehigh Trail is located in what was once the switchyard for the cement plant. The switchyard was busy enough for the Florida East Coast Railroad to maintain a switch engine on the premises., After operating since 1952, labor disputes and economic uncertainty forced the Lehigh Cement Company’s plant and rail spur to close in 1965., The land for the Lehigh Greenway Rail Trail was purchased in 2001 by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Office of Greenways and Trail Program. The Lehigh Trail is a collaborative endeavor between Flagler County, the City of Palm Coast and the State of Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Office of Greenway and Trails., The 12’ wide asphalt trail winds through a natural ecosystem, coastal strand community, and urban terrain offering a safe, non- motorized means of travel between residential and public areas of the Cities of Bunnell, Palm Coast, and Flagler Beach., The 6.7 mile trail follows the abandoned rail spur that connected the Florida East Coast Railroad to the Lehigh Portland Cement Company., Construction of the Lehigh Greenway Rail Trail was completed in 2010 utilizing a combination of state and federal sources. Funding was provided by the Florida Department of Transportation, Florida Department of Environmental Protection, St. Johns River Water Management District and the Flagler County Board of Commissioners.