Along the Valley Line: The History of the Connecticut Valley Railroad

The first book on the history of the Connecticut Valley Railroad

The Connecticut Valley Railroad once carried both passengers and freight along the west bank of the Connecticut River between Hartford and Old Saybrook. Completed in 1871, today the railroad is known throughout New England for the nostalgic steam-powered excursion trains that run on a portion of the line between Essex and Chester. Until now the history of this popular tourist attraction has been the stuff of local lore and legend. This book, written by railroad historian and former vice president and director of Valley Railroad, Max R. Miller, provides the first comprehensive history of the Connecticut Valley Railroad through maps, ephemera, and archival photographs of the trains, bridges, and scenery surrounding the line. Offering tales of train wrecks, ghost sightings, booms and busts, Along the Valley Line will be treasured by railroad enthusiasts and historians alike.

MAX R. MILLER is a historian of the Connecticut Valley Railroad and the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad and a collector of documents, photographs and memorabilia. He was born in Poughkeepsie, New York, in 1936 and moved to Connecticut as a teenager. Mr. Miller was in railroad construction and worked as a diesel machinist while serving 38 years in the U.S. Army, rising to the rank of Senior Railroad Sergeant in the Army Reserves. He worked for the Valley Railroad from the 1970s to the 1990s, serving as vice president and director of the line, and for Amtrak and Conrail in the 1970s. He currently lives in Higganum, Connecticut.