Take a trip back in time on the rolling hills and valleys of America’s most scenic short line railroad!

 For more information, please call: 717-746-4998

The Stewartstown Railroad, chartered in 1884, is one of the oldest, continuously running common-carrier railroad companies (STRT) in existence. It has providing freight and passenger service to southern York County, Pennsylvania, since 1885. Known as a “short-line” railroad, the Stewartstown Railroad operates over 7.4 miles of track which runs from Stewartstown, PA to an interchange in New Freedom, Pennsylvania with the former Northern-Central Railway (NCR).

The Stewartstown Railroad served mostly farmers and a handful of small manufacturing firms in its early years. Unlike many railroads of the past, the Stewartstown Railroad was able to survive the Great Depression and the shift of shipping from rail to truck that occurred in the late 1950’s as a result of improved roads and highways. This was made possible by switching from Steam Engines to Gas-powered locomotives. Despite a decline in business through the 1960’s, a small group of loyal supporters (many of whom held stock in the company) utilized the Stewartstown Railroad until 1972 when Hurricane Agnes struck.

While the Stewartstown Railroad remained largely unscathed, the connecting Northern Central Railway sustained major damage. The soon-to-be bankrupt Penn Central owned the NCR at the time and refused to repair the line. The USRA planners for the newly-formed CONRAIL (which assumed Penn Central’s rail lines) also refused to include the NCR as a branch line. This left the Stewartstown Railroad without a connection to the outside world.

Although it appeared that the Stewartstown Railroad was no longer going to be able to provide freight service, the company continued to maintain its Right-of-Way (ROW) and locomotives in preparation for future service. The Company’s efforts were rewarded when the PA Department of Transportation reopened the NCR once again giving the Stewartstown an outside connection. The Stewartstown Railroad assumed trackage rights in 1985 and ran trains on the NCRy until 1992. Passenger excursion trains continued on the Stewartstown’s trackage until 2004.



Today, with the tireless efforts and dedicated help from numerous volunteers, railroad enthusiasts, and the local community, the Stewartstown Railroad is back in passenger excursion service. Home to the venerable “Mighty-Mo”, a vintage 1943 Plymouth switcher locomotive, we offer various forms of train rides in some of the most pastoral scenery in the northeastern United States. Along the meandering hills and wistful forests of the Deer Creek valley, come join us on a remarkable journey to a place and time thought long forgotten. From our authentic cabooses, and our newly renovated passenger coach, we offer train rides for all occasions. We encourage you to visit, and welcome you to call or contact us for any questions on our rides. Please come visit and enjoy your ride!