Rosendale Trestle
The Wallkill Valley Railway (WKVY) was established in 1866 as a result of the local interest in the Wallkill Valley region of New York to provide a means of transporting agricultural goods. The railway was completed from Montgomery to New Paltz by 1870, followed by the construction of an extension to Kingston, including the construction of a bridge over the Wallkill River in Springtown and the Rosendale Trestle over Rondout Creek and the Delaware & Hudson Canal.
The construction of the Rosendale Trestle was the most challenging due to the presence of quicksand during excavation. The trestle was finally completed in January 1872, and at the time, it had the highest span of any bridge in the nation, featuring seven wrought-iron deck Post trusses and two shorter wooden spans. A ceremony was held on April 6 to officially open the new Rosendale Trestle, attended by 5,000 people, with the line to Kingston opening in November of the same year.
In 1976, the WKVY underwent a series of reorganizations and mergers, finally falling under the control of Conrail. Conrail had considered using the Wallkill Valley Branch as part of a new route between the Northeast and Allentown, Pennsylvania, but this plan was abandoned due to substructure concerns with the Rosendale Trestle in 1977. The discovery of shifted piers supporting the bridge meant that repairs would have exceeded the line’s value, leading to the closure of the line from Walden north to Kingston that December, and its formal abandonment in 1982. However, the Rosendale Trestle was later repurposed for bungee jumping and was renovated in 2013 for the Wallkill Valley Rail Trail. Other sections of the former WKVY were also repurposed as the Walden-Wallkill Rail Trail and the Wallkill Valley Rail Trail.
➤ Check out more photos, a history and a map of the Wallkill Valley Railway at abandonedonline.net/location/wallkill-valley-railway/
➤ More information on the Rosendale Trestle: bridgestunnels.com/location/rosendale-trestle/
➤ More information on the Springtown Bridge: bridgestunnels.com/location/springtown-bridge/
