Albany and Hudson Electric Railway explained

The Albany & Hudson Electric Railway, or the Albany & Hudson Railway & Power Company, was a 37miles long electric railway in New York State.^[1] It operated from 1899 to 1929 between Hudson and Albany. It had stops in 14 villages and at an amusement park on the shore of Kinderhook Lake. The company was created in 1899 by merging three railways as well as several power companies.^[2] The railway companies involved were:

• , a street railway in Hudson
• , a steam railroad between Hudson and Niverville
• , an electric railway from Kinderhook and Hudson to Rensselaer and Albany

The line was completed and inaugurated in November 1900 as the first third-rail interurban line in the United States. Due to financial difficulties it was reorganized in 1902 as the Albany and Hudson Railroad (not Railway), and again in 1909 as the Albany Southern Railroad. In 1924, the line was taken over by Eastern New York Utilities Corp until being decommissioned in 1929.^[3]

Much of the route became a part of the Albany-Hudson Electric Trail, a section of the Empire State Trail,^{[4] [5] [6]} which opened at the end of 2020. Extended sections of the trail are off-road rail trail paths.

Notes and References

1. Web site: The Albany-Hudson Rail Line. NY.GOV website.
2. Web site: The Albany & Hudson & Kinderhook & Greenbush Railway Gas Electric Bridge Company. Hoxsie!. Carl. Johnson. 13 February 2016. 24 November 2022.
3. Web site: Michael . Cooney. Albany & Hudson Electric Railway. Upstate Earth. 21 April 2009 . 18 March 2018.
4. Web site: Albany-Hudson Electric Trail. Hudson River Valley Greenway. NYS Hudson River Valley Greenway. 3 October 2022.
5. News: Kenneth C.. Crowe. 2 August 2017. 27 December 2022. Albany Times-Union. Old Rensselaer-Hudson trolley line to be part of Empire State Trail.
6. Web site: TrailsBlog: Albany-Hudson Electric Trail, Part of the Empire State Trail. Erica. Schneider. Parks & Trails New York. 13 May 2021. 27 December 2022.