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The Jamestown, Westfield and Northwestern Railroad
The Jamestown, Chautauqua & Lake Erie Railroad, a steam line, was purchased by the Broadhead interests in 1913 and
converted to electricity in 1914.
This road hauled freight and passengers, also express and U.S. Mail. The road proceeded up the east side of the Lake from Jamestown to Westfield. The new owners purchased five
new 53 foot, 7 inch double ended cars from the Cincinnati Car Company. These cars were later painted a bright red with gold lettering with numbers 300 through 305. The next were two baggage cars, 306 and 307, along
with center cab work car number 308. In 1917 the Company purchased four 62 foot, 7 inch cars from the St. Louis Car Company. These cars were designed by George L. Maltby, Superintendent of the road.
The numbers
were 309 through 312, with the 312 built a bit more elaborately than the others with an observation platform and comfortable chairs. Car 309 was the most powerful and speediest of them all, she hit a switch engine
at the Boatlanding yard one night and never ran again, her powerful trucks were used to build freight engine Number 500.
Electrification
On
December 8, 1913 the Jamestown, Westfield & Northwestern Railroad took over the line and began electrifying the main line from Westfield to Jamestown. During the electrification project the company built a new
station about mile east of Mayville and abandoned their 1.2 miles of trackage rights of the Pennsylvania Railroad into the village. On August 20, 1914 the handsome interurban cars lettered with the slogan
"America's Scenic Route" began operating. Power for the line was purchased from the municipal power plant in Jamestown and the company had a permanent substation in Westfield and portable substations
in Greenhurst, Bemus Point and Mayville which converted the 11,500 volts AC to 650 volts DC.
When the line was first electrified, the investment in conversion equipment was reduced by utilizing the facilities of
the Chautauqua Traction Company, the interurban which ran along the west side of the lake and was also owned by the Broadhead family. Taking advantage of a Chautauqua Traction substation in Stow, the JW&NW ran
two lead-covered cables on the lake bottom from Stow to its tracks in Bemus on the opposite side of the lake. The system employed a double throw switch so that if a cable became grounded the current could be
reversed so it became the negative feeder and the line could continue to operate.
Passenger operations ended November 30, 1947 following the death of leading members of the Broadhead family.
The line began diesel powered freight service which continued until January 21, 1950.
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