Narragansett Pier Railroad

Narragansett Pier Railroad

Narragansett Pier Railroad 11, a 2-6-0, in 1934. This locomotive has been preserved at the Everett Railroad
Overview
Headquarters	Peace Dale, Rhode Island
Founders	Rowland G. Hazard William Sprague IV
Reporting mark	NAP
Dates of operation	1876–1981
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge[1]
Electrification	Overhead trolley wire, 1902-1907 (Peace Dale to Narragansett Pier)
Length	8 miles (13 km)
No. of tracks	1

The Narragansett Pier Railroad (reporting mark NAP) was a railroad in southern Rhode Island, running eight miles (13 km) from West Kingston to Narragansett Pier. It was built by the Hazard family of Rhode Island to connect their textile mills in Peace Dale to the New York, Providence and Boston Railroad at Kingston Station as well as to ocean-going steamboats at Narragansett Pier. Upon opening in 1876, the railroad also proved crucial in the growth of Narragansett Pier into a major resort. Initially operated at a loss absorbed by the Hazards, by the 1890s the railroad became consistently profitable and handled a brisk passenger business along with freight and mail shipments. The Hazards also operated a connecting steamboat service to Newport.

The railroad's fortunes peaked around 1900; the burning of the Narragansett Pier Casino that year was a blow the resort town never fully recovered from. With competition from the newly-opened electric Sea View Railroad and automobiles alike, passenger numbers declined sharply and the Hazard family sought to exit the railroad business. The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad took control from the Hazards via a lease in 1911 through its streetcar subsidiary the Rhode Island Company, and the line was subsequently nationalized by the United States Railroad Administration (USRA) between 1917 and 1920. The Rhode Island Company collapsed in 1919, so the USRA returned the railroad to the Hazard family the following year.

With the Hazards back in control, the railroad adopted a number of reforms to stay competitive, including both railbus and road bus services along with a trucking business. After a financial crisis and temporary receivership in 1936 the railroad divested from non-rail operations; steam locomotives were retired in 1937 in favor of more economical gasoline power. The Hazards exited the railroad business for good by selling to the family trust of Textron founder Royal Little in 1946. Passenger service was abolished in 1952, after which a local lumber yard agreed to purchase the railroad to ensure its continued operation as a freight-only Class III railroad, though the line was cut back from Narragansett Pier to Wakefield. A succession of later owners attempted to both grow freight business and restore passenger operations with mixed success into the 1970s. Loss of freight business forced the railroad to shut down for good in 1981.

Most of the right-of-way has been converted to the William C. O'Neill Bike Path. Several railroad structures have been preserved, along with a steam locomotive that now operates at the Everett Railroad.