B&ML Railroad plans summer excursions

UNITY – The Belfast & Moosehead Lake Railroad is back on track and poised for renewed summer excursions.

Reorganized as the Belfast & Moosehead Lake Railroad Preservation Society, a nonprofit corporation, the railroad will begin excursion runs June 17 from Unity to Burnham Junction.

Robert Lamontagne, the society’s president, said the trains will operate from Unity Station and offer excursions powered by the railroad’s classic steam and diesel locomotives.

“I’m excited,” Lamontagne said Thursday. “We’re really looking forward to this new season and I think we’ve come up with a great plan to preserve this railroad.”

Financial difficulties have hampered the railroad’s operations the past few years.

Besides being relegated to running a reduced schedule from Unity, the railroad had to abandon its passenger service from Belfast, where it had operated continually since 1867.

Although a line of tracks remains on the ground, the B&ML’s former Belfast rail yard is being converted into a marina and boat storage area.

Lamontagne credited the railroad’s revival to the Unity Foundation’s decision to donate all trains, equipment, real estate, buildings and other assets necessary to operate the attraction.

The foundation was established through the estates of Bert and Coral Clifford, who bought the railroad and moved it to Unity in the early 1990s. Clifford was a prominent mid-Maine businessman.

“I expect the Belfast & Moosehead Lake Railroad to have a positive and immediate impact on the local economy.” said Larry Sterrs, chairman and chief executive officer of the Unity Foundation, in a statement.

Lamontagne said the B&ML Preservation Society was formed by a group of business and community leaders that recognized the historical and local development value of the railroad. The purpose of the society is the restoration, preservation and operation of the historic short line, he said.

Lamontagne said running the railroad as a nonprofit would make it possible to attract financial support through grants and philanthropic foundations.

“With railroading it’s difficult to make ends meet. That’s part of the Achilles heel of running that type of operation,” Lamontagne acknowledged. “This will enable us to attract other sources of funding through sponsors or grants.”

Lamontagne said the society also plans to expand the operation by developing a museum at Unity Station.

He said extensive renovations are planned for the station. The museum will focus on education, preservation of railroad history, antique automobiles and other artifacts.

“We’re looking forward to the long-term development of the railroad,” he said. “I think the museum will be a great amenity for the state of Maine. There are not many railroads left, and we feel this will become a great destination. It will be educational as well as exciting.”

The society will be supported through ticket and group sales, memberships, corporate sponsorships, individual donations and other fundraising activities, he said. The opening date for train excursions and the museum will be June 17. An official grand opening will take place the weekend of July 15-16.

Additional information is available by contacting the society at BMLRRPS, P.O. Box 535, Unity 04988; by calling 207-948-5500; e-mailing info@unitytrainmuseum.org; or by visiting the Web site at www.unitytrainmuseum.org.