Bellefonte and Snow-Shoe Rail Road Co. - 1859 dated Pennsylvania Railway Stock Certificate - Bellefonte and Snowshoe Railroad
Inv# RS2008 Stock
Stock of a slightly larger than normal size. Left side missing. VERY SCARCE!
The Bellefonte and Snow Shoe Railroad Company, chartered in 1855 and officially opening in 1859, was a vital coal-hauling lifeline. It transported high-quality bituminous coal from the Allegheny Mountains to the iron furnaces in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania. The approximately 20-mile line was an engineering marvel of its time, featuring a series of steep switchbacks that enabled trains to ascend 860 feet from the Bald Eagle Valley to the plateau near Snow Shoe. Beyond freight, the railroad played a crucial role in connecting isolated rural communities on the mountain-top to the rest of the state. This connectivity helped transform Snow Shoe into a thriving mining town and resort area.
The railroad operated independently for over two decades before being sold in 1881 to the Bald Eagle Valley Railroad, a subsidiary of the powerful Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR). The PRR rebranded the line as the “Snow Shoe Branch” and made significant improvements to it. The coal output from the line fueled industrial growth well into the 20th century. However, as the coal mines began to close during the Great Depression and trucks became the preferred method for shipping coal, traffic on the branch declined substantially. After a century of service, the branch was officially abandoned, and the tracks were removed between 1959 and 1960.
A stock certificate is issued by businesses, usually companies. A stock is part of the permanent finance of a business. Normally, they are never repaid, and the investor can recover his/her money only by selling to another investor. Most stocks, or also called shares, earn dividends, at the business's discretion, depending on how well it has traded. A stockholder or shareholder is a part-owner of the business that issued the stock certificates.
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