Dimensions: 5.125" x 7.125"
Includes card and envelope
Made in the USA
Back of card:
The Island Line Trail The Railroad Causeway to the Champlain Islands from Colchester Point was built in 1901. It allowed train travel to points west of Lake Champlain without a ferry crossing by routing trains from Burlington up through the Lake Champlain Islands to a bridge at Rouses Point.
This rail line served the Burlington area throughout the first half of the 20th Century for both freight traffic and passengers. Competition from automobiles put an end to passenger service in the 1950s. Freight service continued until 1963 when the railroad finally went bankrupt.
The old rail line was abandoned and became overgrown with brush during the 1970s and 1980s. It was reclaimed by local bicycle enthusiasts in the early 1990s and renamed the Island Line Trail. The “heroic” story of the reclamation of the Causeway is recounted in Rick Sharp’s book: The Burlington Bike Path and Waterfront Park (2019) www.burlingtonbikepath.com. It is also mentioned in Peter Harnik’s definitive book on Rail Trails: From Rails To Trails (2021).
Drone photo by Burlington Segways, Inc., all rights reserved, 86 Main St., Burlington, Vermont 05401, (802) 489-5113. www.burlingtonsegways.com