Waterville Railway Co When built in 1910, it claimed to be the shortest Common Carrier in the USA at 4 miles, end to end. Built with local capital, raised when the GN bypassed them.
Mansfield Branch of the GN Built to tap the Waterville Plateau in North Central Washington. Carried grain, freight and passengers. Last run in 1984, abandoned in 1985.
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=476348&nseq=1
BN 1792 and 1754 rev up after slowing to cross the Rock Island bridge over the Columbia River at Rock Island, WA, about 12 miles east of Wenatchee. The x-GN and x-NP GP9s have 40 empty 40 ft. boxcars in tow for a trip up the Palisades to grain elevators on the Mansfield branch. They will return with a similar number of loaded cars which will then move to Seattle for export. Boxcars carrying grain??? Yep, back in the day.
Something interesting about that bridge… When loads exceeded capacity, rather than build a completely new bridge, the GN decided to build the new bridge around the old one. You can see both in the photo.
More info about building that bridge here.
Steve Featherkile said:
Waterville Railway Co When built in 1910, it claimed to be the shortest Common Carrier in the USA at 4 miles, end to end. Built with local capital, raised when the GN bypassed them.
I have one to beat that! 
7/8 of a mile long, the Marion Carry Railroad, Adirondack mountains, NY state:
Said to be “The shortest standard gauge railroad in the USA”…although im not sure it counted as a “common carrier”
https://www.adirondackexplorer.org/wp-content/uploads/2007/07/The-Marion-Carry-Railroad.jpg
http://www.rare-books.com/adirondacks/real-photo-postcard-marion-river-carry-railroad-adirondacks
The locomotive and one of the cars is preserved at the Adirondack museum:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marion_River#/media/File:ADK_Museum_-_Marion_River_Carry_Railroad.jpg
scot
Evansville Western Railway The Evansville Western Railway in G-scale runs in conjunction with the Bluestone Southern Railroad… The actual EVWR railroad interchanges with CSX at the Howell Yard, in Evansville, Indiana, With the UP at Mount Vernon, illinois, and also with the BNSF in Woodlawn, Illinois. The EVWR shortline is an actual 124 mile run from the Howell yard, Evansville, Indiana to the end of the line, at Okawville, Illinois…
On the Bluestone Southern G-scale layout, the EVWR originates in Evansville and has trackage rights to/thru Bluefield where the EVWR starts on it’s own tracks, running thru Sparta, Woodlawn (interchanges with the BS), Nashville, Addieville, and end of the line at Okawville
I belong to the Raritan River Rail Road Historical Society. The RRRR ran from New Brunswick, New Jersey to South Amboy, 1888-1980. Passenger service was discontinued in 1937. The railroad was forcibly merged with Conrail in 1980. At the time it was the most profitable shortline per mile of track. So of course, buy it up, take it apart, and it never works again!
The two ends have been torn out, condos in New Brunswick, houses in South Amboy. The South Amboy connection used to be with the CNJ, PRR, and New York & Long Branch. The South Amboy shop area buildings burned down in 1980 (!?) and the area flooded during Hurricane Sandy so the area is totally unrecognizable. The few remaining industries are in East Brunswick, Sayreville, Milltown, and North Brunswick. The old swivel bridge is still in use near here in South River. If the one industry still using the railroad in North Brunswick should close, that will knock out North Brunswick and Milltown.
We are working hard to get the old Milltown Station moved onto County land so we can repair and save it. It is the only structure left from the Raritan River Rail Road.
Here’s my favorite short line and the one I most often model. The Choctaw Coal & Railroad Company (CC&R), also known as “the Choctaw Route.”
Choctaw Coal & Railroad Company (CC&R); initial length – 65 miles. Reorganized as Choctaw, Oklahoma & Gulf Railroad in 1884. Leased to the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railway in 1904 for 999 years. Reorganized as the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad in 1948. Liquidated in 1984.
Here is a link to a “start-to-finish” history of the line I researched a few years ago:
http://www.rhyman.org/articles/cog-railroad
Bob
Steve Featherkile said:
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=476348&nseq=1
BN 1792 and 1754 rev up after slowing to cross the Rock Island bridge over the Columbia River at Rock Island, WA, about 12 miles east of Wenatchee. The x-GN and x-NP GP9s have 40 empty 40 ft. boxcars in tow for a trip up the Palisades to grain elevators on the Mansfield branch. They will return with a similar number of loaded cars which will then move to Seattle for export. Boxcars carrying grain??? Yep, back in the day.
Something interesting about that bridge… When loads exceeded capacity, rather than build a completely new bridge, the GN decided to build the new bridge around the old one. You can see both in the photo.
More info about building that bridge here.
Steve I remember reading a build article on a bridge like that when I was a kid. It was in one of the HO model railroad magazines.