Bangor and Aroostook Railroad
The Bangor and Aroostook Railroad was a United States railroad company that brought rail service to Aroostook County in northern Maine. Brightly-painted BAR boxcars attracted national attention in the 1950s. First-generation diesel locomotives operated on BAR until they were museum pieces. The economic downturn of the 1980s, coupled with the departure of heavy industry from northern Maine, forced the railroad to seek a buyer and end operations in 2003. It was succeeded by the Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway.
The railroad's Aroostook Flyer passenger train, c. 1950s
Image: Bangor Aroostook Logo 1918
Potatoes were important enough to the railroad that men were hired to tend to them during shipment. This worker's pass entitled him to a trip back to his hometown.
BAR EMD BL2 No. 56 at Northern Maine Junction in 1970
Aroostook County is a county in the U.S. state of Maine along the Canada–United States border. As of the 2020 census, the population was 67,105. The county seat is Houlton, with offices in Caribou and Fort Kent.
Aroostook County Courthouse
Children gathering potatoes on a large farm in Aroostook County, 1940. Schools did not open until the potatoes were harvested. Photo by Jack Delano.
