The New Castle & Frenchtown Turnpike and Rail Road Company was incorporated on January 16, 1830, as a merger of the New Castle & French Town Turnpike & Rail Road Company (1829) and the New Castle Turnpike and Railroad Company. The predecessor companies had constructed a turnpike from New Castle, Del., to Frenchtown, Md., a traditional land portage route between the Delaware River and Chesapeake Bay. It also operated a connecting steamboat line. The new company constructed a railroad over the same route in 1831-1832 and abandoned the turnpike in 1833.
The Philadelphia, Wilmington & Baltimore Railroad Company completed an all-rail route between the two cities in 1838 and captured most of the company's business. The PW&B took over the NC&F by lease on January 1, 1843, and absorbed it by merger on May 15, 1877. The railroad between Rodney, Del., and Frenchtown was abandoned in 1859.
From the description of Minute book, 1830-1842 [microform]. (Hagley Museum & Library). WorldCat record id: 122458624
