In the 1860s there were two main railroad systems in Western New York: the Erie Railroad which ran across the Southern Tier, and the New York Central which ran along the northern end of the region. Many towns between the two lines wanted a railroad near them to decrease transportation costs, increase trade, and develop the local economy.
The Genesee Valley was no exception and in 1869 Owen Allen, a successful businessman from Mumford, gathered a group of business and civic leaders from the Genesee Valley and organized the Rochester & State Line Railroad. The railroad was granted a charter by the State of New York on October 6, 1869 to build from Rochester to the Pennsylvania state line through the valley of the Genesee River.
As with most railroads, there were many, sometimes competing, interests within the Rochester & State Line. The primary goal of the line was to bring coal from the Pennsylvania coal fields to Rochester. To gain the support of the communities along the line the company stressed that the railroad was focused on bringing their products to market more quickly and economically. Some of the Directors of the Rochester & State Line were also Directors of the New York Central and Hudson River Railroad and the New York Central may have been looking to connect to the Rochester & State Line to the Atlantic and Great Western in Salamanca to strike at the Erie Railroad.
The company commissioned a survey of the route. To save money the company used existing roadbeds wherever possible, such as that of the unbuilt Cattaraugus Railroad between Machias and Salamanca. Oliver Allen turned the first shovel of earth on August 21, 1872 in his hometown of Mumford and by the middle of 1873 most of the line had been graded.
The first section of rail was laid at Lincoln Park on October 7, 1873. By November the rail had reached Scottsville and by the end of the year had reached LeRoy. The first regular train on the line reached LeRoy on September 15, 1874.
Work was suspended in 1875 and 1876 due to lack of funds and by the end of 1876 the track had only been extended to Pearl Creek. The track reached Warsaw the following June.
A separate construction train started in Machias and began building from that point south to Salamanca and north to meet the track from Rochester. The crew working south from Machias reached Salamanca on January 28, 1878. On January 9, 1878 the tracks north from Machias and south from Rochester were joined in the town of Eagle. The 108 mile long Rochester & State Line railroad was opened for revenue service on May 16, 1878.
The company was not financially successful and went into receivership. On January 29, 1881 it was purchased by the Rochester and Pittsburgh Railroad and the line eventually became part of the the Buffalo, Rochester and Pittsburgh Railway.