WHITE LABS

MP 1.25 - The siding was constructed between January 2 and 11, 1952, it was approximately 1,700-feet long. The switch stand was a Rancor #20B with connecting rod. The crew referred to the siding as "White Labs" or "White's Lead." The siding could hold twenty-five cars until White Labs put a fence with a gate up across the tracks. Afterwards, the track could hold twelve or fifteen cars. The train crew would utilize the long siding for temporary car storage and to organize their train. Cars for White Labs were spotted inside their building. There were two car spots inside the building. The siding was for industries located at 2000 Galloping Hill Road, which included: White Laboratories, Inc., Schering Corp., and Schering-Plough Corp.

White Laboratories, Inc. (1950-1957)
Schering Corp. (1957-1971)
Schering-Plough Corp. (1971-2009)
2000 Galloping Hill Road, Kenilworth.

Manufacturer of pharmaceuticals; unbound bags of corn syrup and petroleum jelly, outbound pharmaceuticals

White Laboratories, Inc. was founded in 1922 and was originally located in Newark, New Jersey. The company manufactured a variety of pharmaceuticals in pill and tablet form, as well as ointments. Its products included medicated gums, vitamin hormones, and antibiotic specialties.

Seeking room to expand, White acquired approximately 125 acres from the Kenilworth Realty Corporation at a reported price of $250 per acre. The new $3 million campus formally opened in June 1952. A railroad spur approximately 1,700 feet in length was constructed in January 1952 to serve the facility. Locals referred to the plant simply as “Whites” or “White Labs.” At its peak, the company employed hundreds of workers across three eight-hour shifts and was a major employer for area residents.

White received inbound carloads of bagged corn syrup in boxcars and petroleum jelly in two-dome silver GATX tank cars. Despite the considerable length of its siding, White was never a major carload shipper on the Rahway Valley Railroad, typically receiving only one car every two or three months. On occasion, the company ordered an insulated 50-foot boxcar to ship outbound pharmaceutical products.

The Rahway Valley made frequent use of White’s long siding to sort trains and temporarily store railcars. Crews could initially shove as many as twenty-five cars into the siding from the main line without difficulty. Later, however, White extended its fence line and installed a gate across the track, reducing capacity to approximately twelve to fifteen cars. When crews occasionally left the gate open, White would contact the railroad office to register a complaint.

Schering Corp. acquired White on April 1, 1957. In 1971, Schering merged with Plough, Inc0,. to form Schering-Plough Corp. Over time, the Kenilworth campus was significantly expanded with additional manufacturing facilities, parking lots, and office buildings. At some point, the siding was largely rerouted along a new alignment that bisected the main parking lot. Two tracks entered one of the buildings at the end of the spur.

Merck acquired Schering-Plough in 2009. The original White Laboratories building on Galloping Hill Road was demolished in 2019. In April 2020, Merck announced plans to consolidate operations at its Rahway, New Jersey location and close the Kenilworth campus. In February 2023, the company announced the sale of the 108-acre property to Onyx Equities, LLC, with operations to be wound down over the following years.

Cars for White Labs moved via CNJ, Aldene:

• 1968 - 5 carloads in

• 1969 - No business

• 1970 - 1 carload in

• 1971 - No business