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Connecticut Passenger Stations,
A
Look for yellow
highlights below that indicate revised or added material and check your prior notes and any earlier copies of
this page against last
update as noted above. Requests for clarification
of particular facts can be emailed to caboose@tylercitystation.info c/o
Bob, WebStationmaster.
Enlarge images by clicking on them. Further
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possible by hitting CTRL and +, with CTRL and - to shrink back
down. Number suffixes, e.g. NEW HAVEN1, arrange stations of that name in chronological
order.
The [>] symbol and capitalized names are 'SEE' references to other station
entries on Track 16.
Refer to the CT Stations home page for explanatory information, abbreviations,
and sources.
Go to Track 15 and download the CTTRAXMAP to locate the stations, ROWs and
POIs.
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ABINGTON
|
| Dave Peters Collection |
ABINGTON
was established as a stop when this line was opened in 1872 by the BH&E and we are not sure what structure, if any, served
as a depot here before this one was built in 1877 by the NY&NE. The railroad commissioners said in January that, though
services in this village were better than any other point between Willimantic and Putnam, there was a need for "suitable
facilities," including a station master and better accommodation of freight, here and elsewhere in the town of Pomfret.
By their next report, they said that "suitable passenger-station houses" had been built at ABINGTON, ELLIOTS and
POMFRET. This station stood at least until 1938, as indicated on the photo to the left, but was no longer standing in 2007.
Passenger service ended in 1955. [REFS: CRC24.1877.22; CRC25.1878.36 RAM1914.433;
K110; R33]
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AIR LINE JUNCTION
AIR LINE JUNCTION was probably established as a stop in 1873 when the NHM&W built to a junction with the
NY&NE, as seen on the 1892 topographic map and 1893 Hurd map. An accident was reported in 1886 wherein a NY&NE passenger train bumped the rear of an eastbound Air Line train that was standing at the station here "without any signal flag
on the rear end." Apparently, some kind of depot stood at this point west of Bridge St. The Air Line would use
NY&NE track for the last half mile into Willimantic until lessee NYNH&H built laid its own rail in the early 1890s.
Though not seen thus far on timetables, as many as 16 local trains per day reportedly shuttled workers to factories here on
the outskirts of the Thread City. In 1893, the railroad facilities here were upgraded and the complex was renamed COLUMBIA
JUNCTION, perhaps to distinguish it from AIR LINE JUNCTION at Cedar Hill in New Haven. The six-stall roundhouse
and 60-ft Armstrong turntable were put in at that time. In the 3/18/1924
shot, the station may either be the passenger car or the building
whose edge is seen to the right of the roundhouse. Today, this property
is the home of the Connecticut Eastern Railroad Museum [click here]. [REFS: NHER/06/30/1879/04; NHER/10/07/1886/04; HC/03/31/1893/06]
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ALLENS
ALLENS was a stop established by the
NY&NH in the town of Avon while it leased and operated the Canal line from 1848 to 1869. The railroad built a platform
here and, starting in 1850, halted the morning down train and the evening up train, as well as providing a flag and a lantern for passengers to signal trains at other times. The items were kept at an adjacent home since there was no station
building. The newly independent NH&N ceased stopping trains here on 8/1/1869 without the permission of the railroad commissioners.
On 8/15/1873 the Canal line received permission but, upon objections from the public, a superior court
judge issued a writ of mandamus to reestablish the station. The NH&N appealed to the state Supreme Court of Errors, which
reversed the lower court's order, saying that this stop had never been officially established, had never appeared on a
timetable, and had relied on AVON for ticketing. The largely reliable 1886 Cram map shows this stop under the larger word
'Hartford' some 14 years after it was discontinued. There is an interesting statement in the supreme court's opinion
that there were other stations like this "which were not so marked" on official schedules, a token acknowledgment
of the many stations we have documented but have never been seen on timetables. [REFS: RRC8.378; CRC21.1874.23;
41 Conn. 134]
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ALLERTON FARMS
|
| Dave Peters Collection |
|
| C. Dunn Collection |
ALLERTON FARMS. The NY&NE opened this line in 1881 as part of its extension from
Waterbury to the Hudson River. Although this station in the town of Naugatuck was near BRADLEYS, the arrow that Charlie
Dunn added to our map shows that was a separate stop, seen a bit farther west. The architect's
sketch [lower left] corresponds to the photo and shows that this stop began as OSBORNTOWN. The val
map [lower right] shows the arrangement of facilities here in 1915 with the station north of the track and on the east side
of what was then Osborntown, now Allerton, Rd. Reportedly begun as a flag stop [D135], possibly with just a platform, the
structure seen here was probably built ca. 1900. The plans do not look to us like ones drawn up by the NYNH&H, perhaps
indicating that this station, like some others, was privately funded. As early as 1904, timetables show this stop as ALLERTON
FARMS. George M. Allerton, a wealthy and highly regarded entrepreneur in Naugatuck's famed rubber industry, owned considerable
property in this area. We have yet to find the exact circumstance of the renaming, but our it could have been due either
to his influence, his financial support, or the wishes of locals to honor him.
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ALLINGS CROSSING
ALLINGS CROSSING. Also called ALLINGTOWN. This stop was established in Orange
along with BRADLEYS when the NH&D debuted in August, 1871 and both were eliminated when the station at TYLER CITY opened
midway between them in June, 1872. See also TCS 4.41.3. [REFS: NHJC/11/20/1871/02; NHDP/06/06/1872/04; RRM1876]
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ALLINGTOWN1 [> ALLINGS CROSSING]
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ALLINGTOWN2 [> WEST HAVEN2]
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ALLYNDALE [> EAST CANAAN]
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ALLYNS POINT1
ALLYNS POINT1. This stop was established in 1843, three years
after the N&W opened with Norwich its southern terminus. The new, warmer water steamboat dock here
was less prone to freezing in the winter than the NORWICH2 facility. It is a virtual certainty that a station or stations
stood here in the fifty or so years before the successor in our next entry was built, but we have no photo yet.
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ALLYNS
POINT2
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| Dave Peters Collection |
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| Copyright NHRHTA, Inc. |
ALLYNS POINT2. With the addition of the data sheet, we now know that
the station seen here was built in 1900, making it certain that there was an earlier structure that served for over 50 years.
This construction date coincides with the NYNH&H's opening of the Groton Extension in 1899 after the acquisition of
the N&W/NY&NE in 1898 and evidently was part of the improvements to the new property. The 1916 val photo shows the
rear side of this depot with double freight doors that match the ones on the track side, an aspect of the design of this economy-sized
salt-box station that we had not seen before.
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AMSTON [>TURNERVILLE]
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ANDOVER1
ANDOVER1. This was an original HP&F stop in 1849 and the location is shown on the 1857TC map.
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ANDOVER2
|
| Dave Peters Collection |
ANDOVER2 was built in 1881 to replace its predecessor. [REFS: CRC29.1882.34; NYNEAR6.1881.19]
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ANSONIA1
|
| Ansonia Library |
ANSONIA1 was built in 1849 by the NRR. The image is found on the 1875 Bailey bird's-eye
map at left. The rare, ca. 1870, photograph on the right shows the station complete with its sizable passenger shed. The shed
may have come down in 1871 to make room for the NH&D, whose track is seen in the Bailey image in
the foreground on filled land and trestle work along the bank of the Naugatuck River. This station was
actually in the town of Derby until 1889 when Ansonia evolved from a borough into independent town.
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ANSONIA2
|
| Dave Peters Collection |
|
| Ansonia Library |
ANSONIA2 was completed by the NRR in January of 1887 after years of
speculation about its debut. Architect Hill of Waterbury drew up the plans
which were accepted in May, 1886. The new freight depot, being built first, was reportedly going to serve travelers prior
to the opening of the new passenger structure that was going up on the site of the 40-year-old ANSONIA1 which was demolished. The new, steam-heated, 109x22-ft depot was to have a 66x20-ft waiting room and a ticket
office in the telegraph bay on the platform. The Southern pine interior was to be complemented by pressed brick and terra
cotta. Work began on the foundation in August. The railroad commissioners said the finished structure was of somewhat unique
design and cost $10,000. On April 1, 1887, the NYNH&H would inherit this brand new structure when it leased the NRR. [REFS: CRC34.1886.8; NHDP/05/13/1886/03;
NHDP/05/14/1886/03; NHER/08/17/1886/03]
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ANSONIA3
ANSONIA3, the structure seen at left in this postcard
view, was built in 1903 and was never used because the railroad decided that its sequestered location here was less than ideal
and because the high water table right on the river's edge caused basement flooding problems. It reportedly
stood unused for a decade before being taken down, though we would love to find a newspaper article verifying the actual date. ANSONIA2,
seen at center, stayed in service until the floods of 1955. It is somewhat amusing that what was probably the focus of
the card was a railroad station that never saw service. See Track 4C, MP 4.69, for more. [REFS: CRC51.1903.20]
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ANSONIA4
|
| Dodd Research Center, UConn |
ANSONIA4
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ARNOLDS
|
| Dave Peters Collection |
ARNOLDS
was established as a flag stop in the town of Haddam on opening day in 1871. With the newspaper reporting that the local populace
wanted a full station, CV Director Isaac Arnold undertook the construction himself and the depot seen here, the only one to
stand at this location, was accepted by the railroad late the next year. It was sold and dismantled, possibly in the 1930s.
[REFS: HDC/08/25/1871/02; DC/12/25/1872/03;
MM]
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AVON
|
| Dave Peters Collection |
AVON was built by the NY&NH while it was the lessee of the Canal line. According to the railroad commissioners, it was
"neatly and substantially rebuilt" in 1880, which we once thought meant it had been replaced. Happily, whatever
the modifications, it is the 1848 station that is still in use today [lower right] as a hair salon on Simsbury Rd. and its
architecture shows it true to others of the period like SIMSBURY1 and GRANBY. The image at top left is undated but the val
photo at top right was taken on 9/29/1916. The 1855HC map at lower left shows the original location on Rte. 44. [REFS: CRC28.1881.17; D10; R33]
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AVON OLD FARMS
|
| Leroy Roberts Collection |
AVON OLD
FARMS station was built as part of the famed boys' prep school founded by Theodate Pope Riddle, Connecticut's first
licensed female architect. She designed the campus buildings and the unique railroad station that was situated on the Canal line near the school entrance. The slate-roofed structure was the first building
to be constructed, and was finished in 1923. This photo on the left was taken in the 1980s after the station had been renovated
as a guest cottage. The one on the right was shot on 8/1/2010. Lord [p110] says this stop handled mostly mail and freight,
but it undoubtedly served students as well, much like SOUTH KENT [see S stations] did for the Kent School in the town of that
name. [REFS: HC/03/15/1921/15]
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AXLE SHOP [> MOUNT CARMEL1]
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