Middletown station (Erie Railroad)

Last updated
Middletown
Middletown NY Station LOC 121197pu.jpg
The Middletown station, seen trackside in 1971
General information
Location1119 Depot Street, Middletown, New York 10940
Coordinates 41°26′50″N74°25′12″W / 41.44722°N 74.42000°W / 41.44722; -74.42000
Owned by Erie Railroad (18431960)
Erie–Lackawanna Railroad (19601976)
Conrail (19761983)
Metro-North Railroad (1983)
Line(s)Erie Railroad Main Line (New York Division)
Middletown and Crawford Branch
Platforms1 side platforms
Tracks2 main line
Construction
Platform levels1
Other information
Station code2665 [1]
History
OpenedMay 26, 1843 [2]
ClosedApril 18, 1983 [3]
RebuiltAugust 15September 24, 1896 [4] [5]
Former services
Preceding station Erie Railroad Following station
Howells
toward Chicago
Main Line Main Street, Middletown
toward Jersey City
Circleville
toward Pine Bush
Middletown and Crawford BranchTerminus
Location
Middletown station (Erie Railroad)

Middletown was the main station along the Erie Railroad mainline in the city of Middletown, New York. Located on Depot Street, the station was first opened in 1843 with the construction of the New York, Lake Erie and Western Railroad, which had originally terminated at Goshen. The station was located along the New York Division, which stretched from Pavonia Terminal in Jersey City, New Jersey, to the Sparrowbush station just north of Port Jervis.

Contents

The building was opened in 1896 to replace one that had been in use since 1843 [6] [7] when the New York and Erie began service to the city. [8] The Romanesque Revival building was designed by George E. Archer, Chief Architect of the New York, Lake Erie and Western Railroad, later the Erie Railroad. [9] The station saw service for trains going from Chicago to Erie's terminal in Jersey City, and later, as part of Erie Lackawanna Railway, service to Hoboken Terminal. The last long distance train along this route was the Atlantic Express and Pacific Express in 1965. [10] The station also saw regular commuter service.

The building served as a railroad station until 1983, [6] when rail service was taken over by MTA's Metro-North Railroad. Service on the route of Erie's original Main Line was discontinued in favor of the Graham Line, an Erie-built freight line now used by Norfolk Southern and the Port Jervis Line and was replaced by the Middletown Metro-North station.

The station depot was renovated and restored, becoming the Thrall Library in 1995. [11]

See also

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Middletown is the largest city in Orange County, New York, United States. It lies in New York's Hudson Valley region, near the Wallkill River and the foothills of the Shawangunk Mountains. Middletown is situated between Port Jervis and Newburgh, New York. At the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 30,345, reflecting an increase of 2,259 from the 28,086 counted in the 2010 census. The ZIP Code is 10940. Middletown falls within the Kiryas Joel–Poughkeepsie–Newburgh Metropolitan Statistical Area, which belongs to the larger New York–Newark–Bridgeport, NY–NJ–CT–PA Combined Statistical Area.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suffern station</span> NJ Transit and Metro-North Railroad station

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Campbell Hall station</span> Metro-North Railroad station in New York

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Middletown–Town of Wallkill station</span> Metro-North Railroad station in New York

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tuxedo station</span> Metro-North Railroad station in New York

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Otisville station</span> Metro-North Railroad station in New York

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sloatsburg station</span> Metro-North Railroad station in New York

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Port Jervis station</span> Metro-North Railroad station in New York

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Port Jervis station (Erie Railroad)</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Graham Line</span> Portion of the former Erie Railroad in New York State

The Graham Line is the portion of the former Erie Railroad in New York State from Highland Mills to Guymard, constructed from 1906 to 1909 as a high-speed freight line. The Graham Line bypasses the original Erie Main Line through Monroe, Chester, Goshen and Middletown. Grade on the Graham Line was not to exceed 0.2% eastward or 0.6% westward, while the original Main Line built in the 1840s had grades up to 1.25%. There were three places where freight trains needed a helper on the old line and none on the new, but just west of the cutoff the grade up from Port Jervis to Guymard could not be improved, and remained unchanged as the only place in the area needing a helper. The sharpest curve on the old line was 7 degrees and on the new was 1 deg 30 min. The Graham Line has no grade crossings: a rarity on the Erie. The downside of the improved grade and curvature is that the Graham Line is seven miles longer than the original mainline. Maintaining the desired grade required two notable engineering features: the Moodna Viaduct and the Otisville Tunnel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George E. Archer</span> American architect

George Edward Archer was an American architect. He became Chief Architect of the New York, Lake Erie and Western Railroad, later the Erie Railroad, in 1886, where he was responsible for planning and supervising the construction of stations, docks, piers and other structures for the railroad between New York and Chicago. Several stations built in the late 19th century in New Jersey and Upstate New York are attributed to him.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Erie Railroad Depot (Rochester, New York)</span> Former train station in Rochester, New York

Erie Railroad Depot, Erie Railroad Station or Erie Depot was the terminal station for the Erie Railroad in Rochester, New York, designed by George E. Archer, the railroad's architect.

References

  1. "List of Station Names and Numbers". Jersey City, New Jersey: Erie Railroad. May 1, 1916. Retrieved May 25, 2013.
  2. "Now & Then Erie Railroad Station - Middletown". The Times Herald-Record. October 8, 2020. Retrieved September 13, 2021.
  3. "New Port Jervis Service - April 18, 1983". New York, New York: Metro-North Railroad. April 18, 1983. Archived from the original on July 10, 2011. Retrieved May 25, 2013.
  4. "Laying the Foundation for New Erie Depot". The Argus. Middletown, New York. August 15, 1896. p. 5. Retrieved September 13, 2021 via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  5. "With All Masonic Rights". The Argus. Middletown, New York. September 24, 1896. p. 5. Retrieved September 13, 2021 via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  6. 1 2 Patrick, Clifton (April 9, 2010). "Erie RR Station". Historical Marker Database. Retrieved May 5, 2013. 1st station used 1843-1896 This bldg, Romanesque style built 1896, George E. Archer, Architect. This RR station served passengers thru 1983
  7. "Erie Depot, Middletown, NY". Hagley Digital Archives . Retrieved May 5, 2013.
  8. "The Heritage Trail History". Orange Pathways. Retrieved May 9, 2013.
  9. Francis, Dennis Steadman (1979), Architects in practice, New York City, 1840-1900 (1979), Committee for the Preservation of Architectural Records, retrieved May 25, 2013
  10. 'Official Guide of the Railways,' June 1961, Table 3
  11. Chumard, Barbara C. (1996). "Middletown Thrall Library A historical study of a small city public library". www.thrall.org. pp. 48–49. Retrieved May 5, 2013.