Charlestown Elevated

Last updated
Charlestown Elevated
MBTA Main Line El on Charlestown Bridge in 1967.jpg
An Orange Line train on the Charlestown Bridge in 1967
Overview
Termini
Stations5
Service
SystemBERy Main Line / MBTA Orange Line
History
OpenedJune 10, 1901 [1]
ClosedApril 4, 1975 [1]
Technical
Number of tracks2
Track gauge 4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm)
Route map

Contents

BSicon lhSTRa@f.svg
BSicon uKBHFa.svg
Everett
BSicon dWASSERq.svg
BSicon uhKRZW.svg
BSicon dWASSERq.svg
BSicon uhBHF.svg
Sullivan Square
BSicon uhHST.svg
Thompson Square
BSicon uhHST.svg
City Square
BSicon dWASSERq.svg
BSicon uhKRZW.svg
BSicon dWASSERq.svg
BSicon uhABZgl+l.svg
BSicon uhCONTfq.svg
BSicon uhINT.svg
North Station
BSicon uhtSTRa.svg
BSicon uextKRW+l.svg
BSicon uetKRWgr.svg
Tremont Street subway
(1901–1908)
BSicon uextCONTf.svg
BSicon utSTR.svg
BSicon utCONTf@F.svg
Washington Street subway
(1908–1975)

The Charlestown Elevated was a segment of the MBTA Orange Line rapid transit line that ran from the Canal Street Incline in downtown Boston, Massachusetts through Charlestown to a terminal in Everett, Massachusetts. It opened in June 1901 and was replaced by the Haymarket North Extension in April 1975.

Route

The Charlestown Elevated began at the Canal Street Incline, just north of Haymarket Square in the Bulfinch Triangle section of downtown Boston, Massachusetts. It paralleled the Causeway Street Elevated north to North Station just south of Boston Garden. There it turned east along Causeway Street to Tower C, the split with the Atlantic Avenue Elevated, then north over the Charlestown Bridge. [2]

The Elevated turned slightly with an elevated station at City Square, then followed Main Street through Charlestown with a station at Thompson Square. Sullivan Square, the original terminal, was a grand arched brick building with multiple streetcar loops. The Sullivan Square Shops, one of the line's two maintenance facilities, was located just north of Sullivan Square. From there, the line turned northeast and crossed the Mystic River on a high bridge, then slowly descended to the ground-level Everett station.

History

Construction

A test train on the Canal Street Incline in April 1900 Canal Incline test train.jpg
A test train on the Canal Street Incline in April 1900

Building of the elevated began in 1899 and it opened for revenue service on June 10, 1901. [1] [3] Stations were located at North Union Station (soon renamed as North Station), City Square, and Sullivan Square, with a major maintenance facility at Sullivan Square. The Atlantic Avenue Elevated opened on August 22, 1901, connecting to the Charlestown Elevated east of North Station. [1] Thompson Square opened as an infill station between City Square and Sullivan Square on May 22, 1902. [1]

When the Causeway Street Elevated was built in 1912, a platform was built at North Station for Atlantic Avenue Elevated shuttle trains so they would not block the main tracks. [1] In 1917, the elevated was slated to be replaced with a more permanent subway line along the same Main Street routing, but this project was canceled by the US's entry into World War I. [4]

Everett extension

In the 1910s and 1920s, the Boston Elevated Railway (BERy) had plans to extend the Charlestown Elevated to Malden, and the southern portion of this extension, including a drawbridge over the Mystic River, was built in the late 1910s. Everett station was opened in an isolated industrial area just north of the river crossing on March 15, 1919. [1] Intended to be temporary and to be used only until full service to Malden was implemented, it was constructed of wood like a house rather than a permanent transit station. The light-duty construction style of this station was unique on the Elevated. [5] Due to opposition from Malden residents who preferred a tunnel due to the noise and vibration of the planned elevated line, the Malden extension was not built and Everett remained the terminus. [5]

The Atlantic Avenue Elevated operated only as a shuttle from South Station to the 1912-built North Station platform after 1928, and closed completely on September 30, 1938. [1] It was demolished in 1942 to provide steel for the war effort, though a short section was left from Tower C for laying over trains from the Charlestown Elevated.

Replacement and closure

An Orange Line train at Sullivan Square Shops in 1967 MBTA Sullivan Square Shop in 1967.jpg
An Orange Line train at Sullivan Square Shops in 1967

Unlike the Washington Street Elevated, which was built at the same time with a similar design, the Charlestown El was located very near Boston Harbor and the Mystic River tidal estuary, and was thus continually exposed to accelerated corrosion caused by salt air. The elevated was also unpopular with many local residents, as it was noisy and blocked out sunlight to Main Street. In 1965, a promised removal of the elevated structure was part of a compromise deal by Edward J. Logue to secure local support of a planned redevelopment project. [6]

A replacement elevated was thus infeasible, while a full-length replacement tunnel would have been too expensive. Instead, the Haymarket North Extension project consisted of a tunnel segment from Haymarket through a new underground stop at North Station, then under the Charles River to a portal near Bunker Hill Community College. From there the extension was built along the Haverhill Line commuter rail right of way, lowering land acquisition difficulties. The Charlestown Elevated was closed at the end of afternoon rush hour service on April 4, 1975, and the Haymarket North Extension opened on April 7. [1]

A $387,000 contract to demolish the elevated was issued in June 1975, and demolition began that August at City Square. [7] [8] By the end of 1975, only North Station and Sullivan Square stations were standing in their original locations; they were demolished in 1976. [9] [10] Thompson Square station was lowered to the ground for restaurant use, but burned in 1976 before conversion could take place. [11] [12] The footings of the Mystic River bridge, just west of the Route 99 (Alford Street) road bridge, were not removed and remain extant. The elevated supports also remained in the center span of the Charlestown Bridge until it was replaced in 2020. Tower C, which was located at the split between the Charlestown Elevated and the Atlantic Avenue Elevated at the southern end of the Charlestown Bridge, was moved to the Seashore Trolley Museum. [13]

Station listing

City/NeighbourhoodStationImageNotes
Boston North Station Southbound platform at North Station, December 1907.jpg Second-floor connection to Boston Garden [13]
Boston/Charlestown City Square City Square station, March 1901.jpg
Thompson Square Thompson Square Station.jpg
Sullivan Square Sullivan Square El 1921.jpg Replaced in 1975 by modern ground-level station
Everett Everett Everett (Main Line Elevated) station, 1918.jpg Terminus

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charlestown, Boston</span> Neighborhood of Boston in Massachusetts, United States

Charlestown is the oldest neighborhood in Boston, Massachusetts, in the United States. Also called Mishawum by the Massachusett, it is located on a peninsula north of the Charles River, across from downtown Boston, and also adjoins the Mystic River and Boston Harbor waterways. Charlestown was laid out in 1629 by engineer Thomas Graves, one of its earliest settlers, during the reign of Charles I of England. It was originally a separate town and the first capital of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orange Line (MBTA)</span> Rapid transit line in Greater Boston

The Orange Line is a rapid transit line operated by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) as part of the MBTA subway system. The line runs south on the surface from Oak Grove station in Malden, Massachusetts through Malden and Medford, paralleling the Haverhill Line, then crosses the Mystic River on a bridge into Somerville, then into Charlestown. It passes under the Charles River and runs through Downtown Boston in the Washington Street Tunnel. The line returns to the surface in the South End, then follows the Southwest Corridor southwest in a cut through Roxbury and Jamaica Plain to Forest Hills station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haymarket station (MBTA)</span> Subway station in Boston, Massachusetts, US

Haymarket station is an underground Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) rapid transit station located at Haymarket Square in Boston, Massachusetts. It is a transfer station between the Green Line and Orange Line of the MBTA subway system, as well as a terminal for MBTA bus routes serving northern and northeastern suburbs. The two lines run parallel to each other through the station, with two side platforms for the Orange Line and a single island platform for the Green Line. The station is fully accessible.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wellington station (MBTA)</span> Rapid transit station in Medford, Massachusetts, US

Wellington station is a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Orange Line rapid transit station in Medford, Massachusetts, near the border of Everett. It is located on the Revere Beach Parkway, slightly east of its intersection with Route 28. Wellington functions as a park and ride with more than 1,300 spaces, and a bus hub with 10 routes terminating at the station. The Station Landing development, connected to the station by an overhead walkway, includes residential and retail buildings and additional parking. Wellington Carhouse, the primary repair and maintenance facility for the Orange Line, is located adjacent to the station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lechmere station</span> Light rail station in Cambridge, Massachusetts, US

Lechmere station is a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Green Line light rail station in Lechmere Square in East Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is located on the east side of Monsignor O'Brien Highway near First Street, adjacent to the NorthPoint development. The accessible elevated station has a single island platform, with headhouses at both ends. It opened on March 21, 2022, as part of the Green Line Extension (GLX). Lechmere station is served by Green Line D branch and E branch service.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malden Center station</span> Transit station in Malden, Massachusetts, US

Malden Center station is a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) intermodal transit station in Malden, Massachusetts. Located on an elevated grade above Pleasant Street in downtown Malden, it serves the rapid transit Orange Line and the MBTA Commuter Rail Haverhill Line. The station has one island platform for the two Orange Line tracks and a single side platform for the single commuter rail track. Two busways are used by 13 MBTA bus routes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atlantic Avenue Elevated</span> Former elevated railway in Boston, Massachusetts, US

The Atlantic Avenue Elevated was an elevated railway around the east side of Downtown Boston, Massachusetts, providing a second route for the Boston Elevated Railway's Main Line Elevated around the Washington Street tunnel. It was in use from 1901 to 1938, when it was closed due to low ridership, later being demolished.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway</span>

The Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway was a streetcar and later bus company in eastern Massachusetts, serving northern and southern suburbs of Boston, Massachusetts. Its precursor company was the Bay State Street Railway, which it absorbed in 1919. It was acquired by Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, which still runs some of its routes, in 1968.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sullivan Square station</span> Rapid transit station in Boston, Massachusetts, US

Sullivan Square station is a rapid transit station on the MBTA subway Orange Line, located adjacent to Sullivan Square in the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. It is a major transfer point for MBTA bus service, with 13 routes using a two-level busway. The station has two island platforms serving the two active Orange Line tracks plus an unused third track. The Haverhill Line and Newburyport/Rockport Line pass through the station on separate tracks but do not stop.

The Canal Street incline was a ramp connecting two transit tunnels in Boston with surface and elevated lines. It was located in the Bulfinch Triangle between North Station and Haymarket Square in two blocks bounded by Canal Street to the west, Causeway Street to the north, Haverhill Street to the east, and Market Street to the south. The incline was the north end of the Tremont Street subway and the Washington Street Tunnel. Built in 1898, it remained in use until 2004 when the last connecting line was moved underground.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Community College station</span> Rapid transit station in Charlestown, Massachusetts, US

Community College station is a rapid transit station on the MBTA Orange Line in Boston, Massachusetts. It is located in the Charlestown neighborhood off Austin Street near New Rutherford Avenue (MA-99), under the double-decked elevated structure carrying Interstate 93 to the Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge. The station is named for the adjacent Bunker Hill Community College. The station opened in April 1975, replacing the City Square and Thompson Square stations of the Charlestown Elevated. It was made accessible around 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Washington Street Elevated</span> Former elevated railroad in Boston, Massachusetts

The Washington Street Elevated was an elevated segment of Boston's Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority subway system, comprising the southern stretch of the Orange Line. It ran from Chinatown through the South End and Roxbury, ending in Forest Hills in Jamaica Plain, Boston.

The Haymarket North Extension is a section of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's rapid transit Orange Line which currently constitutes the northern section of the line. It runs from North Station through an underground crossing of the Charles River, then along the Haverhill Line right-of-way to Oak Grove station in Malden, Massachusetts. Built to replace the Charlestown Elevated and originally intended to be extended as far as Reading, it opened in stages between 1975 and 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Massachusetts Route 99</span> North-south state highway in Massachusetts, US

Route 99 is a 6.67-mile-long (10.73 km) north–south state highway in metropolitan Boston, leading from the Boston neighborhood of Charlestown through the northern suburbs of Everett, Malden, and Melrose, and terminating in Saugus at U.S. Route 1 (US 1).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Causeway Street elevated</span>

The Causeway Street elevated was an elevated section of the MBTA Green Line light rail system in Boston, located in the area near North Station. It was in operation from 1912 until 2004, when it was replaced with a new tunnel and underground station on a slightly different alignment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charlestown Bridge</span> Bridge in Boston, Massachusetts, USA

The Charlestown Bridge, officially named the North Washington Street Bridge, is located in Boston and spans the Charles River. As the river's easternmost crossing, the bridge connects the neighborhoods of Charlestown and the North End. Completed in 1900 and given its current official name in 1910, the bridge carries a portion of the Freedom Trail linking to the USS Constitution and Bunker Hill. To the north of the bridge, Route 99 begins and the street becomes New Rutherford Avenue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sullivan Square</span>

Sullivan Square is a traffic circle located at the north end of the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. It is named after James Sullivan, an early 19th-century Governor of Massachusetts. Sullivan Square station on the MBTA Orange Line is located just west of the square.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">City Square station</span> Former rapid transit station in Boston, Massachusetts, US

City Square station was an elevated rapid transit station located at City Square in the Charlestown section of Boston, Massachusetts. It was part of the Charlestown Elevated, which was open from 1901 to 1975.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Everett station (MBTA)</span> Boston MBTA former subway station

Everett was a rapid transit station in Everett, Massachusetts. It served the MBTA's Orange Line. It opened in 1919 as an extension of the Charlestown Elevated, and served as its northern terminus until the Elevated was closed and demolished in 1975, when it was replaced by the Haymarket North Extension.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Station (subway)</span> Rapid transit station in Boston, Massachusetts, US

North Station is an underground MBTA subway station in Boston, Massachusetts. Served by the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA) Green Line and Orange Line, it is connected to the North Station surface terminal used by MBTA Commuter Rail and Amtrak. The station is fully accessible.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Belcher, Jonathan (27 June 2015). "Changes to Transit Service in the MBTA district 1964-2015" (PDF). NETransit. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
  2. Chasson, George Jr. (1987). Lonto, Arthur J. (ed.). "Boston's Main Line El: The Formative Years 1879-1908". Headlights. Electric Railroader's Association. 49.
  3. "Charlestown Postcards". MIT. Retrieved 25 December 2011.
  4. Stone, Kenneth (21 March 2011). "What if the El Came Down in 1917?". Charlestown Patch. Retrieved 12 May 2013.
  5. 1 2 Cheney, Frank; Sammarco, Anthony Mitchell (2000). When Boston Rode the EL. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN   978-0-7385-0462-9 . Retrieved 26 May 2015.
  6. Kennedy, Lawrence W. (1992). Planning the City Upon a Hill: Boston since 1630 . University of Massachusetts. p.  188. ISBN   0870237802.
  7. "$387,000 pact OK'd to demolish 'el'". Boston Globe. June 11, 1975. p. 70 via Newspapers.com.
  8. Carr, Robert B. (August 4, 1975). "End of 'El' begins tonight in Charlestown". Boston Globe. pp. 1, 6 via Newspapers.com.
  9. Eleventh Annual Report of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. 1977. p. 12 via Internet Archive.
  10. "Charlestown El is almost entirely gone". Boston Globe. February 29, 1976. p. 7 via Newspapers.com.
  11. Giordano, Kathleen Whelan (July 26, 2011). "The Removal of the "El"". Charlestown Patch. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
  12. "Fire destroys converted train station". Berkshire Eagle. 21 April 1975. p. 17 via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  13. 1 2 "Main Line Elevated Photos". Celebrate Boston. Retrieved 29 December 2011.
Template:Attached KML/Charlestown Elevated
KML is from Wikidata