Kingston, New York railroad stations

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There were four stations built to serve the city of Kingston, New York. The first station was known as "Higginsville Station" built by the Rondout & Oswego railroad company (later known as the Ulster & Delaware (U&D)). The second station was served by three different railroads, all of which eventually became part of the New York Central railroad company. The third station, known as "Fair Street Station", replaced the Higginsville Station in 1882. The fourth station was for the New York, Ontario and Western Railway.

Contents

Higginsville station

Located near MP 4.4 on the U&D at the time of its construction in about 1869, Higginsville was the first station location for Kingston. It was situated just west of the current Washington Avenue. The Rondout & Oswego was Kingston's only railroad at the time.

Union Station

The Kingston Union Station KingstonStation.jpg
The Kingston Union Station

The next railroad to serve Kingston was the broad-gauge (6 ft) Wallkill Valley Railroad, an affiliate of the Erie system. Following soon afterward was the West Shore Railroad, which quickly bought up the Wallkill Valley. In 1883, at the junction of the West Shore Railroad, Wallkill Valley Railroad and U&D, Kingston Station, also known as "Union Station", was built by the West Shore Railroad. Operating costs were shared by New York Central and the U&D, which then discontinued use of the Fair Street Station. Passenger service on the Wallkill Valley RR ended in 1937.

There was also a nearby station for the Colonial City trolley line under the West Shore Railroad tracks.

Kingston Station, MP 2.8, became one of the busiest stations serving the U&D. The U&D went along the north side of the station while the Wallkill and West Shore ran in front (east) of it.

In 1885, the West Shore became a part of the NYC. On February 1, 1932, the U&D ceased to exist and became the Catskill Mountain Branch of the NYC; Kingston Station became a NYC station. In its latter years (the early 1950's), one morning train a day (except Sundays) ran on the route from Kingston to Oneonta and one afternoon train in the east-bound direction ran back to Kingston. Passenger service on the old U&D route ended on March 31, 1954. [1] [2]

NYC West Shore line service in the latter 1950s dwindled to one Kingston-Weehawken trip a day in each direction and one full-length Albany-Kingston-Weehawken trip a day in each direction; [3] this last passenger service to Kingston ended in 1958. [4] The station was then abandoned. It had deteriorated so badly that it was torn down in the 1960s, although some local groups tried to save it.

Fair Street station

Located near MP 4.0 on the U&D at the time of its construction in 1882, Fair Street Station was near the central business district of Kingston. The change from Higginsville to Fair Street was the result of an agreement made in 1881 between Thomas Cornell, as president of the railroad company, and a committee of citizens. Fair Street station closed in 1898.

New York, Ontario & Western station

In 1902, the New York, Ontario and Western (O&W) constructed a branch from Summitville to Kingston, and built a station west and slightly north of the site of the U&D's early Fair Street Station. Passenger service had already been terminated by 1950. [5] This station survived until the railroad was shut down on March 30,1957. The station was torn down in the 1960s.

Catskill Mountain Railroad station

The Catskill Mountain Railroad, which leases the former Ulster and Delaware Railroad in Ulster County, New York started a special event shuttle in Kingston on December 6, 2008. A small ticket office and loading platform was placed just east of Westbrook Lane, MP 3.78. This ticket office is known as Westbrook Station. Its location is about 14 mile east of the former U&D Fair Street Station.

See also

Related Research Articles

The Ulster and Delaware Railroad (U&D) was a railroad located in the state of New York. It was often advertised as "The Only All-Rail Route to the Catskill Mountains." At its greatest extent, the U&D extended 107 miles (172 km) from Kingston Point on the Hudson River through the Catskill Mountains to its western terminus at Oneonta, passing through the counties of Ulster, Delaware, Schoharie and Otsego.

The West Shore Railroad was the final name of a railroad that ran from Weehawken, New Jersey, on the west bank of the Hudson River opposite New York City, north to Albany, New York, and then west to Buffalo. It was organized as a competitor to the New York Central and Hudson River Railroad, but was soon taken over by that company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rondout Creek</span> River in New York, United States

Rondout Creek is a 63.3-mile-long (101.9 km) tributary of the Hudson River in Ulster and Sullivan counties, New York, United States. It rises on Rocky Mountain in the eastern Catskills, flows south into Rondout Reservoir, part of New York City's water supply network, then into the valley between the Catskills and the Shawangunk Ridge, where it goes over High Falls and finally out to the Hudson at Kingston, receiving along the way the Wallkill River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New York, Ontario and Western Railway</span> Abandoned railroad in the northeast United States

The New York, Ontario and Western Railway, more commonly known as the O&W or NYO&W, was a regional railroad with origins in 1868, lasting until March 29, 1957. The last train ran from Norwich, New York to Middletown, New York, after which it was ordered liquidated by a U.S. bankruptcy judge. It was the first notable U.S. railroad with its mainline entirely abandoned.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catskill Mountain Railroad</span> Heritage tourist railroad in New York State, US

The Catskill Mountain Railroad is a heritage tourist railroad based in Kingston, New York, that began operations in 1982. The railroad leases a 4.7-mile portion of the former New York Central Railroad Catskill Mountain branch from Kingston to Stony Hollow, New York. The tracks are owned by Ulster County, New York, which bought them in 1979 from the bankruptcy estate of the Penn Central Railroad. The railroad's current permit with Ulster County expires on December 31, 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phoenicia station</span>

Phoenicia station is a repurposed train station located on High Street just south of Phoenicia, New York, United States. It is a frame building that opened in 1899.

Pine Hill station, MP 39.7 on the Ulster and Delaware Railroad (U&D), served the village of Pine Hill, New York. It was constructed on the slope of Belle Ayr Mountain 100 feet above the village along the steep grade running from Big Indian to the summit at Grand Hotel station. The famous double horseshoe curves on the U&D were located just west of the station.

The Arkville station, MP 48.1 on the Ulster and Delaware Railroad (U&D), and MP 37.52 on the Delaware and Northern Railroad (D&N), was another busy station, as this served as a junction between the two railroads. This station bore a strong resemblance to the Grand Hotel station and the Pine Hill station, which both looked like longer versions of the Mount Pleasant station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wallkill Valley Railroad</span> Railroad in New York State (1866–1977)

The Wallkill Valley Railroad is a defunct railroad which once operated in Ulster and Orange counties in upstate New York. Its corridor was from Kingston in the north to Montgomery in the south, with a leased extension to Campbell Hall. It crossed both the Wallkill River and Rondout Creek.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Halcottville station</span>

Halcottville station, MP 53.0 on the Ulster and Delaware Railroad (U&D), served the hamlet of Halcottville. On February 1, 1932, the U&D became the Catskill Mountain Branch of the New York Central Railroad. In addition to the station, the U&D constructed a large ice-house here and stored ice from Lake Wawaka. A tiny steamboat, also named Wawaka, plied the lake during the summer months drawing visitors from up and down the line who rode the boat and picnicked on the shores of Lake Wawaka. Halcottville boasted a hotel, two creameries, an early electric light plant, several stores, a post office, dance hall, school, and several churches. There were also numerous boarding houses in the area.

Roxbury station is a disused train station on the former Ulster and Delaware Railroad / West Shore "Catskill Mountain Branch" in the hamlet of Roxbury, New York. The station is a contributing property to the Ulster and Delaware Railroad Depot and Mill Complex, a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places.

Grand Gorge station, MP 65.5 on the Ulster and Delaware Railroad (U&D), originally known as Moresville, is a train station that had more freight service than passenger service. Its main business was the freight coming from the local farms and dairy products from the Decker-Slawson Creamery, which later became the Sheffield Farms Creamery. It also served the nearby community of Prattsville.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haines Falls station</span>

Haines Falls is an abandoned train station in Haines Falls, New York. It was owned by the Ulster and Delaware Railroad. The abandoned station was restored in 1999 and is one of two surviving U&D branch stations. It is now the headquarters of the Mountain Top Historical Society. It is also the start of the Kaaterskill Rail Trail, a scenic hiking trail along the former railway.

The Delaware and Ulster Railroad (DURR) is a heritage railroad based in Arkville, New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ulster & Delaware Railroad Historical Society</span>

The Ulster & Delaware Railroad Historical Society is a chapter of the National Railway Historical Society (NRHS). It focuses on the history of the railroads and related social, economic, and cultural institutions of the Catskill and Hudson Valley regions. That history, which began with the charter of the Catskill & Ithaca Railroad in 1828, encompasses numerous proposed and built railroads and trolley lines within Ulster, Delaware, Greene, Schoharie, Albany and Otsego counties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Cornell (politician)</span> American politician

Thomas C. Cornell was an American politician and businessman. During the American Civil War, he was commissioned as a major in the New York Militia. He served two terms in Congress running on the Republican Party line, first from 1867 to 1869, and again from 1881 to 1883.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rondout–West Strand Historic District</span> Historic district in New York, United States

The Rondout–West Strand Historic District is located on the shore of Rondout Creek along the southern boundary of the city of Kingston, New York, United States. Formerly Rondout, New York, it is bounded by the creek, Broadway, Hone, Ravine and McEntee streets, an area of 570 acres (2.3 km²) containing 259 buildings, most dating to the 19th century. US 9W and the John T. Loughran Bridge are immediately to the east; the Kingston-Port Ewen Suspension Bridge crosses the creek to the west. The neighborhood is often referred to locally by either of the two names.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weehawken Terminal</span> Former intermodal terminal in Weehawken, New Jersey

Weehawken Terminal was the waterfront intermodal terminal on the North River in Weehawken, New Jersey for the New York Central Railroad's West Shore Railroad division, whose route traveled along the west shore of the Hudson River. It opened in 1884 and closed in 1959. The complex contained five ferry slips, sixteen passenger train tracks, car float facilities, and extensive yards. The facility was also used by the New York, Ontario and Western Railway. The terminal was one of five passenger railroad terminals that lined the Hudson Waterfront during the 19th and 20th centuries; the others were located at Hoboken, Pavonia, Exchange Place and Communipaw, with Hoboken being the only one still in use.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingston, New York</span> County seat of Ulster County, New York, US

Kingston is the only city in, and the county seat of, Ulster County, New York, United States. It is 91 miles (146 km) north of New York City and 59 miles (95 km) south of Albany. The city's metropolitan area is grouped with the New York metropolitan area around Manhattan by the United States Census Bureau. The population was 24,069 at the 2020 United States Census.

References

  1. 'Official Guide of the Railways,' January 1950, New York Central section, Table 79
  2. 'Official Guide of the Railways,' December 1954, New York Central section, Table 96 (freight only)
  3. 'Official Guide of the Railways,' December 1957, New York Central section, Table 80
  4. "Comments On The West Shore from James Knecht". Nyc.railfan.net. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  5. 'Official Guide of the Railways,' January 1950, New York, Ontario and Western section
Preceding station New York Central Railroad Following station
Albany West Shore Railroad
Main Line
Milton
toward Weehawken
Lake Katrine Port Ewen
toward Weehawken
Stony Hollow
toward Oneonta
Catskill Mountain Branch Rondout
Terminus Wallkill Valley Branch Whiteport
toward Montgomery