Former railroad system in Massachusetts and Rhode Island
This article is about the large railroad system in southeastern Massachusetts. For the earlier "Old Colony Railroad", see New Bedford and Taunton Railroad.
Map of Old Colony Railroad network, about 1893The Governor Bradford, an early OC locomotive built in 1845 by Hinkley & DruryMap of Old Colony and Fall River lines, 1846Old Colony & Fall River Rail Road seal from 1854 stock certificateThe Pilgrim, of the Fall River Line, operated by the Old Colony Railroad Company1870 Notice for Old Colony & Newport RailwayMartha's Vineyard RailroadShare of the Old Colony Railroad Company, issued April 27, 1883
The Old Colony Railroad (OC) was a major railroad system, mainly covering southeastern Massachusetts and parts of Rhode Island, which operated from 1845 to 1893. Old Colony trains ran from Boston to points such as Plymouth, Fall River, New Bedford, Newport, Providence, Fitchburg, Lowell and Cape Cod. For many years the Old Colony Railroad Company also operated steamboat and ferry lines, including those of the Fall River Line with express train service from Boston to its wharf in Fall River where passengers boarded luxury liners to New York City. The company also briefly operated a railroad line on Martha's Vineyard, as well as the freight-only Union Freight Railroad in Boston. The OC was named after the "Old Colony", the nickname for the Plymouth Colony.
From 1845 to 1893, the OC network grew extensively largely through a series of mergers and acquisitions with other established railroads, until it was itself acquired by the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad under lease agreement on March 1, 1893, for its entire 617-mile (993km) network.[2] After this date, all trains, lines, and stations became known as the "Old Colony Division" of the huge "New Haven" system. During this period, the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad enjoyed a virtual monopoly on all passenger and freight rail service in southern New England.
Passenger service on the New Haven's Old Colony Division ended in 1959, except for the main line between Boston and Providence, which continues to be used for passenger service by Amtrak and the MBTA. Since 1997, other former OC lines have been reopened to passenger service, including the MBTA's Old Colony Lines with service from Boston to Plymouth and Middleborough/Lakeville. In 2007, MBTA passenger service was restored on the Greenbush Line between Braintree and Greenbush Station in Scituate. The MBTA currently has plans to also restore passenger service to Fall River and New Bedford as part of the South Coast Rail project.
By the early 1840s, the city of Boston had six major rail lines connecting it with other places including Lowell, Maine, Fitchburg, and Salem to the north, Worcester to the west and Providence, Rhode Island to the southwest. The southeastern part of Massachusetts had yet to be served by a rail link to Boston.
On March 16, 1844, the Old Colony Railroad Corporation was formed to provide a rail connection between Boston and Plymouth. Construction of the line began in South Boston in June 1844 and the 36.8-mile (59.2km) line opened to Plymouth on November 10, 1845. The extension from South Boston to the newly completed Kneeland Street Station in Boston opened on June 19, 1847. Kneeland Street also served as the headquarters for the OC until the 1893 consolidation.
There had previously been an Old Colony Railroad formed in 1838 for a line between Taunton and New Bedford, but the name was changed to the New Bedford and Taunton Railroad in 1839 before service began in 1840. This line would later become part of OC in 1879.
John Sever of Kingston, Massachusetts, served as the first president of the Old Colony Railroad Corporation from 1844-1845. Nathan Carruth served as the second president of the corporation from 1845 to 1848. Carruth was a successful businessman and enthusiastic supporter of the expansion of railroads in Massachusetts and elsewhere in New England. With the opening of the Old Colony line through Dorchester in 1845, Carruth became actively involved in the development of the area.[5] He built an estate on the east side of Dorchester Avenue called Beechmont/Beaumont which would become one of the first railroad suburbs in America.[6]
All OC locomotives were named until 1884, after which they were simply numbered. Among the early engines were the Mayflower, Governor Carver, Governor Bradford, and Miles Standish. The new railroad company also built the Samoset Hotel near the end of its line in Plymouth.[7] In 1847, the OC completed a short 6.2-mile (10.0km) connector line from its main line at Whitman to the Fall River Railroad line at Bridgewater Junction. On April 1, 1849, OC signed a lease of the South Shore Railroad for a period of five years. By 1851, traffic on the line had increased enough to warrant the opening of a second track running between Boston and South Braintree.
Old Colony and Fall River Railroad (1854–1863)
The OC and Fall River Railroad merged with a joint stock vote on June 20, 1854, forming the Old Colony and Fall River Railroad Company,[8] which provided a two-pronged line from Boston to Plymouth and Boston to Fall River, splitting at South Braintree. Alexander Holmes from Kingston served as company president during this period, from 1854 to 1866.
The Fall River Railroad had been formed on August 8, 1845, with the consolidation of three companies; the Fall River Branch Railroad, the Randolph and Bridgewater Railroad and the Middleborough Railroad. The Fall River Railroad was led by Richard Borden, a prominent Fall River mill owner who wanted a direct route to Boston that did not require the use of the Boston and Providence Railroad lines. The line from South Braintree to Myricks in the town of Berkley opened on December 16, 1846, as an extension of the Fall River Branch Railroad – which had been completed in 1845.
On May 19, 1847, the first "boat train" left the OC's Kneeland Street Station in Boston bound for Fall River, where passengers would board a steamship for New York City. Over the years, the Old Colony Steamboat Express train would become the most famous line of the Old Colony Railroad, with the finest and most up-to-date engines, cars and attention to detail.
The Old Colony and Newport Railway was formed in July 1863 when the Old Colony and Fall River Railroad merged with the Newport and Fall River Railroad, which had been incorporated in 1846 to build a road from Newport, Rhode Island to the Massachusetts state line at Fall River. However, the road from Fall River to the Rhode Island state line was not authorized by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts until 1860. The newly formed and renamed Old Colony and Newport Railway Company completed the final section of the line from Fall River to Newport which finally opened for service on February 5, 1864.
In 1865, the Old Colony and Newport Railway Company acquired the Dighton and Somerset Railroad. It completed a new, more direct route between Fall River and Boston via South Braintree on September 24, 1866. Part of the new route was over the Easton Branch Railroad between Stoughton and North Easton. In 1871 the Old Colony purchased the Easton Branch.
A portion of the old Granite Railway line was acquired in 1870 and later extended to form a loop through West Quincy off the original Plymouth line. In 1872, the Old Colony & Newport Railway Corporation built the Shawmut Railroad as a connection between the Dorchester and Milton Branch and the main line to Boston.
Old Colony Railroad (1872–1893)
The Old Colony and Newport Railway merged with the Cape Cod Railroad on May 1, 1872, and the two companies were consolidated on October 1, forming a new Old Colony Railroad Company under the leadership of Onslow Stearns, who served as president of the company from 1866 to 1877.
The 1872 merger formed a system with three main branches; Boston to Plymouth, South Braintree to Fall River and Newport, and a third splitting from the Newport branch at Middleborough to Hyannis. At this point, the newly acquired lines became known as the Cape Cod Division, with a new superintendent's office located at Hyannis.
The Cape Cod Railroad Company had been established in 1846 as the Cape Cod Branch Railroad with a line off the Fall River Railroad from Middleborough to Sandwich opening in 1848. Among the proponents of the Cape Cod Branch Railroad was Richard Borden of Fall River, who saw the new line as an opportunity to bring more traffic and business through his hometown.[9]In 1853, the extension of the line to Hyannis was started, reaching West Barnstable on December 22, 1853. On February 22, 1854, the Cape Cod Branch Railroad was renamed the Cape Cod Railroad Company. In the spring of 1854, construction continued, with the railroad reaching Barnstable village on May 8, Yarmouth Port on May 19, and finally Hyannis on July 8, 1854. Connecting steamboat service to Nantucket commenced from Hyannis in late September and would continue until 1872, when the railroad branch to Woods Hole was opened.
The Cape Cod Central Railroad was incorporated in 1861 as a branch from the Cape Cod Railroad, running from Yarmouth east and northeast to Orleans, and opening in 1865. The Cape Cod Central was purchased by the Cape Cod Railroad April 21, 1868, and the two railroads were consolidated on July 28, 1868.
The newly formed Old Colony Railroad extended the line to Provincetown, at the very tip of Cape Cod, opening on July 23, 1873.
In 1874, Old Colony founded the Martha's Vineyard Railroad, built across nine miles (14.5km) on sand of the island of Martha's Vineyard, running from the Oak Bluffs steamer wharf to Mattakeeset Lodge in Katama, Edgartown. The locomotive Active (later renamed the South Beach) was the sole operating train. This branch existed until 1896.[10]
The Old Colony Railroad acquired the Middleborough and Taunton Railroad in 1874 and the South Shore Railroad in 1877, which it had once leased until 1854. A year later in 1878 it acquired the Duxbury and Cohasset Railroad which gave the Old Colony a connection with its original 1845 main line at Kingston. Beginning in 1874, the Old Colony operated the "South Shore, Duxbury and Cohasset and Plymouth Express" between Boston and Plymouth on this line.[11]
In 1875, the Old Colony Railroad began operating the Fall River, Warren and Providence Railroad, which had been formed in 1863 as a merger between the Warren and Fall River and Fall River and Warren Railroad Companies. The Old Colony would later acquire this line outright in 1892.
In 1879, the Old Colony Railroad greatly expanded its network into Central Massachusetts by leasing the Boston, Clinton, Fitchburg and New Bedford Railroad for 999 years, then purchasing it outright in 1883. The acquisition of this line provided important connections for the Old Colony, such as with the Boston and Providence Railroad at Mansfield, the Boston and Albany Railroad at South Framingham and the Fitchburg Railroad at Fitchburg, among others. This deal also gave the Old Colony Railroad direct access to the important industrial port of New Bedford. Upon this acquisition, the lines of the former Boston, Clinton and Fitchburg Railroad became known as the Old Colony's "Northern Division", with headquarters in Fitchburg, while the older OCRR lines became known as the "Central Division" with headquarters in Boston.
In 1882 the Old Colony Railroad signed a 99-year lease on a line between Fall River and New Bedford through the towns of Dartmouth and Westport owned by the Fall River Railroad (1874) – not to be confused with its 1846 namesake.
Several days later, on April 7, 1888 the OCRR signed a 99-year lease on the Boston and Providence Railroad, one of New England's earliest railroads, which had been chartered in Massachusetts in 1831 and began service between Providence and Boston in 1835. This major agreement gave the Old Colony Railroad operating rights on the busy double-tracked main line between the two capital cities, along with other branches to Dedham and Stoughton. The deal also included use of the Boston and Providence Railroad's Park Square Station in Boston.
New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad control (1893–1969)
On March 1, 1893, the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad (NYNH&H) – commonly known as the New Haven Railroad – leased the entire Old Colony system for 99 years, which by then included the leased Boston and Providence Railroad and everything substantially east of it, as well as long branches northwest to Fitchburg and Lowell. Along with the lease of the New England Railroad in 1898, the 1893 lease arrangement gave the NYNH&H a virtual monopoly on rail transport in southern New England. On September 22, 1895, the New Haven converted all former Old Colony lines from left-hand running to right-hand running.[12]
On April 6, 1902, a new alignment was opened from Broadway to Crescent Avenue station, eliminating a grade crossing of Dorchester Avenue.[13] The former right-of-way was later paved as Old Colony Avenue. With the opening of Boston's South Station in 1899, the Kneeland Street Station was taken over by the Boston and Albany Railroad as a local freight office. It was demolished in 1918 after being deemed unsafe.
By the 1930s, the New Haven's largest freight terminal and only steam locomotive shop were both on the ex-Old Colony system; more passengers entered Boston on Old Colony lines than entered New York on the New Haven.[14]:499 However, during its 1935–47 bankruptcy proceedings, the New Haven attempted to rid itself of unprofitable portions of the Old Colony. The New Haven's bankruptcy trustees rejected the Old Colony lease in June 1936, but were forced to continue operating it under court order. In the 88 stations case, the railroad abandoned 88 stations in Massachusetts and five in Rhode Island on a single day in 1938. The Supreme Court ruled in November 1939 (Palmer v. Massachusetts) that the railroad had not been given proper permission, and 32 of the stations were reopened in 1940.[14]:500–502 After several attempts to end Old Colony passenger service - including a 1939–41 plan to outright abandon the Boston-area lines - the New Haven continued to operate the service. Whether to incorporate the Old Colony into the New Haven, and whether the Old Colony should be required to continue passenger service, continued to be argued as part of the reorganization.[15][16]
Increased passenger and freight traffic during World War II lifted the fortunes of the New Haven.[17]:13 The reorganization continued; the railroad was ultimately required to continue Old Colony passenger service unless losses exceeded $850,000 in a single calendar year.[16] The New Haven emerged from bankruptcy on September 11, 1947, and fully acquired the Old Colony a week later; the B&P was kept as a separate New Haven-owned company.[16][17]:13Palmer v. Massachusetts had been just one of eight Supreme Court cases generated by the reorganization.[18]:862 Losses on the Old Colony reached the critical value in October 1948; after threatening to discontinue all service, the New Haven cut back to a 26-train peak-only schedule on the Boston Group in March 1949.[16][17]:13,96
Under the 1951–1954 presidency of Frederic C. Dumaine Jr., the New Haven increased passenger service, using new Budd Rail Diesel Cars to reduce costs.[17]:13 Boston service reached 86 trains in April 1954.[17]:96 As losses mounted, Boston-area railroads made major cuts in the late 1950s. All service to Taunton, Fall River, and New Bedford (which used the B&P rather than the Old Colony mainline) ended in 1958.[17]:36 All remaining year-round Old Colony Division service ended on June 30, 1959, after the completion of the Southeast Expressway, though limited seasonal service continued for several more years.[17]:96[19] The NYNH&H merged into Penn Central in 1969, which in turn merged into Conrail in 1976.[19]
History since 1969
Since the early 1970s, Amtrak has provided passenger service from South Station in Boston over the former Boston and Providence lines of the Old Colony Railroad. Since December 2000, Amtrak has also used this line for the Acela Express high-speed passenger rail service to Washington, D.C. Between 1986 and 1996 Amtrak also operated regular passenger service between New York City and Hyannis on Cape Cod during the summer months.[20]
With the establishment of Conrail, freight service continued over various portions of the former Old Colony network after 1976. Beginning in 1982, the Bay Colony Railroad provided freight service on various lines which the Commonwealth of Massachusetts had purchased from Conrail, including lines on Cape Cod and in Middlesex County. Since 1999, CSX has provided freight service over several portions of the former Old Colony Railroad network, including lines in Taunton, Fall River, New Bedford and Leominster. Since 2008, the Massachusetts Coastal Railroad has taken over operation of the state-owned freight lines on Cape Cod from the Bay Colony Railroad.
Charles F. Choate (November 1877 to April 1907)[22]
Lines and branches
The following is a description of the Old Colony Railroad lines and branches at about the time of the 1893 lease to the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad, and shortly thereafter.
Line completed 0.5-mile (0.8km) from South Boston to Boston on June 19, 1847 with the opening of Kneeland Street Station; line between Boston and South Braintree doubled in 1848; line now part of MBTA Red Line to Braintree, MBTA Plymouth commuter rail Line, ending in North Plymouth
lines extended in 1873 and 1876 by Old Colony Railroad to connect with Plymouth line, forming a loop to West Quincy and East Milton This line has been abandoned
leased to Old Colony Railroad from April 1, 1888; deeded outright to OCRR February 24, 1906; The Nantasket Beach Branch of the New York, New Haven and Hartford railway had the first electric train in the U.S. It had its first run on Sunday, June 30, 1895. This line has been abandoned[25][pageneeded]
consolidation of Randolph and Bridgewater Railroad with Middleborough Railroad and Fall River Branch Railroad; this line now used by MBTA Middleborough/Lakeville commuter rail line; portion between Middleborough and Myricks has been abandoned
still used by Mass Coastal Railroad for freight; sold to Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 2010 for planned South Coast Rail project, restoring passenger rail to Fall River for the first time since 1958.
segment completed after 1863 merger of Newport and Fall River Railroad Company with Old Colony and Fall River Railroad Company this line has been abandoned
Mayflower Park (Braintree Highlands) to Somerset Junction (Fall River)
utilized part of Easton Branch Railroad between Stoughton and North Easton
Stoughton to North Easton
May 16, 1855
3.8mi or 6.1km
Easton Branch Railroad Company
1869
operated by Boston and Providence Railroad from 1855 to 1856; operated by Old Colony and Newport Railway from 1866 to 1871
Middleborough to Taunton
July 4, 1856
8.0mi or 12.9km
Middleborough and Taunton Railroad Corporation
1874
originally Taunton and Middleborough Railroad Corporation, name changed in 1853 before line built; still used by CSX for freight; part of the planned South Coast Rail Project Phase 1
completed from Warren to Somerset by April, 1875; extended to Fall River with opening of Slade's Ferry Bridge; operated by Old Colony Railroad from December 1, 1865; deeded to Old Colony Railroad in 1892. This line has been abandoned
first 0.8-mile (1.3km) segment from Taunton Branch Railroad line to Whittenton Mills opened in 1881; connected to Mayflower Park-Somerset line at Raynham in 1882; allowed Somerset line trains to stop at Taunton Central Station, instead of Dean Street Station, east of downtown Taunton. This branch has been abandoned
Attleborough to North Attleborough; became a streetcar line ("Gee Whiz" line) after 1903 when Adamsdale Branch opened and NY, NH&H ended its lease of this line. This line has been abandoned.[27]
extension of Wrentham Branch from North Attleborough to Adamsdale; connected with Rhode Island and Massachusetts Railroad near state line. This line has been abandoned.
The MBTA Commuter Rail system serves as the commuter rail arm of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's (MBTA's) transportation coverage of Greater Boston in the United States. Trains run over 394 mi (634 km) of track to 134 stations. It is operated under contract by Keolis, which took over operations on July 1, 2014, from the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company (MBCR).
The Boston and Providence Railroad was a railroad company in the states of Massachusetts and Rhode Island which connected its namesake cities. It opened in two sections in 1834 and 1835 - one of the first rail lines in the United States - with a more direct route into Providence built in 1847. Branches were built to Dedham in 1834, Stoughton in 1845, and North Attleboro in 1871. It was acquired by the Old Colony Railroad in 1888, which in turn was leased by the New Haven Railroad in 1893. The line became the New Haven's primary mainline to Boston; it was realigned in Boston in 1899 during the construction of South Station, and in Pawtucket and Central Falls in 1916 for grade crossing elimination.
The Cape Cod Railroad is a railroad in southeastern Massachusetts, running from Pilgrim Junction in Middleborough across the Cape Cod Canal Railroad Bridge, where it splits towards Hyannis in one direction and Falmouth in the other. It was incorporated in 1846 as the Cape Cod Branch Railroad to provide a rail link from the Fall River Railroad line in Middleborough to Cape Cod.
The Old Colony Lines are a pair of branches of the MBTA Commuter Rail system, connecting downtown Boston, Massachusetts with the South Shore and cranberry-farming country to the south and southeast. The two branches operate concurrently for 10 miles (16 km) via the Old Colony Mainline from South Station to Braintree station. The Middleborough/Lakeville Line then winds south through Holbrook, Brockton, Bridgewater, Middleborough, and Lakeville via the Middleborough Main Line and Cape Main Line. The Kingston Line heads southeast to serve Weymouth, Abington, Whitman, Hanson, Halifax, and Kingston by way of the Plymouth branch. Limited service to Plymouth was provided prior to April 2021 but was cut due to low ridership and budget constraints. The Greenbush Line, which was also part of the Old Colony Division, was reactivated in 2007 as a separate project.
The Middleboro Secondary is a railroad line owned by MassDOT in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. The line runs from Attleboro to Middleborough via Taunton.
Holbrook/Randolph station is an MBTA Commuter Rail station on the border of Holbrook and Randolph, Massachusetts. It is served by the Middleborough/Lakeville Line.
Brockton station is an MBTA Commuter Rail station in Brockton, Massachusetts. It serves the MBTA Middleborough/Lakeville Line and is a stop on the seasonal CapeFLYER service. The station has a single accessible full-length high-level platform that serves the line's two tracks. It is located adjacent to the BAT Centre, the primary hub for Brockton Area Transit Authority local bus service.
Bridgewater station is an MBTA Commuter Rail station in Bridgewater, Massachusetts, served by the Middleborough/Lakeville Line. It is located on the east end of the Bridgewater State University campus along the Middleborough Main Line.
Middleborough/Lakeville station is an MBTA Commuter Rail station in Lakeville, Massachusetts, just south of the Middleborough border. It is the southern terminus of the Middleborough/Lakeville Line; it is also an intermediate stop for seasonal CapeFlyer service to Cape Cod. Middleborough/Lakeville has a single full-length high-level side platform serving the line's single track.
The Taunton Branch Railroad was one of the earliest railroads to be established in Massachusetts, United States. It was chartered by the state in 1835 as a branch of the Boston and Providence Railroad running between Mansfield and Taunton, Massachusetts. The railroad provided a rapid overland connection between the seat of Bristol County and Boston and Providence.
East Taunton station is an under-construction MBTA Commuter Rail station in East Taunton, Massachusetts adjacent to the interchange between the Route 24 expressway and County Street. It is planned to open in mid-2024 as part of the first phase of the South Coast Rail project.
The Fall River Railroad was a railroad that ran between Fall River and Braintree, Massachusetts, United States. It was formed in 1845 as a merger between three railroads, which opened in phases in 1845 and 1846. The railroad merged into the Old Colony and Fall River Railroad in 1854.
The Dighton and Somerset Railroad, currently referred to as the Dean Street Industrial Track, is a railroad that ran between Fall River and Braintree, Massachusetts. It opened in 1866; from the 1890s to the 1930s and again in the late 1950s, it was the primary rail route from Boston to the South Coast. Passenger service ended in stages with the final regular service in 1958, though freight service on two short segments continues into the 21st century. MBTA Commuter Rail service is proposed to be extended onto the northern part of the line around 2030 as part of the South Coast Rail project.
The New Bedford Railroad was a railroad in Massachusetts. It was incorporated on July 1, 1873, as a merger between the New Bedford and Taunton Railroad, the Taunton Branch Railroad, and the Middleborough and Taunton Railroad. The main line ran from a junction with the Boston and Providence Railroad in Mansfield through the towns of Norton, Taunton, Berkley, Lakeville, and Freetown to the deep-water whaling port of New Bedford. The railroad also had several branches, including the former Middleborough and Taunton Railroad, which ran from Weir Village, Taunton into Middleborough through Raynham, and a shortcut to Providence via the Boston and Providence Railroad which ran from Taunton to Attleborough through Norton.
The Dorchester and Milton Branch Railroad was a railroad in Massachusetts. It ran between Neponset Village in Dorchester, Massachusetts, through the town of Milton to the village of Mattapan. It was opened in 1847 and became part of the Old Colony Railroad system in 1848. The western portion was converted to a streetcar line in 1929, while the eastern portion remained in use for freight until the 1980s.
The CapeFlyer is a passenger rail service in Massachusetts between Boston and Cape Cod that began in 2013. It is operated by the Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority (CCRTA) in collaboration with the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) and the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT). The service runs on the weekends, beginning Friday evenings and including holidays, between Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day weekend.
The Taunton and Middleborough Railroad was a railroad in Massachusetts. It was incorporated in 1848 to connect the Taunton Branch Railroad in Weir Village, Taunton with the Fall River Railroad and newly built Cape Cod Branch Railroad in Middleborough through the town of Raynham. In 1853, the railroad changed its name to the Middleborough and Taunton Railroad.
Middleborough station is an under-construction MBTA Commuter Rail station in Middleborough, Massachusetts. It is expected to open in mid-2024 as part of the South Coast Rail project, replacing Middleborough/Lakeville station for regular service. The station will have a single side platform located inside the wye between the Middleborough Main Line and the Middleboro Secondary.
The 88 stations case was a 1935–40 controversy and court case involving the Old Colony Division of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad. The New Haven entered bankruptcy in 1935; the next year, it ended the 1893 lease of the unprofitable Old Colony Division, but continued operating those lines by court order. The Old Colony and New Haven closed 88 stations in Massachusetts on July 18, 1938, ending passenger service altogether on some lines. In May 1939, the Old Colony filed to abandon all freight and passenger service on its lines. In November 1939, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled in Palmer v. Massachusetts that a district court did not have authority to order the discontinuance of intrastate passenger service. Thirty-two of the stations were reopened in 1940, with 40 percent of service cut in lieu of total abandonment.
References
↑ Report of the Board of Railroad Commissioners. February 15, 1911. p.418.
↑ Report of the Board of Railroad Commissioners. February 15, 1911. p.417.
↑ Jacobs, Warren (October 1928). "Dates of Some of the Principal Events in the History of 100 Years of the Railroad in New England. 1826-1926". Railway and Locomotive Historical Society Bulletin. Railway and Locomotive Historical Society. 17 (17): 15–28. JSTOR43504499.
1 2 3 4 Commission of Department of Public Utilities of Commonwealth, of Massachusetts v. New York, N.H. & H.R. Co,F.2d opinion=559(2d Cir.1949).
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Humphrey, Thomas J.; Clark, Norton D. (1985). Boston's Commuter Rail: The First 150 Years. Boston Street Railway Association. ISBN9780685412947.
↑ "The New Haven Railroad Reorganization Proceedings, or the Little Railroad That Couldn't". Harvard Law Review. 78 (4): 861–880. February 1965. doi:10.2307/1338796. JSTOR1338796.
↑ Lanpher, Bob; Donnelly, Dorothea; Cunningham, George (2004) [1988]. North Attleborough. Images of America. Arcadia Publishing. p.38. ISBN0-7524-0885-2– via Google Books.
New Haven Railroad Historical and Technical Association—non-profit history group focused on the history of the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad Company and its predecessor and subsidiary companies, including the Old Colony Railroad.
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