Newton Railroad Stations Historic District

Woodland, Newton Highlands, and Newton Centre Railroad Stations, and Baggage and Express Building
Woodland Railroad Station, 1959
Location Newton, Massachusetts
Built 1884
Architect Henry Hobson Richardson; Shepley, Rutan & Coolidge
Architectural style No Style Listed
Governing body Private and Local Government
NRHP Reference # 76002137[1]
Added to NRHP June 3, 1976

The Newton Railroad Stations Historic District in Newton, Massachusetts is composed of three geographically separate historic railroad stations on the old Boston and Albany Railroad's Riverside or Highland Branch, which is today's MBTA Green Line "D" Branch. It also included the baggage and express building next to one of the stations, which has since been mostly demolished. These four buildings are the only survivors of a dozen or more Newton railroad stations and ancillary buildings built in the 1880s which were designed by noted architect Henry Hobson Richardson in collaboration with famous landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted. None of the Olmsted landscaping has survived.[2][3]

On June 3, 1976, the district was added to the National Register of Historic Places as the Woodland, Newton Highlands, and Newton Centre Railroad Stations, and Baggage and Express Building.

Components

The component buildings in the district are:

Woodland Railroad Station

The Woodland Railroad Station is located at 1897 Washington street in the village of Auburndale and is now owned by the Woodland Golf Club of Auburndale. It is across the street from the Woodland MBTA station at 1940 Washington Street.

Newton Highlands Railroad Station

The Newton Highlands Railroad Station is located at 18 Station Avenue in the village of Newton Highlands. Although its interior is no longer in use, its exterior still provides some shelter for passengers of the Newton Highlands MBTA station.

Newton Centre Railroad Station

The Newton Centre Railroad Station is located at 70 Union Street in the village of Newton Centre.[4] Designed by Richardson in 1886, it was finished by his successor firm of Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge. The interior of the building used to house a Starbucks coffee shop containing a sign that indicated when a Boston-bound train arrived. However, the coffeehouse was closed in the fall of 2008 as part of Starbucks' restructuring campaign due to the economic recession.[5] The station now houses the Deluxe Station Diner, a satellite restaurant of the Deluxe Town Diner in Coolidge Square, Watertown, Massachusetts.[6] The exterior is part of the Newton Center MBTA station; the building is a contributing element of the Union Street Historic District.[4]

Baggage and Express Building

The Baggage and Express Building was located at 50 Union Street In Newton Centre adjacent to the Newton Centre Railroad Station. It was divided into separate spaces for baggage and Railway Express. It was mostly demolished in 1985. Part of original the building was incorporated into the new construction on the site.[4]

Gallery

See also

References

  1. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2007-01-23.
  2. ↑ Auburndale Station
  3. ↑ Richardson stations
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "NRHP nomination for Union Street Historic District". Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Retrieved 2014-04-22.
  5. ↑ Full List of U.S. Store Closures
  6. ↑ http://www.boston.com/yourtown/news/newton/2010/05/deluxe_diner_in_newton_centre.html

External links