Taunton station (Old Colony Railroad)

TAUNTON

The historic Old Colony Railroad Station building. A new MBTA platform would be built just to the north.
Location Off Dean Street
Taunton, Massachusetts
Coordinates 41°54′16″N 71°4′56″W / 41.90444°N 71.08222°W / 41.90444; -71.08222Coordinates: 41°54′16″N 71°4′56″W / 41.90444°N 71.08222°W / 41.90444; -71.08222
Line(s) Dean Street Industrial Track
Platforms 1 side platform (planned)
Tracks 1 (current)
2 (planned)
Construction
Parking 209 (planned)
Disabled access Yes
History
Opening 2030 (planned)
Closed 1958
Rebuilt 1876
Previous names Dean Street
Services
Preceding station   MBTA   Following station
South Coast Rail
proposed
Old Colony Railroad Station
Location Taunton, Massachusetts
Built 1876
Architectural style Italianate
MPS Taunton MRA
NRHP Reference #

84002192

[1]
Added to NRHP July 5, 1984

Old Colony Railroad Station is an historic Italianate train station located off Dean Street (US Route 44) in Taunton, Massachusetts. The historic station, also known as Dean Street, is proposed to be joined by the modern Taunton station around 2030 as part of Phase 2 of the South Coast Rail project.

History

The first Taunton station was constructed in 1866 when the Dighton and Somerset Railroad (owned by the Old Colony & Newport Railroad) was opened. Originally to be called Taunton, it was renamed as Dean Street in 1865 before even opening.[2] The current station was built in 1876; it saw regular commuter service to Boston until 1958.[3]

The 1876 building, a distinctive brick Italianate structure, is the only surviving railroad station in the city. It has a main hip roof with modillioned eave and corbelled cornice, and a steeply pitched central gable section. At the track level a second roof is supported by large wooden brackets. The building's corners are articulated by stone quoining.[4] The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places as Old Colony Railroad Station in 1984.[1][2]

A new MBTA Commuter Rail station, Taunton, is proposed to be built at the site by 2030 as part of the second phase of the South Coast Rail project. An 800-foot-long high-level platform would be constructed just north of the historic building to serve a single passenger track; a freight passing track would also be added.[5] The passing track was not present in original designs, but was added because the original one-track design would have prevented some wide freight trains from using the line.[6]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 National Park Service (2008-04-15). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. 1 2 Roy, John H. Jr. (2007). A Field Guide to Southern New England Railroad Depots and Freight Houses. Branch Line Press. p. 146. ISBN 9780942147087.
  3. ↑ Karr, Ronald Dale (1995). The Rail Lines of Southern New England. Branch Line Press. p. 324. ISBN 0942147022.
  4. ↑ "NRHP nomination for Old Colony Railroad Station". Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Retrieved 2015-06-05.
  5. ↑ "Figure 3.2-25 Taunton Station Proposed Reconstruction" (PDF). Volume II: FEIS/FEIR Figures Final Environmental Impact Statement/Final Environmental Impact Report on the South Coast Rail Project proposed by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers New England District. August 2013.
  6. ↑ "Existing Taunton Station / Proposed Construction" (PDF). Massachusetts Department of Transportation. July 1, 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 4, 2014.
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