Boston and Albany Railroad

A Boston and Albany Railroad locomotive in 1893
Overview
Reporting mark	B&A
Locale	Massachusetts and easternNew York
Dates of operation	1867–1961
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)standard gauge

TheBoston and Albany Railroad (reporting markB&A)^[1] was arailroad connectingBoston,Massachusetts toAlbany, New York, later becoming part of theNew York Central Railroad system,Conrail, andCSX Transportation. The mainline is currently used by CSX for freight as theBerkshire Subdivision andBoston Subdivision. Passenger service is provided on the line byAmtrak, as part of theirLake Shore Limited service, and by theMBTA Commuter Rail system, which owns the section east ofWorcester and operates it as itsFramingham/Worcester Line.

When theErie Canal opened in 1825,New York City's advantageous water connection through theHudson River threatened Boston's historical dominance as a trade center. Sincethe Berkshires made construction of a canal infeasible, Boston turned to the emerging railroad technology for a share of the freight to and from theMidwestern United States.^[2] TheBoston and Worcester Railroad was chartered June 23, 1831 and construction began in August 1832. The line opened in sections: toWest Newton on April 16, 1834; toWellesley on July 3; toAshland on September 20; toWestborough in November 1834; and the full length toWorcester on July 4, 1835.^[3] The original single-track line was double-tracked from Boston to Framingham in 1839, and on to Worcester by 1843. In 1843 the B&W introduced season passes to West Newton for $60, effectively introducing the concept ofcommuter rail.^[3]

TheWestern Railroad was chartered February 15, 1833 and incorporated March 15, 1833 to connect the B&W to theHudson and Berkshire Railroad at theNew York state line.^[4] Construction began in 1837, and the Eastern Division to theConnecticut River inSpringfield opened on October 1, 1839. The summit of Charlton Hill drainage divide between the Atlantic coast and the Connecticut River is a rock cut 57 mi (92 km) west of Boston. The Western Division, through theBerkshire Hills, opened in sections from both ends from the state line toPittsfield May 4, 1841,West Springfield toChester May 24, 1841, Springfield to West Springfield (across the Connecticut River) July 4, 1841, Pittsfield to "Summit" August 9, 1841, and Chester to Summit September 13, 1841. The summit through the Berkshires is known as Washington Hill. Eastbound trains climb 6 mi (9.7 km) of 1.4% grade while westbound trains climb 10 mi (16 km) of slightly steeper grade to reach the 4 mi (6.4 km) of fairly level track across the drainage divide between the Connecticut and Hudson Rivers. On October 4, 1841, the first train ran along the full route. The only true tunnel on the B&A is State Line Tunnel in Canaan, New York, about 2 mi (3.2 km) west of the Massachusetts state line. The original bore was augmented by an improved-alignment second tunnel in 1912, and the original bore was abandoned in the late 20th century.^[2]

TheCastleton and West Stockbridge Railroad was incorporated inNew York in 1834 as the New York part of the Western Railroad, and changed its name to the Albany and West Stockbridge Railroad (chartered May 5, 1836, organized May 20). Construction began in December 1840 and the line opened fromGreenbush (east ofAlbany) toChatham on December 21, 1841, and to theMassachusetts state line on September 12, 1842. It was leased to the Western Railroad for 50 years from November 11, 1841. This railroad replaced the Hudson and Berkshire Railroad east of Chatham, which was abandoned around 1860.

The connection from Boston to Albany formed the longest and most expensive point-to-point railroad yet constructed in the United States.^[2] Two mergers, on September 4, 1867, and December 28, 1870, brought the three companies, along with theHudson and Boston Railroad, together into one company, known as theBoston and Albany Railroad. TheNew York Central and Hudson River Railroad leased the B&A for 99 years from July 1, 1900. This lease passed to theNew York Central Railroad in 1914; throughout this, the B&A kept its own branding in the public eye. The NYC merged intoPenn Central on February 1, 1968.

New York Central began a major modernization program in 1924. The Castleton Cut-Off with a very large hi-level bridge over the Hudson River was built from the B&A at Post Road to a new rail yard atSelkirk, New York, to avoid the steep NYC grade from the Hudson River up West Albany Hill.Berkshire locomotives were designed to provide faster freight service over the B&A.^[2]

In 1883, the B&A acquired track then owned by theNew York and New England Railroad as far as Newton Highlands, and, in 1884, began the construction of a line northwest to the B&A mainline, creating a commuter loop. "The Circuit," as this route was called, officially opened in May 1886, providing double-track operation from downtown Boston throughBrookline toNewton Highlands, then north intoRiverside, and four tracks on the mainline from Riverside back to downtown so that commuter and mainline operations did not conflict. By 1889, as many as 35 trains traveled the Circuit daily, providing commuter service.

In 1899, the newSouth Stationunion station opened in Boston, a few blocks northeast of the old terminal. That terminal had been located on the west side of Utica Street (Boston, from Kneeland Street south to Harvard Street, now part of theSouth Bay Interchange. Even earlier, the terminal was in the block bounded by Kneeland Street, Beach Street, Albany Street (nowSurface Artery), and Lincoln Street.

By the early part of the 20th century,commuter rail service was provided east ofWorcester, withintercity rail continuing on west. During the 1940s period of peak passenger volume, theNew Haven Railroad (with the cooperation of the New York Central) ran several Boston-New York City trains along the route to Worcester and Springfield and then south. The service included an overnight train with sleeping car service.^[5][6][7] The last passenger service on the line on April 30, 1971, before the creation of Amtrak was an unnamed Chicago-bound successor to the New York Central'sNew England States.^[8] The intercity trips were taken over byAmtrak on May 1, 1971, and, on January 27, 1973, theMBTA acquired the line east ofFramingham. Service beyond Framingham was discontinued October 27, 1975, as the state did not subsidize it.Conrail took over Penn Central on April 1, 1976. On September 26, 1994, somerush hour trains started to serveWorcester on Conrail trackage (which becameCSX trackage on June 1, 1999), extending to other times beginning on December 14, 1996. The MBTA acquired the rest of the line from Framingham to Worcester as part of an agreement announced in 2009.^[9][10] As part of the deal, clearances on the line west ofInterstate 495 were improved, permitting fulldouble stack service fromSelkirk Yard in New York to an expanded CSXintermodal freight facility in Worcester and atransload facility near I-495. The deal was closed on June 17, 2010.^[11] CSX'sBoston Subdivision retains the right to use certain MBTA-owned track.

Since 1959, the former "Circuit" line, later called the Highland branch, has been used as the grade-separated right-of-way of the MBTA'sGreen Line D branchlight rail line.

The Boston & Albany hosted many named long-distance trains of the New York Central system. Below is a list of named trains effective as of November 12, 1939.

• Empire State Express, Boston–Albany–Buffalo–Cleveland–Indianapolis–St. Louis
• The Mohawk, Boston–Albany–Buffalo–Cleveland–Chicago with connection at Cleveland for Indianapolis and St. Louis
• Ohio State Limited, Boston–Albany–Buffalo–Cleveland–Indianapolis–St. Louis with connection at Cleveland for Cincinnati
• New England States, Boston–Albany–Buffalo–Chicago with connection at Buffalo for Ashtabula, Youngstown, thence viaPittsburgh & Lake Erie to Pittsburgh
• The Wolverine, Boston–Albany–Buffalo–Niagara Falls–London (Ont.)–Detroit–Ann Arbor–Chicago
• Lake Shore Limited, Boston–Albany–Buffalo–Cleveland–Chicago
• Southwestern Limited, Boston–Albany–Buffalo–Cleveland–Indianapolis–St. Louis with connection at Cleveland for Cincinnati
• Cleveland Limited, Boston–Albany–Buffalo–Cleveland
• The Niagara, Boston–Albany–Buffalo–Niagara Falls–London (Ont.)–Detroit–Ann Arbor–Chicago with connection to Cleveland and Cincinnati at Buffalo
• The Iroquois, Boston–Albany–Buffalo–Cleveland–Chicago
• South Shore Express, Boston–Albany–Buffalo–Cleveland–Chicago with connection to Chicago via Detroit at Buffalo and to Cincinnati, Indianapolis, and St. Louis at Cleveland

• The Iroquois, Cleveland–Buffalo–Albany–Boston
• World's Fairliner, Chicago–Cleveland–Buffalo–Albany–Boston with connection from Detroit at Buffalo
• New York Special, Chicago–Ann Arbor–Detroit–London (Ont.)–Niagara Falls–Buffalo–Albany–Boston
• Fifth Avenue Special, Chicago–Cleveland–Buffalo–Albany–Boston
• Southwestern Limited
• The Wolverine
• Ohio State Limited
• New England States
• The Knickerbocker, Cleveland–Buffalo–Albany–Boston
• The Water Level Limited, Chicago–Cleveland–Buffalo–Albany–Boston
• Henry Hudson, Toledo–Cleveland–Buffalo–Albany–Boston with connection from Grand Rapids and Niagara Falls at Buffalo
• Lake Shore Limited
• North Shore Limited, Chicago–Ann Arbor–Detroit–London (Ont.)–Niagara Falls–Buffalo–Albany–Boston
• Maumee–Missourian, Chicago–Cleveland–Buffalo–Albany–Boston
• The Forest City, Chicago–Cleveland–Buffalo–Albany–Boston
• The De Witt Clinton, Chicago–Ann Arbor–Detroit–London (Ont.)–Niagara Falls–Buffalo–Albany–Boston
• Boston Expres, Chicago–Cleveland–Buffalo–Albany–Boston

• New York Express, North Adams–Pittsfield–Chatham–New York City

TheGrand Junction Railroad was chartered in 1847 as a reincorporation of the 1846Chelsea Branch Railroad, meant to connect the lines north and west ofBoston. The first section, fromEast Boston toSomerville, opened in 1849, and the extension to the B&W inAllston opened in 1856. TheEastern Railroad leased the line from 1852 to 1866, using part of it as their new main line. In 1866 the B&W bought the line (keepingtrackage rights for the Eastern).

TheBrookline branch split from the main line in the west part ofBoston'sBack Bay, running southwest for 1.55 mi (2.5 km) toBrookline (the current location ofBrookline Village station). It opened in 1847. In Summer 1852 theCharles River Branch Railroad extended the line toNewton Upper Falls; this would eventually become part of theNew England Railroad, an alternate route toNew York.

In 1882 the B&A bought part of the Charles River Branch, and in 1884 they built a line fromRiverside to the branch, forming theHighland branch, Newton Highlands branch, or "Newton circuit". Service ended in 1958, and theMBTAGreen Line D branchlight rail line started using the tracks in 1959.

The short 1.25-mile (2.01 km)Newton Lower Falls Branch opened in 1847, splitting from the main line just west ofRiverside toNewton Lower Falls.

TheSaxonville Branch opened in 1846, running 3.87 miles (6.2 km) fromNatick toSaxonville. It hase been converted into theCochituate Rail Trail.

TheFramingham branch opened in 1849, running 2.06 miles (3.3 km) fromFramingham toFramingham Centre. TheAgricultural Branch Railroad was incorporated in 1847 and opened in 1855, continuing the branch toNorthborough, and toPratts Junction in 1866. It was leased by the B&W in 1853, but consolidated into theBoston, Clinton, Fitchburg and New Bedford Railroad in 1876 and leased to theOld Colony Railroad in 1879 after changing its name to theBoston, Clinton and Fitchburg Railroad in 1867. This company also used the Framingham branch as part of its main line.

In 1847, the 11.97 mile (19.3 km)Milford Branch, splitting atFramingham, opened. A connection was later made atMilford to theMilford and Woonsocket Railroad andHopkinton Railway.

Most of the right-of-way (except for the short active section in Framingham) has been converted to part of the Upper Charles Rail Trail.

The 3.07 mile (4.9 km)Millbury Branch opened in 1846 from a split atMillbury Junction on theGrafton/Millbury line toMillbury.

TheProvidence, Webster and Springfield Railroad was chartered in 1882, opened in 1884, and always leased to and operated by the B&A. The line formed a branch of the B&A fromWebster Junction inAuburn to theWorcester and Norwich Railroad inWebster, with a short branch (East Village branch) in Webster toEast Village.

TheSpencer Railroad opened and was leased to the B&A in 1879, as a short branch fromSouth Spencer toSpencer. The B&A outright bought it in 1889.

TheNorth Brookfield Railroad was chartered in 1874, incorporated in 1875 and opened in 1876, branching from the B&A inEast Brookfield and running toNorth Brookfield. It was leased to the B&A from opening.

TheWare River Railroad was chartered in 1868, running fromPalmer to theCheshire Railroad inWinchendon. The first section, from Palmer toGilbertville, opened in 1870, and the rest in 1873. Until 1873 it was leased to and operated by theNew London Northern Railroad; at that time the lease was transferred to the B&A, as a reorganization of the earlier company.

TheAthol and Enfield Railroad andSpringfield and North-Eastern Railroad were chartered in 1869, and succeeded by theSpringfield, Athol and North-eastern Railroad in 1872, opening in 1873 as a branch fromAthol Junction inSpringfield to theVermont and Massachusetts Railroad inAthol. The B&A bought the line in 1880. The majority of the line was closed in the 1930s due to the formation of theQuabbin Reservoir.

TheChester and Becket Railroad was chartered in 1896 and opened in 1897 fromChester west toquarries inBecket. It was always operated by the B&A.

ThePittsfield and North Adams Railroad was incorporated in 1842 and opened in 1846, having been already leased to the Western Railroad. It ran fromNorth Adams Junction inPittsfield toNorth Adams, where it connected to theTroy and Greenfield Railroad. Surviving structures along this branch include thePittsfield & North Adams Passenger Station and Baggage & Express House inAdams, Massachusetts. Most of this line has been turned into theAshuwillticook Rail Trail, but tourist passenger trains now (2021) operate between North Adams and Adams.

TheHudson and Berkshire Railroad was chartered in 1828 to build a line fromHudson, New York to theMassachusetts state line. Construction began in 1835 and was completed in 1838. The company was leased to theBerkshire Railroad, along with the connectingWest Stockbridge Railroad, in 1844, but was bought by the Western Railroad in 1854. The name was changed to theHudson and Boston Railroad in 1855, and the part east ofChatham was abandoned around 1860, as it duplicated the newer Albany and West Stockbridge Railroad (part of the B&A main line). The rest of the line formed a cutoff between theNew York Central and Hudson River Railroad towardsNew York City and the B&A.

The Post Road branch or Selkirk branch was originally built as part of theHudson River Connecting Railroad, a southern bypass of theAlbany area. It opened in 1924, and the part of it from the B&A atPost Road Crossing (the crossing of theAlbany Post Road) toSchodack Junction on the east side of theHudson River became the B&A Post Road branch. The rest became theNew York Central Railroad's Castleton Cut-off.

The B&A undertook a significant program of improvement and beautification in the 1880s and 1890s. The B&A hired architectAlexander Rice Esty who designed the Boston passenger station which was completed in 1881, the year of Esty's death.^[12][13] That same year, the B&A hired architectHenry Hobson Richardson to design a series of passenger stations. Over the next five years, Richardson was responsible for nine B&A stations (Auburndale, Chestnut Hill, Elliot, Waban, and Woodland (Newton, MA), Wellesley Hills, Brighton, South Framingham, and Palmer), as well as a dairy building; he also provided designs for passenger cars. At the same time, the B&A hired landscape architectFrederick Law Olmsted to design the grounds of several stations and to work with the railroad to establish a landscape beautification program for other stations. After Richardson's death, the B&A commissioned his successors,Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge, to design 23 additional stations between 1886 and 1894. The B&A's innovative program of well-designed stations and landscape served as a model for several other railroads around the turn of the 20th century.

Mileposts noted here reflect the 1899 opening of South Station, which extended the line about 0.2 miles (0.32 km) from the previous Kneeland Street terminal.

• Chester train wreck, an 1893 accident that resulted in 14 deaths

• Changes to Transit Service in the MBTA district (PDF)
• Railroad History Database
• Mileposts fromB&A Track Charts
• Industrial history of the United States, Albert Sidney Bolles, 1889. p. 648 ff, available online at books.google.com

• Fisher, Chas. E. (May 1947). "Whistler's Railroad: The Western Railroad of Massachusetts".Railway and Locomotive Historical Society Bulletin.69 (69):1–2,8–100.JSTOR 43504556.
• Groves, R.L."The Boston & Albany Webpage". Archived fromthe original on 2004-09-12.
• Guild, William (1847).A Chart and Description of the Boston and Worcester and Western Railroads. Boston, Mass.
• Ochsner, Jeffrey Karl (June 1988). "Architecture for the Boston & Albany Railroad".Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians.47:109–131.doi:10.2307/990324.JSTOR 990324.
• O'Gorman, James F. (1987).H. H. Richardson: Architectural Forms for an American Society. Chicago and London:University of Chicago Press. pp. 113–126.
• Stilgoe, John R. (1983).Metropolitan Corridor: Railroads and the American Scene. New Haven and London:Yale University Press. pp. 223–243.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toBoston and Albany Railroad.

• Boston and Albany Railroad Company Records at Baker Library Historical Collections, Harvard Business School
• Boston Athenæum: Boston and Albany Railroad Company and South Station. Digital Collection. Photographs.

• Boston and Albany Railroad
• Defunct Massachusetts railroads
• Defunct New York (state) railroads
• Predecessors of the New York Central Railroad
• Railway companies established in 1867
• Railway companies disestablished in 1961
• Standard-gauge railways in the United States
• American companies disestablished in 1961
• American companies established in 1867

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