|
*******************
FAIR GROUNDS [NORWALK]
|
| Max Miller Collection |
FAIR GROUNDS. This stop in Norwalk was reported in the newspapers as being about two miles north of South Norwalk. The Fairfield
County Agricultural Society purchased land in the Winnipauk section of Norwalk in 1867 and began to hold the annual agricultural
and livestock fair here instead of assigning the event to the highest bidding town as was done previously. By 1870, the state agriculture commission [click here] was commending the D&N for its "excellent arrangements" and
frequent service, "depositing passengers directly at the entrance to the grounds." Those grounds and that entrance
are seen on the ca. 1876 E.B. Hyde map of Norwalk [above, middle] at the red
arrow and we wonder if someone has a photograph of the gateway building there that apparently also served as the railroad
station. In 1868 the arrivals even included 'the Brookfield car' brought down from Danbury where it was taken from
the newly opened NYH&N: see Track 10, MP 10.2.0. Ironically, by 1889 a rival fair held in the Hat City won out and the beleagured FCAS sold its land to a group
that continued just the operation of the race track. The 1892 Norwalk city directory map [upper left],
which misspells WINNIPAUK [see W stations], shows this area as the Gentlemen's Driving Park, correctly labeled
as being now on the HRR, lessee of the D&N since 1886. The location is clarified in the two side by side val maps that
move from south [right] to
north [left]. Click here and here for full maps. The FAIR GROUNDS siding started just above Broad St., which is the road
shown in the PUC photograph, and ended just above Perry Ave. No mention is made of the driving park or fair grounds on the
1915 val maps and we note that by then the Dresden Lace Mill firm served by its own spur track is now on part of the property
below Perry Ave. Cornwall
[SL17.4.24] says that FAIR GROUNDS was still on employee timetables until the 1930s though passenger service, if it outlived
the fair, undoubtedly ended with the driving park's demise in the early 1900s. [REFS: NYT/02/12/1880/02; NYT/08/08/1889/03;
NHER/08/14/1889/04; HC/08/22/1889/01; NYT/09/28/1899/10]
*******************
FAIR GROUNDS [DANBURY]
FAIR GROUNDS. The opening of the NY&NE through Danbury in the summer of
1881 made the celebrated Danbury Fair that was supplanting the FCAS event in Norwalk more accessible and more competitive
than ever before with trackage passing right by the grounds. The newspaper said this would be a great convenience to patrons
in the coming fall season. There was no station here, just a platform that saw limited use, primarily for these events. The
siding is seen in the upper left photo, which we think looks west. The other two would, therefore, look east. [REFS: DN/07/27/1881/08]
*******************
FAIR HAVEN1
|
| CHO Image |
FAIR HAVEN1 was
located
on Clinton Ave. in the eastern section of New Haven between the Mill and Quinnipiac Rivers. This was the first stop after
TIN BRIDGE once the NH&NL began running from the Austin depot in 1852. Richard Fleischer sent us a scanned page from
a 1938 New Haven Tercentenary publication, which contained this photo over an article by NYNH&H electrical engineer
and rail historian Sidney F. Withington. Notes on the page by antiquarian C.E.H. Whitlock say that the talented
Albert F. Bishop of 95 Grand Ave. was probably the photographer and that family members are in the scene. This photograph
has NY&NH locomotive #44 on the point and, since we know from the 1879 Bailey map [click here] this station stood on the
south side of the tracks, the consist has to be heading west. Perhaps the women are going to going into New Haven to do some
shopping. This station burned on 9/28/1892 after a kerosene lamp exploded.
It was described at that time as a one-story frame building, about 50 feet long and valued at $2,000. [REFS: NHER/09/29/1892/03]
*******************
FAIR HAVEN2
FAIR HAVEN2. The newspaper said after FAIR HAVEN1 burned late in 1892 that
a new station would be built in about a week near the site of the burned building on Clinton Ave. This would be comfortably
fitted up but not meant to be permanent since the new Shore Line "cut off" was expected to be completed in about
a year, at which time a station on the new line would open. A combination car was to be used here as a ticket office and waiting
room in the meantime.
FAIR HAVEN2 would be discontinued when FAIR HAVEN3 opened. [REFS: NHER/09/29/1892/03; NHER/09/30/1892/01]
*******************
FAIR HAVEN3
|
| Dave Peters Collection |
FAIR
HAVEN3 opened on 7/30/1894. After some speculation that it would be built at the corner of Blatchley Ave. and State St., at
the junction with the new double-tracked Shore Line and where it would have supplanted the CEDAR HILL station, the corner
of Hemingway St. and First Ave. was chosen instead, as shown on the 1915 val map at left. The NYNH&H was already buying
lots on Hemingway St. in August of 1892. FAIR HAVEN3 was described as standard size for locations like this and about the
same dimensions as the FAIR HAVEN2 station, the furnishings of which were to be transferred to this location. The same article
that gave the latter report also said that the first regular passenger train would be using the new Shore Line on July 29.
FAIR HAVEN3 reportedly burned in 1919 [LR] and we have seen no photos of a replacement. The old Shore Line route was left
to serve industrial customers and to store Conn. Co. trolley cars. [REFS: NHER/08/13/1892/01;
NHER/11/30/1892/01; NHER/12/02/1892/04; NHER/01/13/1893/01;
HC/12/13/1893/08: tunnel work; NHER/01/16/1894/01; NHER/07/17/1894/01; NHER/07/26/1894/04; NHER/07/28/1894/03;
NHER/08/20/1894/04]
*******************
FAIR HAVEN EAST
FAIR HAVEN EAST. The newspapers reported in 1875 that a "short train" was bringing people to and from the
new depot on Meadow St. [NEW HAVEN4]. Service was being provided to FAIR HAVEN EAST, FAIR HAVEN, referred to as the 'north
station,' TIN BRIDGE/MILL RIVER JCT, and the old depot on Chapel St. [NEW HAVEN3]. In 1885, an article
said that people of this eastern Elm City borough "were anxiously awaiting" the new depot they had requested, likely
indicating that FAIR HAVEN EAST was only a platform to begin with, and on July
9, 1887, the paper reported that the new station was "being thrown open to the public today." We
have no photos yet of any structure and do not know its precise location, though it was likely along Quinnipiac Ave., perhaps
near the intersection of Grand Ave. The RAM map [top left] began showing this stop in 1888 and it disappears
with the 1904 map. To add to the confusion of the station names in eastern New Haven, that map shows the CEDAR HILL stop [see
C stations] as Fair Haven. FAIR HAVEN EAST should not be mistaken for FAIR HAVEN3 on the relocated Shore Line. See the 1893
map at top right for the old and new alignments and an overview of all of New Haven at that time. The shot from the GE map
at lower left, accessible from our home page, shows the locations of all the
stations. The old Shore Line at that time included the 1873 bridge over the Quinnipiac River, the one in images often captured
with a train on top of it. Though the bridge was relatively new and was considered for highway use at this time, its elevation
made it unsuitable for public travel and it was torn down. [REFS: NHDP/07/01/1873/04; HDC/03/30/1875/04; NHER/05/17/1875/01;
NHJC/05/20/1875/02; NHER/09/15/1885/04; NHER/07/09/1887/04]
********************
FAIR HAVEN HEIGHTS
FAIR HAVEN
HEIGHTS. We have one uncorroborated newspaper article that says this station was established after the 1894 relocation of
the Shore Line was completed. It was probably a replacement for FAIR HAVEN EAST, but only a quarter mile below FAIR HAVEN3,
it was not very well patronized and it is surprising that the NYNH&H made any kind of a stop here. We have placed it at
Clifton St. on the map in the previous entry and we think we have heard of this location as a stop from other sources. The
paper said it was discontinued in 1906 because, with the extension of trolley service into the Annex, people preferred to
take the trolley to CEDAR HILL or downtown to NEW HAVEN4 on Meadow St. station. We have not seen FAIR HAVEN HEIGHTS on any timetable as of yet. [REFS: NHU/06/02/1906/10] [add12/5]
*******************
FAIRFIELD1
FAIRFIELD1
was on the eastbound (south) side of the track, as seen in the 1856FC map. This station burned in the fall of 1882. No photograph
has yet been found but it may have looked like GREENWICH1 or STRATFORD1.
*******************
FAIRFIELD2
FAIRFIELD2. This brick station
replaced FAIRFIELD1 in 1883 on the eastbound side of the tracks at a cost of $3751. It was given a NRHP designation in 1989 and still stands
today in 2010. [REFS: CRC31.1884.20; NHAR12.1884.8; R51]
*******************
FAIRFIELD3
|
| Dave Peters Collection |
|
| Dave Peters Collection |
|
| Dave Peters Collection |
FAIRFIELD3, built ca. 1892 with the four-tracking of project, still stands today on the westbound side and is seen
in the photo on the right. All the shots look east toward New Haven, except
the lower right, which looks west toward New York. [REFS: R52]
*******************
FAIRVIEW
|
| Fairview IOOF Collection |
FAIRVIEW. Appears on timetables as FAIR VIEW. This was a special stop
to accommodate residents and visitors to the Odd Fellows Home in Groton, which opened in 1893. The N&W extension to Groton
was built in 1899 but when this stop was established has not yet been found. Service was as a flag stop only, for two daily
and two Sunday trains each way on a 1913 timetable, the earliest that we have available. The 1915 val map [click here] shows just a platform that we have highlighted in yellow in the snippet to the left. The stop is on our 1928 official list
of stations, probably its last appearance when local service on this line ended in that year. The residential facility still
serves senior citizens today [click here] and Providence and Worcester trains still pass by on the track below the home, which is appropriately named for the magnificent
view it has of the Thames River. Our thanks to the folks at Fairview who contributed the photo at upper left, which shows
visitors arriving by train on 4/26/1913. [REFS: HC/04/27/1893/06; 1919ICC; 1923OL; 1928OL]
*******************
FALLS VILLAGE
|
| Dave Peters Collection |
|
| Dodd Center, UConn |
|
| Connecticut Historical Society |
FALLS VILLAGE. This small hamlet was east of the Housatonic River across
from the famed Amesville Iron Works located on the west bank. The complex was purchased by the HRR in 1871 and converted into
its northern construction and repair shops and lasted until shortly after the NHYNH&H leased the HRR in 1893 and gradually
phased out the facility. The map is from a a very useful publication entitled
Industrial Heritage in Northwest Connecticut [p198-199] and shows the spur track across
the river to the shops as the dashed line. The photo on the lower left shows the bridge in 1899 and rail cars in the distance.
[REFS: D82; R52]
*******************
FARMINGTON1
FARMINGTON1, located as seen on the
1855HC map. According to the Register, this station burned on 3/20/1886 in an early
morning lightning storm that also destroyed the NY&NE BRISTOL1 depot and struck the Canal line's CHESHIRE depot as well. The
structure here was described as an "old and dilapidated... a one storied shanty of the regulation provincial type for
country stations. The platform in front of it was only four feet wide. It was an important station only because passengers
changed cars here to go up on the New Hartford branch." We have found no photograph yet of this station. [REFS: NHER/03/20/1886/01; HDC/03/22/1886/03]
*******************
FARMINGTON2
FARMINGTON2. For all the newspaper talk above of this station's unimportance,
the Canal road's replacement for the earlier depot left nothing to be envied along the line. The cross-gabled brick replacement
was virtually identical to MOUNT CARMEL4 [see M stations] and was up by the end of 1886. The railroad commissioners said that
a "neat and tasteful brick passenger depot" had been built here. A matching, octagonal brick-enclosure covered the
water tank here. The commissioners mentioned in 1888 that a roof over the platform had been added. [REFS: CRC34.1886.9; CRC36.1888.21; D109]
*******************
FARNHAMS
A later stop on the CC, one mile north of RYE STREET. According to the annual report, a new station was built here
in 1912-1913. [REFS: NHAR42.1913.14]
******************* FENWICK
|
| Dave Peters Collection |
FENWICK. This terminus opened in 1872 with the extension
of the CV to the grounds of the New Saybrook Company's resort development at Fenwick Hall, which soon became a popular
excursion destination from Hartford. The 1893 map at lower left shows where
the Mansard-roofed structure stood, about 1,000 feet from the end of the track. The building was said to measure 50x25 feet, with an eight-foot overhang all
around. It was moved from here about a mile or so north
in 1916
to take the place of the SAYBROOK POINT1 station that had been
wrecked by a train in July. FENWICK was jacked up onto two flat cars and relocated, with the expectation that it would be
in use by December 1. Rail service to the popular Fenwick resort was discontinued about a year earlier, reported in the newspaper
to have been done at the request of the town of Old Saybrook, with the 27-ft wide railroad causeway, created by
filling in the original trestle work, to be turned into a highway. The moving of stations in this manner was fairly
common but the image of this one 'floating' across the South Cove is rather unique and it is not surprising that it was caught on
film. The station building was valued at $2,000 to $2,500
at the time. It was
used until 1922 when the Valley line was abandoned from SAYBROOK POINT up to SAYBROOK JUNCTION [see S stations]. [REFS: [HDC/11/07/1871/02: depot being built, cars next week; HDC/08/24/1872/02: depot in
use; HC/05/19/1915/16;
HC/09/08/1916/07;
HC/10/08/1916/18;
K98]
*******************
FISHERVILLE [> NORTH GROSVENORDALE]
*******************
FITCHVILLE
This and the next entry were station
points in the town of Bozrah, dating probably to 1871. [REFS: C77]
*******************
FITCHVILLE
JUNCTION
*******************
FIVE MILE RIVER [>
ROWAYTON]
*******************
FLANDERS [>
NORTH KENT]
*******************
FLORIDA
|
| Max Miller Collection |
FLORIDA. This small shelter
stood about a mile above BRANCHVILLE [see B stations]. This is not listed on the RRMs or in the GHDs, but does appear
on the RAM map in 1904 and also on timetables around that time. The north-looking view at top right is from the PUC inspection
of 10/21/25. The orientation of the val map is
to the south, putting the station in the northwest quadrant of this grade crossing, with RIDGEFIELD [see R stations] to the right in a westerly direction.
*******************
FLOYDVILLE
|
| Leroy Roberts Collection |
FLOYDVILLE. The 10/23/1925 PUC photograph shows a northward view of
the Floydville Rd. crossing in the town of East Granby, just over the Simsbury line. The structures on the left are storage
barns belonging to Marcus L. Floyd's Connecticut Tobacco Corp., which had just expanded operations in this area.
The newspaper said that a "station would be built in the coming week," to be used mostly for freight
but would be a flag stop for passengers as well. The article gives the location incorrectly as two miles below the East
Granby station, which was on the CNE. The stop was, in fact, about one mile below Granby on the Canal line. See Karr [p
69]. The snippet from the 1915 val map [click here] at upper right shows just a platform, which was west of the track and behind our photographer,
and a siding. The 1912 real estate map [add10/18] at lower left shows the platform
on the east side of the track, probably moved to the opposite side of the track when the siding was installed between the
two dates. [REFS: HC/10/13/1910/11]
*******************
FLUTEVILLE
|
| Dave Peters Collection |
FLUTEVILLE.
The Middletown newspaper said in 1874 that "The new post office at Fluteville is doing well. Three letters and a newspaper
passed through the office last week, and the sale of stamps amounted to fourteen cents." Even
with this charming and historic name, this was not a notable stop. Not surprisingly there was a factory
here that had done a large business for many years making flutes and other musical instruments. Being converted to the manufacture
of cutlery in 1879, the facility was said to be "but a few feet from the Naugatuck railroad, where there is a signal
platform." This sounds like a flag stop to us. With the 1883GHD unavailable, the first listing we find therein is 1884.
The railroad commissioners, whatever their criteria were, never saw fit to put
FLUTEVILLE on the map, so to speak, though many similar places of limited patronage were included on the map that came with
their annual report starting in 1876. Probably the only one to stand here, this classy little structure was
likely put up in the late 1880s, with its slate-covered, hip roof and twin finials. This stop, along with several others on
the NRR from Waterbury to Winsted, was eliminated in 1926. [REFS: DC/02/20/1874/02; HDC/02/10/1879/04;
HC/06/20/1926/A12; D92]
*******************
FOLEYS [>
WASHINING]
*******************
FORESTVILLE1
|
| Boston Public Library |
FORESTVILLE1. Found on 1880 Bailey bird's-eye map [click here. This
another fortunate coincidence of timing. Had the artist been here the following year, he would have found the successor station,
not this HP&F original that likely dated to 1850. We assume that is the freight station over to the left.
*******************
FORESTVILLE2
|
| Connecticut Historical Society |
|
| Dave Peters Collection |
FORESTVILLE2. This station was built in 1881 as the railroad
commissioners reported in their next annual report. A virtually identical station was put up by the NY&NE as
EAST HARTFORD2 in 1888. We know of no others built on this architectural model, which was apparently available for use
for nearly a decade. The tower was reportedly removed in the 1930s. [REFS: HDC/05/21/1881/01; CRC29.1882.34; R53]
*******************
FORT POINT
FORT
POINT. Station in the town of Ledyard on the N&W. Not sure how far back this stop dates.
*******************
FRANKLIN
FRANKLIN. The photo to the right is from Woodruff's 1941
history of the NLW&P and his captioning is instructive. It says that the station was built at a cost of $200 in 1851,
two years after the road opened to Willimantic, and that the shot was taken in 1936 after 85 years of service. We do
not know exactly how customary it was that a lighted newspaper torch was used to flag down trains at night, as Woodward claims,
but we have heard similar claims elsewhere. The 1854NL map shows the location in that year. The depot is not listed as still standing according to John Roy's 2007 Field
Guide [p53].
*******************
FREEMANS
A stop
in the town of Suffield about a mile north of the CNE's WEST SUFFIELD station and the last stop before the state line
on the Springfield branch. [REFS: SL23.4.7]
__________________________________
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