Swampscott (MBTA station)
Encyclopedia
The Swampscott Railroad Depot is a historic passenger rail station in Stick/Eastlake style on MBTA Commuter Rail's
Newburyport/Rockport Line
. It is located at 10 Railroad Avene at Burrill Street in Swampscott, Massachusetts
. Parking is available both on Railroad Avenue on the south side of the tracks, and Columbia Street on the north side of the tracks.
, by the Boston housewright George W. Cram. Like most stations in Eastern Massachusetts, it was adopted by the MBTA in the late-20th Century. On August 28, 1998 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
.
MBTA Commuter Rail
The MBTA Commuter Rail serves as the regional rail arm of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, in the United States. It is operated under contract by the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company a joint partnership of Veolia Transportation, Bombardier Transportation and Alternate...
Newburyport/Rockport Line
Newburyport/Rockport Line
The Newburyport/Rockport Line is a branch of the MBTA Commuter Rail system, running northeast from downtown Boston, Massachusetts towards Cape Ann and the Merrimack Valley, serving the North Shore. The first leg serves Chelsea, Lynn, Swampscott, Salem, and Beverly. From there, a northern branch of...
. It is located at 10 Railroad Avene at Burrill Street in Swampscott, Massachusetts
Swampscott, Massachusetts
Swampscott is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States located 15 miles up the coast from Boston in an area known as the North Shore. The population is 13,787...
. Parking is available both on Railroad Avenue on the south side of the tracks, and Columbia Street on the north side of the tracks.
History
The station was originally built in 1868 (although some sources claim it was built in 1873) for the Boston and Maine RailroadBoston and Maine Railroad
The Boston and Maine Corporation , known as the Boston and Maine Railroad until 1964, was the dominant railroad of the northern New England region of the United States for a century...
, by the Boston housewright George W. Cram. Like most stations in Eastern Massachusetts, it was adopted by the MBTA in the late-20th Century. On August 28, 1998 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
Renovation
The train depot was renovated in the mid-1980s by an ad hoc group of residents, but it was in an advanced state of disrepair a mere decade later, so another group of residents approached Swampscott's Selectmen in 1996 with a proposal to rehab the historic structure. The Selectmen appointed a committee to undertake the restoration work, which got underway in May 1997. The committee raised $15,000 for the exterior restoration, but that was spent to clean out the debris that filled the interior of the building. A decorative gingerbread trim was installed, the original windows were recovered and the glass reglazed, the original doors were repaired and the exterior was painted with historically accurate colors. A sprinkler system was installed, and two clocks were installed in the tower, but work was not done on the interior.MBTA Bus Connections
- 441: Marblehead – Haymarket, Downtown Crossing or Wonderland via Central Square, Lynn & Lynnway
- 448: Marblehead – Downtown Crossing via Paradise Road or Humphrey Street, Lynnway, & Airport
- 442: Marblehead – Haymarket, Downtown Crossing or Wonderland via Central Square, Lynn & Lynnway
- 449: Marblehead – Downtown Crossing via Paradise Road or Humphrey Street, Lynnway, & Airport
- 455: Salem Depot – Wonderland via Central Square, Lynn
- 459: Salem Depot – Downtown Crossing via Logan Airport & Central Square, Lynn