Hamilton/Wenham (MBTA station)

HAMILTON/WENHAM

The high-level platform at Hamilton/Wenham
Location Bay Road & Walnut Road
Hamilton, MA, 01982
Coordinates 42°36′36.36″N 70°52′28.16″W / 42.6101000°N 70.8744889°W / 42.6101000; -70.8744889Coordinates: 42°36′36.36″N 70°52′28.16″W / 42.6101000°N 70.8744889°W / 42.6101000; -70.8744889
Owned by MBTA
Line(s)
  Newburyport/Rockport Line
Platforms 1 side platform
Tracks 1
Construction
Parking 194 spaces
Bicycle facilities none
Disabled access Yes
Other information
Fare zone 5
History
Opened 1839[1]
Rebuilt July 10, 2002[2]
Previous names Hamilton & Wenham [3]
Traffic
Passengers (2013) 436 (weekday inbound average)[4]
Services
Preceding station   MBTA   Following station
Newburyport/Rockport Line
toward Newburyport

Hamilton/Wenham is a commuter rail station on the Newburyport Branch of the MBTA Commuter Rail's Newburyport/Rockport Line, located just south of the intersection of Bay Road (MA Route 1A) and Walnut Road in South Hamilton, Massachusetts. The station straddles the town line between Hamilton and Wenham, with the southern end of the platform geographically in Wenham.

History

An Essex Branch train at Wenham station in January 1892

Service to the Hamilton/Wenham area began in 1839 when the Eastern Railroad was extended through the station on its way to Portsmouth, New Hampshire.[1] The station has seen continuous service (via the Boston and Maine Railroad and MBTA Commuter Rail) ever since.

The former depot building and platform were located on the west side of the single track. In 2002, a new platform was constructed on the east side of the tracks, with a short high-level platform providing handicapped accessibility. The platform is several dozen feet south of the old platform location, so that trains no longer block Route 1A while stopped at the station.[2] The former platform is no longer extant.

The historic 1862 Hamilton/Wenham freight house burned down in late 2000.[5]

Branches

A trolley at Asbury Grove. The 1895 introduction of this trolley line caused the decline and abandonment of the B&M's parallel branch line.

Two branches were built from the station in the 1870s. The Asbury Grove Branch ran 1.1 miles north and west to Asbury Grove Camp Meeting Ground, a Methodist church meeting area, starting in August 1871. It ran summers until 1901, when competition from trolleys (which had arrived in 1895) forced its abandonment.[1][6]

The Essex Branch ran 6 miles north and east from Hamilton-Wenham to Essex and Conomo starting in 1872. The line had five stations:[1]

Only the Conomo depot, now a private residence, is extant.[5] The Essex - Conomo section closed in 1927, while the remainder of the branch was closed in December 1942 and the rails removed for the war effort.[6]

Bus service

The station is not served by any MBTA Bus routes. Until 1971, some rush hour trips of the route 451 North Beverly - Salem Depot route were extended to Hamilton/Wenham.[7]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Transportation" (PDF). Town of Hamilton. July 2002. pp. 122–123. Retrieved 24 May 2012.
  2. 1 2 "New MBTA Commuter Rail Stations Open; Train Service Expanded" (PDF). TRANSreport. Boston Metropolitan Planning Organization. August 2002. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 January 2011. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
  3. ↑ Labeled as "Hamilton & Wenham" on 1975 map.
  4. ↑ "Ridership and Service Statistics" (PDF) (14 ed.). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. 2014. Retrieved 21 December 2015.
  5. 1 2 Roy, John H. Jr. (2007). A Field Guide to Southern New England Railroad Depots and Freight Houses. Branch Line Press. pp. 144, 311. ISBN 9780942147087.
  6. 1 2 Karr, Ronald Dale (2010). Lost Railroads of New England (Third ed.). Branch Line Press. pp. 92, 106, 137. ISBN 9780942147117.
  7. ↑ Belcher, Jonathan (23 April 2012). "Changes to Transit Service in the MBTA district" (PDF). NETransit. Retrieved 24 May 2012.
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