Jamestown station

Jamestown station is a historic train station located at Jamestown in Chautauqua County, New York. Although no longer an active railroad station due to a lack of passenger service in the area after a restoration done in 2011 the building currently serves as a bus transportation center and community space for Jamestown. The first train arrived at Jamestown on August 25, 1860 as part of the Atlantic and Great Western Railroad.

Jamestown
Location211-217 West Second Street
Jamestown, New York 14701
Owned byErie Railroad (1895–1960)
Erie Lackawanna Railroad (1960–1976)
Conrail (1976–1992)
City of Jamestown (1992–2017)
National Comedy Center (2017–present)
Line(s)Main Line (Meadville Division)
Buffalo and Southwestern Railroad
Platforms1 island platform (former)
Tracks3 (former)
Connections Chautauqua Area Regional Transit System
Coach USA
Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach
Construction
Platform levels2
Bicycle facilitiesYes
Disabled accessYes
Other information
Station code5017[1]
History
OpenedAugust 25, 1860 (1860-08-25)[2]
ClosedJanuary 6, 1970 (1970-01-06)
Rebuilt1897 (1897)
1924 (1924)
June 7, 1932 (June 7, 1932)[3]
2011 (2011)
Former services
Preceding station Erie Railroad Following station
Cambridge Springs
toward Chicago
 Main Line Salamanca
toward Jersey City
Lakewood
toward Chicago
 Falconer
toward Jersey City
Terminus Buffalo and South Western Railroad Falconer
toward Buffalo
Erie Railroad Station
Location211-217 W. Second St., Jamestown, New York
Coordinates42°5′40″N 79°14′41″W
Area1.4 acres (0.6 ha)
Built1931
Architectural styleArt Deco
NRHP reference No.03000045[4]
Added to NRHPMay 2, 2003

The station is part of the National Comedy Center.

History

The station was constructed in 1931-1932, for the Erie Railroad, as a replacement for a much older station.[5] It passed on to successor Erie Lackawanna in 1960 and continued to serve as a station for the railroad's long distance trains operating between Hoboken and Chicago. The last trains to use the station were the Atlantic Express/Pacific Express (discontinued, 1965) and the Lake Cities (discontinued, January 1970). On April 1, 1976 Erie Lackawanna became part of the Conrail system, which was taken over in turn by CSX Transportation and the Norfolk Southern Railway on June 1, 1999. Local railroad offices continued to occupy the building.

The station passed to private ownership and was slowly stripped of salvageable materials. In 1992, the Jamestown Urban Renewal Agency took ownership of the station with $120,000 in funding from the federal Community Development Block Grant program. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2003 as the Erie Railroad Station.[6] Senator Charles Schumer announced grant monies to help restore the station as a commercial and transit hub on August 23, 2010. Upon completion of the $12 million (2012 USD) restoration, the restored station was opened to the public on October 26, 2012.[7] At this point the station was re-named the Jamestown Gateway Station.

In 2017, the National Comedy Center took over ownership of the station from the city and it's associated agencies.[8] The Jamestown station and surrounding area is now part of the National Comedy Center, which was opened in 2018.

Services

The Chautauqua Area Regional Transit System (CARTS) and Coach USA use the facility.

The station provides no Amtrak or commuter rail service. However, it is a stop for Amtrak's Thruway Motorcoach buses at a Chautauqua Area Regional Transportation Service bus shelter taking commuters to Buffalo's Exchange Street Station.[9]

  • 1909 postcard of older Erie Station Building.
  • Jamestown Gateway Station interior
  • Jamestown Gateway Station interior
  • Jamestown Gateway Station hallway
  • Jamestown Gateway station front prior to the 2011 renovation

See also

References
  1. "List of Station Names and Numbers". Baggage Department. Jersey City, New Jersey: Erie Railroad. May 1, 1916. Retrieved July 7, 2012.
  2. "Erie Railroad of Days Long Gone By Recalled by Old Photograph". Jamestown Evening Journal. July 26, 1939. p. 10. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  3. "New Erie Rail Station Opened at Jamestown". Democrat and Chronicle. June 8, 1932. p. 14. Retrieved September 24, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  5. Claire L. Ross (September 2002). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Erie Railroad Station". New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Retrieved June 14, 2009. See also: "Accompanying seven photos".
  6. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  7. Tabor, Brian (October 26, 2012). "Railroad station restored in Jamestown". WIVB-TV. Buffalo, New York. Archived from the original on October 28, 2012. Retrieved November 7, 2012.
  8. "25-Year Development Odyssey: The National Comedy Center Finds a Home in Jamestown's Historic Train Station". WRFA-LP 107.9 FM. 2018-06-09. Retrieved 2020-11-12.
  9. Jamestown, NY - Bus Stop (JMN); Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach

Media related to Jamestown Gateway Train Station at Wikimedia Commons

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