West Barnstable station

West Barnstable is a railway station in West Barnstable, Massachusetts. The train station currently serves as a weekend stop for several excursion trains operated by the Cape Cod Central Railroad.

West Barnstable
West Barnstable station in 2012
Location2469 Meetinghouse Way (Route 149)
West Barnstable, Massachusetts
Coordinates41°42′25″N 70°22′27″W
Owned byTown of Barnstable, Massachusetts
Line(s)Cape Main Line
Platforms1 side platform
Construction
ParkingSmall lot
Disabled accessYes
History
Opened1911
Rebuilt1980s (Currently being restored)
Services
Preceding station Cape Cod Central Railroad Following station
Sandwich
toward Buzzards Bay
 Main Line Hyannis
Terminus
Former services
Preceding station Amtrak Following station
Sandwich
toward New York
 Cape Codder
1986–1996
 Hyannis
Terminus
Preceding station Cape Cod and Hyannis Railroad Following station
Sandwich
toward Braintree or Attleboro
 Braintree-Hyannis
Closed 1988
 Hyannis
Terminus

The station building, which is owned by the Town of Barnstable, Massachusetts, is the headquarters on the Cape Cod Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society (NRHS). The Cape Cod Chapter of the NRHS signed a twenty-year lease on the building in 2012. They have been restoring it as a historical railway station and museum since 2001 when they became the custodian of the building.

The station building, which is open to the public on Saturdays between May and October, also hosts numerous special events, including National Train Day in May, the West Barnstable village festival in August and the Cranberry Express in October.[1]

History
Postcard of original station, ca. 1905

The original passenger station in West Barnstable was opened in 1854 by the Cape Cod Railroad.[2]

This station was torn down and a new station was built, at the same location, by the New Haven Railroad in 1911 at a cost of $18,000. The original architecture style of the station was identical to the stations that the New Haven Railroad built in Buzzards Bay and Sagamore around the same time.[3]

The station served trains to Boston and seasonal trains to New York City and remained in service until 1964 when the New Haven Railroad ran its last passenger trains to Cape Cod including the Day Cape Codder. Between 1986 and 1996 it was an unmanned station stop for Amtrak's Cape Codder service. It is one station that has been eliminated from the schedule of the seasonal Cape Flyer train service between Boston and Hyannis. From the 19th Century, under the Old Colony Railroad and until 1964 under the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad, passenger trains served Sandwich. Trains of the 1940s-1960s included the Day Cape Codder and the Neptune.

The property once included a detached freight house but it was torn down a few decades ago.

The station was used as a shooting location for the feature films The Golden Boys and The Lightkeepers.

Cape Cod Central Railroad

During the summer, West Barnstable serves as a stop for select excursion trains running from Hyannis to the Cape Cod Canal,[4] often including an additional stop at the historic Pairpoint Glass facility in Sagamore.[5] Although trains depart from Hyannis every day of the week during the summer, West Barnstable is only served on Saturdays.

See also

References
  1. "Cape Cod Chapter NRHS". Retrieved July 16, 2013.
  2. Farson, Robert H. (1993). Cape Cod Railroads Including Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. Joan Hollister Farson (First ed.). Yarmouthport, Massachusetts: Cape Cod Historical Publications. ISBN 0-9616740-1-6.
  3. "Cape Cod Chapter NRHS". Cape Cod Chapter NRHS. Retrieved June 30, 2013.
  4. "Cape Cod Excursion Train Departing Hyannis and West Barnstable". Cape Cod Central Railroad. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  5. "Cape Cod Excursion Train and Pairpoint Glass Tour". Cape Cod Central Railroad. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
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