Canton Junction Depot - Canton, MA - Train Stations/Depots on Waymarking.com

In Canton, is a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Commuter Rail station known as Canton Depot. Near the entrance from Sherman Street is a stone depot building, now used for commercial purposes.

The depot itself is a stone structure with wooden supports and a peaked roof. There are bay windows on both sides. There are train canopies extending from both ends of the depot along the main line tracks. The canopy melds into one of the platforms for the MBTA station.

The modern station is dominated by a massive pedestrian bridge over two sets of tracks and two sets of platforms, one set for the Providence Branch and one for the Stoughton Branch. So, if you are waiting for a train, you need to know the branch that it is assigned to.

There is a plaque on the old depot that states that it was built in 1892 by Bradford Lee Gifford for the Old Colony Railroad. The Old Colony Railroad was started in 1845 and served southeastern Massachusetts. The line in front of the depot, along with the Canton Viaduct to the south, was built in 1835. Some time later, a branch was extended from this location through Canton Center and out to Stoughton. In 1888, the Old Colony Railroad leased out the Boston and Providence Railroad for 99 years. In 1893, one year after the station was built, the Old Colony was leased to the New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroad, giving that railroad a monopoly of rail transport in Southern New England. This railroad was merged with the Pennsylvania Central in 1969, then that railroad was merged into Conrail in 1976. At some point, both branch lines were transferred to the MBTA which runs passenger service on these lines (though freight does still go on the Stoughton line). Amtrak runs trails on the Providence line, but doesn't stop in Canton.

Sources:

Wikipedia (Old Colony Railroad):
(visit link)

(Canton Junction):
(visit link)

(Boston and Providence Railroad):
(visit link)

Is the station/depot currently used for railroad purposes?: No Is the station/depot open to the public?: Yes If the station/depot is not being used for railroad purposes, what is it currently used for?: Commercial purposes - food retail shop. What rail lines does/did the station/depot serve?: Boston and Providence RR/Old Colony RR/New York, New Haven and Hartford, RR/MBTA Station/Depot Web Site: [Web Link]

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Date Logged Log User Rating   05/19/2012 Misplaced Manatee visited it