Haddon Heights Train Station - Haddon Heights, NJ
N 39° 52.951 W 075° 03.534
18S E 494963 N 4414719
The story of the railroad & the community of Haddon Heights began in 1877 w/ the construction of the Phila. & Atlantic City R.R. through the area, which was then part of Center & Haddon Twp. The station represents the historical nature of this town.
Waymark Code: WM73NB
Location: New Jersey, United States
Date Posted: 08/27/2009
Views: 4
The train station has become the focal point of the historic district along Station Avenue. The district is two blocks long and this train station is at the center of it. The first tracks were narrow gauge, replaced with standard gauge in 1884. Today it is used for freight cars. The community has greened up this place, adding a nice flower garden, a fountain with benches, interpretives, a wrought iron fence, and a gazebo across the road.
From an interpretive across the street
n 1890, Benjamin A. Lippincott was given permission by the railroad to construct a passenger station here on his land, and construction of a freight storage station followed in 1906. While the area was farmland prior to this time, the establishment of commuter railroad lines to Philadelphia and the construction of the passenger station contributed to the development of the area as a suburban town. Lippincott and other property owners around the railroad station began to subdivide and sell their land, lending to the growth of the community and the incorporation of the Borough of Haddon Heights in 1904.
Rail passenger service continued until 1965. The railroad tracks are still in service for freight trains. Haddon Heights is one of very few New Jersey communities that still has its original passenger and freight stations."
Something interesting from a borough website:
"
The story goes that Mayor Joseph McCullough visited Main Street in the new Walt Disney World in Florida and thought, “We have an original in Haddon Heights.” He came back and asked the Borough Clerk what measures could protect Station Avenue against the demolition and redevelopment that was going on in other New Jersey towns. Historic districting was the answer. The Haddon Heights Historic District Ordinance was passed in 1975 (Article XVII, Ordinance No. 493, September 23, 1975) after several public meetings. "
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