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Wakefield Centre station is a former
The station building is located on the south side of Water Street, east of Main Street, and on the west side of a now-abandoned railroad right of way. It is a single-story wood-frame structure, rectangular in plan, with a hip roof that has deep eaves supported by large knee braces, which are set in paneled pilasters on the walls. A polygonal bay projects on the track-facing facade, that would have been used by a telegraph operator or ticket agent.
The railroad was built through Wakefield around 1850, and had immediate positive economic consequences. One line was built north to Salem, and it is along this line that a station at this site was probably established around that time. A second line was built toward Haverhill, and is now used for the
railway station
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
at 57 Water Street ( Route 129) in Wakefield, Massachusetts
Wakefield is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, incorporated in 1812 and located about north-northwest of Downtown Boston. Wakefield's population was 27,090 at the 2020 census. Wakefield offers ...
. Built in the early 1870s, it is a surviving element of the railroad infrastructure that enabled Wakefield's growth as an industrial center in the late 19th century. The depot was added to the National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 1989 as Centre Depot. As of 2008, the former depot serves as a restaurant.
Description and history
The station building is located on the south side of Water Street, east of Main Street, and on the west side of a now-abandoned railroad right of way. It is a single-story wood-frame structure, rectangular in plan, with a hip roof that has deep eaves supported by large knee braces, which are set in paneled pilasters on the walls. A polygonal bay projects on the track-facing facade, that would have been used by a telegraph operator or ticket agent.
The railroad was built through Wakefield around 1850, and had immediate positive economic consequences. One line was built north to Salem, and it is along this line that a station at this site was probably established around that time. A second line was built toward Haverhill, and is now used for the Haverhill Line
The Haverhill Line (formerly named the Haverhill/Reading Line) is a branch of the MBTA Commuter Rail system, running north from downtown Boston, Massachusetts through the cities and towns of
Malden, Melrose, Wakefield, Reading, Wilmington, An ...
of the MBTA Commuter Rail
The MBTA Commuter Rail system serves as the commuter rail arm of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's transportation coverage of Greater Boston in the United States. Trains run over of track to 141 different stations, with 58 statio ...
. The Salem line was used by two of Wakefield's major manufacturers, the Wakefield Rattan Company
The Wakefield Rattan Company was the world's leading manufacturer of rattan furniture and objects in the second half of the 19th century. Founded by Cyrus Wakefield in 1851 in South Reading, Massachusetts (now Wakefield), it perfected machinery f ...
, and the L. B. Evans Shoe Company. The present station first appears on city maps in 1874, suggesting a construction date between then and 1870.
The former station building was converted to a restaurant by 1962. The exterior was restored to its original red-and-white colors based on a 1917 postcard.
See also
* Wakefield station (MBTA), which can be found west of this station. *National Register of Historic Places listings in Wakefield, Massachusetts
This is a list of properties and historic districts in Wakefield, Massachusetts, that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The locations of National Register properties and districts (at least for all showing latitude and long ...
*National Register of Historic Places listings in Middlesex County, Massachusetts
This is a listing of places in Middlesex County in the U.S. state of Massachusetts that are listed in the National Register of Historic Places. With more than 1,300 listings, the county has more listings than any other county in the United Sta ...
References
External links
{{National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts Stations along Boston and Maine Railroad lines Railway stations in Middlesex County, Massachusetts Former railway stations in Massachusetts Railway stations on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts National Register of Historic Places in Wakefield, Massachusetts Railway stations in the United States opened in 1900