Lexington Depot, or Lexington station, is a former train station in

Lexington, Massachusetts Lexington is a suburban town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is 10 miles (16 km) from Downtown Boston. The population was 34,454 as of the 2020 census. The area was originally inhabited by Native Americans, and was firs ...

on the

Lexington Branch Lexington may refer to: Places England * Laxton, Nottinghamshire, formerly Lexington Canada * Lexington, a district in Waterloo, Ontario United States * Lexington, Kentucky, the largest city with this name * Lexington, Massachusetts, the oldes ...

History

The station opened in 1846 as part of the

Lexington and West Cambridge Railroad The Lexington and West Cambridge Railroad was a railroad company chartered in 1845 and opened in 1846 that operated in eastern Massachusetts. It and its successors provided passenger service until 1977 and freight service until 1980 or early 1981. ...

. It was damaged by fire on November 24, 1918. Although a new station was planned, the old station was instead restored in 1921–22. These renovations, designed by Kilham, Hopkins & Greeley, included a cupola and colonnade. The line became part of the

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (abbreviated MBTA and known colloquially as "the T") is the public agency responsible for operating most public transportation services in Greater Boston, Massachusetts. The MBTA transit network in ...

(MBTA)

Commuter Rail Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting commuters to a central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Generally commuter rail systems are con ...

system in the 1960s, though the station building was converted to a bank by 1968. In January 1977, following a major snowstorm which temporarily shut down the Lexington Branch, the MBTA announced that service on the branch would not be restored;About the Lexington Branch
/ref> in the 1980s, the MBTA planned to extend the Red Line to Route 128 along the former path of the Lexington Branch as part of the Northwest Extension, including service to Lexington station, but fierce opposition from the residents of Arlington scuttled this plan, and the Northwest Extension was cut short to . The building now serves as the headquarters of the

Lexington Historical Society The Lexington Historical Society, founded in 1886 in Lexington, Massachusetts, preserves and celebrates Lexington's history, with a special emphasis on the town's important role in the beginning of the American Revolution. The Society presents e ...

. The

Minuteman Bikeway The Minuteman Bikeway is a 10-mile (16-kilometre) paved multi-use rail trail located in the Greater Boston area of Massachusetts. It runs from Bedford to Alewife station, at the northern end of the Red Line in Cambridge, passing through the town ...

runs through the former trainshed adjacent to the former station platforms. Lexington and

Bedford Depot Bedford Depot is a historic railroad depot in Bedford, Massachusetts, United States. Bedford was the junction of the Reformatory Branch and the Lexington Branch of the Boston and Maine Railroad; it saw passenger service until 1977 as the stub of ...

are the only remaining station buildings from the Lexington Branch.

References

External links

* * MBTA Commuter Rail stations in Middlesex County, Massachusetts Former MBTA stations in Massachusetts Historic American Engineering Record in Massachusetts Lexington, Massachusetts Railway stations in the United States opened in 1846 Railway stations closed in 1977 1846 establishments in Massachusetts {{Massachusetts-railstation-stub