Needham Heights station is an

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 ...

station in the Needham Heights neighborhood of

Needham, Massachusetts Needham ( ) is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts. A suburb of Boston, its population was 32,091 at the 2020 U.S. Census. It is home of Olin College. History Early settlement Needham was first settled in 1680 with the purchase of a ...

. It is the terminus of the

Needham Line The Needham Line is a branch of the MBTA Commuter Rail system, running west from downtown Boston, Massachusetts through Roxbury, Jamaica Plain, Roslindale, West Roxbury, and the town of Needham. The second-shortest line of the system at just ...

. The station has one low-level side platform with a mini-high section for

accessibility Accessibility is the design of products, devices, services, vehicles, or environments so as to be usable by people with disabilities. The concept of accessible design and practice of accessible development ensures both "direct access" (i. ...

serving the single track of the Needham Branch. Highlandville station opened around 1860 as an

infill station An infill station (sometimes in-fill station) is a train station built on an existing passenger rail, rapid transit, or light rail line to address demand in a location between existing stations. Such stations take advantage of existing train serv ...

on the New York and Boston Railroad (

Charles River Branch Railroad The Charles River Railroad was a railroad in Massachusetts. It ran from a connection with the end of the Charles River Branch Railroad in Dover to Bellingham through the current-day towns of Medfield, Millis, and Medway. Charles River Branch ...

). It was renamed Needham Heights in 1907. It became the terminus of passenger service on the line in 1932. The station was rebuilt during the 1979–1987 closure of the Needham Line.

History

Highlandville

On June 1, 1853, the

was extended from

Newton Upper Falls Newton Upper Falls is one of the thirteen villages within the city of Newton in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The area borders Needham, Massachusetts to the southwest, Wellesley, Massachusetts to the west, the West Roxbury neig ...

into Needham as the first stage of a line to

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

and beyond. The railroad was not able to follow its original plan to go through the East Village, Needham's historical center, because one landowner refused to sell. Instead, it was routed to Great Plain station in Great Plain Village further to the east. A station at Highlandville was added around 1860, by which time the line was under control of the New York and Boston Railroad.

Needham Heights

The line became part of the

New Haven Railroad The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad , commonly known as The Consolidated, or simply as the New Haven, was a railroad that operated in the New England region of the United States from 1872 to December 31, 1968. Founded by the merger of ...

's Midland Division in 1898. Around 1900, a movement began to change the name of the Highlandville neighborhood. Needham Highlands was rejected for the similarity to Newton Highlands; on May 28, 1907, the post office was renamed as Needham Heights. The station was also changed to Needham Heights by November 1907.

Needham Cutoff

Mini-high platform at Needham Heights station, March 2016

In 1906, the New Haven opened the

Needham cutoff The Needham Line is a branch of the MBTA Commuter Rail system, running west from downtown Boston, Massachusetts through Roxbury, Jamaica Plain, Roslindale, West Roxbury, and the town of Needham. The second-shortest line of the system at jus ...

, a faster route to Boston that avoided the rival

Boston and Albany Railroad The Boston and Albany Railroad was a railroad connecting Boston, Massachusetts to Albany, New York, later becoming part of the New York Central Railroad system, Conrail, and CSX Transportation. The line is currently used by CSX for freight. Pass ...

Highland branch The Highland branch, also known as the Newton Highlands branch, was a suburban railway line in Boston, Massachusetts. It was opened by the Boston and Albany Railroad in 1886 to serve the growing community of Newton, Massachusetts. The line was ...

tracks. The line through Needham was thus downgraded from an intercity route to a branch line. Loop service jointly run by the B&A and the New Haven operated over the cutoff and the Highland branch via Needham from 1911 to 1914; after that, most Needham trains originated at Needham Heights. Service between Newton Highlands and Newton Upper Falls ended in 1927, and between Needham Heights and Newton Upper Falls in 1932, leaving Needham Heights as the terminus of the line.

MBTA era

The Needham Heights station building, a gable-roofed wooden structure, was removed in the 1960s. The

MBTA 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 ...

bought

Penn Central The Penn Central Transportation Company, commonly abbreviated to Penn Central, was an American Railroad classes, class I railroad that operated from 1968 to 1976. Penn Central combined three traditional corporate rivals (the Pennsylvania Railroad ...

's southside commuter rail assets, including the Needham Line, on January 27, 1973. The station was closed with the rest of the line from October 13, 1979 to October 19, 1987 during Southwest Corridor construction. A mini-high platform was added during the closure, making Needham Heights fully

accessible Accessibility is the design of products, devices, services, vehicles, or environments so as to be usable by people with disabilities. The concept of accessible design and practice of accessible development ensures both "direct access" (i.e ...

. The mini-high platform was indefinitely closed on September 8, 2022, with a portable lift used for accessibility; it reopened by early November.

References

External links

{{commons category
MBTA – Needham Heights

Station on Google Maps Street View
MBTA Commuter Rail stations in Norfolk County, Massachusetts Buildings and structures in Needham, Massachusetts Stations along Old Colony Railroad lines