St. James is a historic station on the

Port Jefferson Branch The Port Jefferson Branch is a rail line and service owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The branch splits from the Main Line (Long Island Rail Road), Main Line just east of Hicksville ...

of the Long Island Rail Road. The station is located on Lake Avenue and Railroad Avenue, just south of

New York State Route 25A New York State Route 25A (NY 25A) is a state highway on Long Island in New York, United States. It serves as the main east–west route for most of the North Shore of Long Island, running for from Interstate 495 (I-495) at the ...

in St. James, Suffolk County, New York.

History

St. James station was built in 1873, along the Smithtown and Port Jefferson Railroad in the northern part of the Town of Smithtown. The station house, designed by Calvin L'Hommedieu, remains the second-oldest existing station-house of the Long Island Rail Road, surpassed only by Hewlett station, which was originally built in 1869 by the

South Side Railroad of Long Island The South Side Railroad of Long Island was a railroad company in the U.S. state of New York. Chartered in 1860 and first opened in 1867 as a competitor to the Long Island Rail Road, it was reorganized in 1874 as the Southern Railroad of Long Isl ...

. When the Flowerfield station to the east was abandoned in 1958, the commuters who previously used that depot at the

Gyrodyne Company of America Gyrodyne Company of America, Inc. is a real estate investment trust that owns, leases, and manages commercial properties along the Eastern Coast of the United States. Gyrodyne's headquarters are located in Saint James, New York, in Eastern Long ...

were redirected to the St. James and Stony Brook, New York depots. Until 1964, the station also contained an express house and an outhouse, both of which were demolished along with some trees to make room for an expanded parking lot, much to the chagrin of the community. The station is located within the

Saint James District Saint James District is a national historic district located at St. James in Smithtown Town, Suffolk County, New York. The district includes 21 contributing buildings, two contributing sites, and one contributing structure. Prominent building ...

, which 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 ...

in 1973. The station faced two restoration projects in the MTA era. The first took place in 1974, and the second took place in 1997, when the LIRR installed high-level platforms at the station. No buses stop at the station. However, local suburban taxicab service is available, and the station serves as a stop along New York State Bicycle Route 25. The only modifications to the depot in recent years have been to make the station more accessible to the disabled.

Station layout

This station has one 12-car-long high-level

side platform A side platform (also known as a marginal platform or a single-face platform) is a platform positioned to the side of one or more railway tracks or guideways at a railway station, tram stop, or transitway. A station having dual side platform ...

north of the track.

Image gallery

File:Saint James Station - Southwest View.JPG, St. James station looking west from Lake Avenue South crossing File:St James trainstation 0823.JPG, Interior of the station File:Saint James Station War Memorial.JPG, St. James station war memorial, sponsored by the American Legion File:LIRR DE30AC 401 at St. James station.jpg, Westbound train leaving the station

References

External links

* *St. James Station Historical Restoration Project; March 21, 1997 (TrainsAreFun)
CoverPages 1 & 2Flickr Photo

Station from Lake Avenue from Google Maps Street View
{{Authority control Long Island Rail Road stations in Suffolk County, New York Railway stations in the United States opened in 1873 Smithtown, New York 1873 establishments in New York (state) Historic district contributing properties in New York (state) National Register of Historic Places in Suffolk County, New York Railway stations on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state)