Wakefield station is an MBTA Commuter Rail station 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 offer ...

served by 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, And ...

. The station has two side platforms, which are not

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. ...

, serving the line's two tracks. The station building, constructed in 1889, was listed on 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 1989 as Wakefield Upper Depot.

History

The Boston and Maine Railroad built its mainline through South Reading in 1845, primarily through the efforts of Thomas Spaulding, a local businessman. The first station was a wooden structure on the east side of the tracks. A new station building was constructed in 1889; the original depot was relocated and converted to a freight house. By 1893, the town had six stations with as many as 60 trains per day. The building is architecturally distinctive in the town as an example of Panel Brick architecture. The station building was converted to commercial use by 1968. A fire in one of the businesses inside gutted the structure late on December 17, 1974. The -thick brick walls survived the fire; it was rebuilt by 1977, with a pharmaceutical company the first occupant. The building was listed on the

in 1989 as Wakefield Upper Depot. The original station building, still extant, is located on North Avenue about to the south. The former Lynnfield Centre depot from the

Newburyport Railroad The Newburyport Railroad (later known as the Newburyport Branch of the Boston and Maine Railroad) was a railroad that came about from the merger of three small rail companies into one rail line to compete with the Eastern Railroad for service be ...

line, closed in 1959, is located at the north end of the 1889-built station. Wakefield Centre station (Center Depot), another NRHP-listed station, is about to the east.

References

External links

MBTA - WakefieldStation on Google Maps Street View
MBTA Commuter Rail stations in Middlesex County, Massachusetts Stations along Boston and Maine Railroad lines Railway stations in the United States opened in 1889 Railway stations on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts Buildings and structures in Wakefield, Massachusetts National Register of Historic Places in Wakefield, Massachusetts {{MBTA-stub