Commuter Rail Foundations

Today’s MBTA commuter rail network is built on the legacy of eight nineteenth-century railroad companies. The Boston & Lowell VC3.1 ran from Boston, through the Merrimack Valley and into northern New England. The Eastern VC3.3 linked Boston and Portland, Maine. The Fitchburg {{VC3.4}} served northern Massachusetts and, via the Hoosac Tunnel beneath the Berkshires, communities westward. The Boston & Maine’s nascent network VC3.2 paralleled much of the Eastern’s. The Old Colony’s simple Boston to Plymouth line sprouted branches sprawling throughout southeastern Massachusetts. VC3.6 The Boston & Providence and Boston & New York Central were established to link their namesake cities.

Through leases and mergers, and sometimes after bankruptcies and purchases, by 1900 Boston’s eight railroads were effectively consolidated into three: the Boston & Maine, the Boston & Albany, VC3.5 and the New Haven. VC3.7 Correspondingly, railroads consolidated Boston’s seven passenger terminals into two, North Station and South Station. The Boston & Albany and New Haven paired up to create the Boston Terminal Company and with it, South Station. A detailed plan VC3.8 prepared by the Boston Terminal Company reveals the sprawling trackage and facilities of South Station, the largest train station ever constructed in New England.