newhavenrailroad

wonderful photograph!

Wonderfully composed image as well as being of historical interest.

It's one of my all-time favorite photos. Glad you enjoy it! --Helena

"As one approached Boston Terminal (South Station) from the South on the former Old Colony Mainline, all inbound and outbound trains had to cross one of the 3 Rolling Lift Bridges that spanned the South Bay Channel. These bridges, which took 2 years to build carried untold amount of passengers & trains during their 87 year lifetime.

"The driving force to build Boston Terminal (South Station's Real Name) back in 1894 required the co-operation & consolidation of 4 Railroads: The New England Railroad (NY&NE), The Boston & Providence Railroad (B&P), the Old Colony Railroad (OCRR), and the Boston & Albany Railroad (B&A) to all share 1 common railroad terminal instead of being spread out all over Boston. In order to do this, the planners needed to accommodate the approach tracks for these 4 railroads & funnel them all into the South Station yards & platforms."

Read more about this bridge in this fascinating blog, The Rolling Lift Bridge by John Sheridan.

The Library of Congress has a collection of 47 amazing photographs of the Fort Point Channel Rolling Lift Bridge in their collection, including several detail views that no ordinary person would ever have the chance to see in person.

Tower bridges – Then and Now (100+ Years Later)

"Tower bridges" 1904 by Detroit Publishing Company



"Old Colony Railroad Bridge" 2010 by Penny Camberville

"When the bridges were torn-down in the 1980s, plans were created to preserve the memory of the bridges that kept traffic moving for over 85 years. If you are coming to South Station on any of the Old Colony tracks, look to the right as the train is crossing the remains of Fort Point Channel. There you will see, painted bright red is a piece of the original bridge - still watching passengers cross the channel." – John Sheridan, "The Rolling Lift Bridge"

www.flickr.com/photos/pixelwrangler/: Thank you for this historical context! From railroad bridge to public art--100 years of change.

Vice President of the New York Central Lines I started a Wikipedia biography: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Humphrey_Hustis,_Sr. James Humphrey Hustis, Sr. (1864 - September 18, 1942) was president of the New Haven Railroad and vice president of the New York Central Lines.

This was an accident at Stamford, Connecticut, on June 12, 1913. A west-bound express train from Boston apparently did not stop for a signal, and rammed into the (wooden) Skylark chair-car (pictured above), that was stopped at Stamford Station, killing six people and injuring dozens more. There was an extensive investigation amid differing claims that the brakes were either faulty, or were in excellent condition. — excerpted from New York Times. This accident appears to mark the end of major railroads using wooden coaches, with all steel construction becoming the norm.[1] (Note the large wheels of the locomotive are under the wooden coach car.)  

Pixel Wrangler: Thanks for supplying further information and references. We'll upgrade our source data with the specifics and reload the description.

Ghastly. The engine went more than half way through the passenger car. Interesting that the locomotive wasn't damaged in the collision. Two days later its brakes were tested at full speed by a panel of experts. The engine appears to be a 4-6-2 (Pacific) locomotive.