Boston Switch
Amtrak Boston to Washington Acela train 2159 coils around past the old New Haven era concrete milepost 190 on the famed Shoreline route. In the foreground are the rails of the Providence and Worcester Railroad at this one time junction known as 'Boston Switch' five miles north of Providence Union Station. Visible to the left of the lead power car and partially obscured by the catenary poles and spring growth is the crumbling tile roofed pagoda style interlocking tower.
This line was built as the Boston & Providence in 1847 as a new route into the city from East Jct. near South Attleboro, MA. Their original 1835 route traveled to East Providence where passengers and freight were ferried across the Providence River into downtown. From this point to Union Station the P&W and B&P were operated a joint facility. In 1892 the P&W was leased to the New Haven and a year later the former B&P (by then in the Old Colony fold) joined the growing empire and both routes now fell under the aegis of the same company.
In 1914 a massive grade separation and line relocation project in Pawtucket took place. This was about the eastern limits of the work and according to Edward J. Ozog's phenomenal Railroad's of Rhode Island site:
"SS 156 was built to protect the east end of the line relocation. Switches and signals were operated by electricity. The plan of the tower was similar to SS 154 built at the same time at the west end of the relocation but adjusted for its location and orientation. The tower was reduced to short hours when the depression struck and it was closed in 1935 and its duties transferred to Woodlawn Tower. In 1937 the interlocking machine was sent to Bridgeport for use in SS 60.".
Remarkably some 87 years after the last shift was worked here it still stands guard as a tangible link to the Ocean State's railroading heritage
Central Falls, Rhode Island
Monday May 9, 2022
Boston Switch
Amtrak Boston to Washington Acela train 2159 coils around past the old New Haven era concrete milepost 190 on the famed Shoreline route. In the foreground are the rails of the Providence and Worcester Railroad at this one time junction known as 'Boston Switch' five miles north of Providence Union Station. Visible to the left of the lead power car and partially obscured by the catenary poles and spring growth is the crumbling tile roofed pagoda style interlocking tower.
This line was built as the Boston & Providence in 1847 as a new route into the city from East Jct. near South Attleboro, MA. Their original 1835 route traveled to East Providence where passengers and freight were ferried across the Providence River into downtown. From this point to Union Station the P&W and B&P were operated a joint facility. In 1892 the P&W was leased to the New Haven and a year later the former B&P (by then in the Old Colony fold) joined the growing empire and both routes now fell under the aegis of the same company.
In 1914 a massive grade separation and line relocation project in Pawtucket took place. This was about the eastern limits of the work and according to Edward J. Ozog's phenomenal Railroad's of Rhode Island site:
"SS 156 was built to protect the east end of the line relocation. Switches and signals were operated by electricity. The plan of the tower was similar to SS 154 built at the same time at the west end of the relocation but adjusted for its location and orientation. The tower was reduced to short hours when the depression struck and it was closed in 1935 and its duties transferred to Woodlawn Tower. In 1937 the interlocking machine was sent to Bridgeport for use in SS 60.".
Remarkably some 87 years after the last shift was worked here it still stands guard as a tangible link to the Ocean State's railroading heritage
Central Falls, Rhode Island
Monday May 9, 2022