Montello station is an MBTA Commuter Rail station in Brockton, Massachusetts. It serves the Middleborough/Lakeville Line. Located north of downtown Brockton, it has two full-length high-level platforms serving the line's two tracks, and is fully accessible.

Montello
An inbound train arriving at Montello station in 2013
General information
Location150 Spark Street
Brockton, Massachusetts
Coordinates42°06′23″N 71°01′18″W / 42.1064°N 71.0217°W / 42.1064; -71.0217
Line(s)Middleborough Main Line
Platforms2 side platforms
Tracks2
ConnectionsBus transport MBTA bus: 230
Bus transport BAT: 10/11
Construction
Parking425 spaces ($4.00 fee)
Bicycle facilities16 spaces
AccessibleYes
Other information
Fare zone4
History
OpenedSeptember 29, 1997[1]
ClosedJune 30, 1959 (former station)
Passengers
2018416 (weekday average boardings)[2]
Services
Preceding station MBTA Following station
Holbrook/​Randolph Middleborough/​Lakeville Line Brockton
Former services
Preceding station New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad Following station
Avon
toward Boston
Boston–​Middleborough Brockton
Future services
Preceding station MBTA Following station
Holbrook/​Randolph South Coast Rail Brockton
Location
Map

History edit

 
1890 illustration of Montello station

The Fall River Railroad opened through North Bridgewater (later Brockton) in 1846. It merged in 1854 into the Old Colony and Fall River Railroad, which became the Old Colony Railroad after several name changes.

By 1884, residents and shoe manufacturers in the Huntington Heights area of northern Brockton desired a station. After failing to reach an agreement with an abutting property owner, the railroad took the needed land by eminent domain in April 1884.[3] Construction of Huntington Heights station and freight house began that June. The brick station building was on the west side of the tracks, with the freight house on the east side.[4] The station opened later in 1884.[5][6][7]

Residents immediately desired to change the name of the station. Their first choice was "Newburg", but the second choice of "Montello" was chosen instead.[5][8] The name change took effect on January 15, 1885.[8][9] A new freight house was built in 1886.[10]

The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad acquired the Old Colony in 1893. A new passenger shelter designed by Bradford Gilbert and a new freight house were built at Montello around 1896 during the elimination of grade crossings in Brockton.[11]

Montello station closed on June 30, 1959, when all remaining Old Colony Division service ended. A new station opened on September 29, 1997, along with the rest of the Old Colony Lines service.[1]

References edit

  1. ^ a b Belcher, Jonathan. "Changes to Transit Service in the MBTA district" (PDF). Boston Street Railway Association.
  2. ^ Central Transportation Planning Staff (2019). "2018 Commuter Rail Counts". Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.
  3. ^ "Brockton". Fall River Daily Evening News. April 24, 1884. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Roundabout". The Fall River Daily Herald. June 5, 1884. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b "[Untitled]". Fall River Daily Evening News. December 26, 1884. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ Twenty-First Annual Report of the Old Colony Railroad Co. to the Stockholders. Old Colony Railroad Company. November 1884. p. 7.
  7. ^ Twenty-Second Annual Report of the Old Colony Railroad Co. to the Stockholders. Old Colony Railroad Company. November 1885. p. 7.
  8. ^ a b "Local Lines". The Boston Globe. January 20, 1885. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ Jacobs, Warren (October 1928). "Dates of Some of the Principal Events in the History of 100 Years of the Railroad in New England. 1826-1926". Railway and Locomotive Historical Society Bulletin. 17 (17). Railway and Locomotive Historical Society: 15–28. JSTOR 43504499.
  10. ^ Twenty-Third Annual Report of the Old Colony Railroad Co. to the Stockholders. Old Colony Railroad Company. November 1886. p. 6.
  11. ^ Snow, F. Herbert; Rollins, James W. Jr. (1895). "III. Abolition of Grade Crossings in the City of Brockton". Journal of the Association of Engineering Societies. Vol. 14. pp. 435–446.

External links edit