Washington station (New Jersey)

Washington is a former commuter railroad train station in the borough of Washington, Warren County, New Jersey. The station serviced trains operated by the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad on three different lines. Washington station handled the Lackawanna Old Road, which came from Port Morris Junction and continued to Portland, Pennsylvania; the Hampton Branch, which went to Hampton's Central Railroad of New Jersey station in Hunterdon County; and the Phillipsburg Branch, which operated to Phillipsburg Union Station. Washington station contained a single large brick depot and multiple platforms.

WASHINGTON
The former station site of the Washington station as seen from the former freight platform.
General information
Location	81 Railroad Avenue, Washington, Warren County, New Jersey 07882
Line(s)	Old Main Line Hampton Branch Phillipsburg Branch
Other information
Station code	921 (Morris and Essex)^[1] 1200 (Phillipsburg Branch)^[1] 1300 (Hampton Branch)^[1]
History
Opened	May 27, 1856^[2]
Closed	September 30, 1966^[3]
Rebuilt	1867^[4] 1900
Key dates
March 20, 1926	Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad discontinues passenger service to Hampton^[5]
June 20, 1943	Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad discontinues passenger service to Phillipsburg^[6]^[7]
March 15, 1944	Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad discontinues passenger service to Portland^[8]^[9]
Former services
Preceding station Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad Following station Oxford Furnace toward Portland Old Main Line Port Murray toward Lake Hopatcong Stewartsville toward Phillipsburg Phillipsburg Branch Terminus Changewater toward Hampton Hampton Branch
Washington Railroad Station
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
New Jersey Register of Historic Places
The site of the former freight platform.
Show map of Warren County, New Jersey Show map of New Jersey Show map of the United States
Location	Railroad Avenue, Washington, New Jersey
Coordinates	40°45′30″N 74°58′6″W / 40.75833°N 74.96833°W / 40.75833; -74.96833
Built	1900
Architect	Delaware Lackawanna & Western R.R.
NRHP reference No.	79001532^[10]
NJRHP No.	2794^[11]
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	July 3, 1979
Designated NJRHP	March 29, 1979

Railroad service to Washington began with the opening of the Warren Railroad on May 27, 1856, between Delaware and Hampton. The Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad took over operations the next year when they agreed to a perpetual lease.^[2] Service from the Morris and Essex Railroad joined in 1864, with an extension to Phillipsburg opening in 1865. The railroads built a new station depot in 1867 that would remain until 1900. On December 24, 1911, the Lackawanna Cut-Off opened between Slateford Junction, Pennsylvania and Port Morris, resulting in the station becoming part of a branch.^[12][13] Through the 1920s and 1940s, the Lackawanna started discontinuing passenger services. Passenger service between Washington and Hampton ended on March 20, 1926,^[5] and service to Phillipsburg ended on June 20, 1943. The former main line alignment stopped operations north of Washington on March 15, 1944. Service to Washington officially ended on September 30, 1966, when the line from Washington to Port Morris ended service as part of cuts made by the Erie-Lackawanna Railroad.^[3]

Washington station joined the National Register of Historic Places on July 3, 1979, as the Washington Railroad Station. The station was demolished in 1982.^[14][15]

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Warren County, New Jersey
• Lackawanna Old Road
• Phillipsburg Union Station

Bibliography

• Conley, Paul M. (1923). Pamphlet on Coal Mines and Mining. Charleston, West Virginia: American Constitutional Association.

References

1. List of Station Numbers. Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (Report). 1952. p. 3.
2. Conley 1923, p. 33.
3. "Erie Curtailment Approved by Judiciary". The Morning Call. Paterson, New Jersey. October 1, 1966. p. 1. Retrieved April 19, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.  
4. Davis, J.M. "Letter to the New York Chapter of the Railway and Locomotive Historical Society" (PDF). The Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad Company. p. 8. Retrieved September 27, 2018.
5. "Lackawanna to Abandon Passenger Service on Washington-Hampton Line". The Plainfield Courier-News. March 12, 1926. p. 19. Retrieved March 2, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
6. "Lackawanna Railroad Timetables" (PDF). New York, New York: Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. March 10, 1943. p. 4. Retrieved September 6, 2020.
7. "Lackawanna Railroad Timetables" (PDF). New York, New York: Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. June 20, 1943. p. 4. Retrieved September 6, 2020.
8. "Lackawanna Railroad Timetables" (PDF). New York, New York: Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. November 14, 1943. p. 14. Retrieved September 6, 2020.
9. "Lackawanna Railroad Timetables" (PDF). New York, New York: Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. March 15, 1944. p. 14. Retrieved September 6, 2020.
10. "National Register Information System – (#79001532)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
11. "New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places – Warren County" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection – Historic Preservation Office. December 27, 2023. p. 11.
12. "Cut-Off to Reduce Train Schedule to New York Half Hour". The Binghamton Press. December 7, 1911. p. 3. Retrieved March 2, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
13. "Lackawanna's Cut-Off Benefit". The Wall Street Journal. March 2, 2023. p. 2. Retrieved April 13, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.  
14. Willever, John W. (October 1978). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Washington Railroad Station". National Park Service. With accompanying 3 photos.
15. . Garden State Model Railway Club. Archived from the original on October 7, 2010. Retrieved September 16, 2010.

External links

• Image of Washington, New Jersey Lackawanna station in 1953