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Bartlett Village Railroad Station And yard
This page was researched and written by Scotty Mallett
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The first Bartlett Railroad station was built in the fall of 1872 and passenger trains started running to Bartlett on October 20, 1873. The first station was built next to Mill Brook and was 3 stories in height. This station was lost along with the freight house in the town fire of 1896. (See Side Bar)
The first Bartlett Village Station circa 1873 Photo Credit Bill Gove
The second station was built in 1896 after the town fire. It was a large 3 storied building and was so well liked and constructed it was mentioned in the State of New Hampshire Railroad commissioner’s Report. The station had a ticket office, a telegrapher’s office, a western union office, a waiting Room, a Restaurant, A large station platform with a canopy to protect the passengers from the elements, oak walls with gold inlay, marble wash basins and hardwood floors.
There are conflicting dates of when this station burned but Maine Central Railroad records say it burned in 1920.
The third station was built that same year (1920). The reason for the speedy rebuild of the 3rd and final Bartlett station is because Maine Central used elements of the second station for the new 3rd station. This station used the reclaimed 1st floor the second and 3rd floor were removed. It retained the marble wash basins, the telegraphers, Western Union and ticket offices, the hardwood floors, the waiting room and the oak walls with gold inlay.
The Bartlett Station, on the right, early 1950's. Big building at left was the Honeywell Thermostat Factory and before that G.K Howard's Hardware Merchandise store. (Mt Carrigain under the signal pole) Photo Credit: Dane Malcolm.
In 1958 the Maine Central Railroad abolished passenger service. The Portland and Ogdensburg Railroad and then the Maine Central Railroad ran passenger service from 1873-1958. The Bartlett Station was sold to a ski club in 1959. In October 1959 the ski club were doing renovations to the inside of the building, stirring up coal dust left from years of coal being used to heat the building. A new oil furnace was installed to keep the station warm in the coming winter months. Later that day after everyone had left, the new furnace clicked on igniting the coal dust left in the air. The station, now a private building was never rebuilt. Today people at a glance see the beautiful Hodgkin’s Memorial Park. The outline of the east end of the granite cellar wall can be found. The soil is reclaiming the spot and eventually there will be no trace of the station, only memories.
This photo dated 1908
sIDE bAR
THE TOWN FIRE 1896:
Concord Evening Monitor 1893 (1896)?
Fire Sunday Destroys Entire Business District in Bartlett
Total damage will approximate $100,000
At 5 o’clock a fire was discovered at rear of H. L. Towle’s grocery store and as there was no fire department in the village, it spread with lightening like rapidity.
Word was telegraphed to North Conway for aid and at 7 o’clock a special train left for the scene. The ten mile run was made in a little over ten minutes. When the special arrived the business portion of the town was in ashes.
The most strenuous efforts of the town’s people, assisted by the willing guests of the hotels availed to nothing. Within 2-½ hours but one store was left in the place. Fourteen families had been burned out and the Maine Central Railway Station, restaurant, and freight depot, together with the post office were destroyed.The total damage will be in the neighborhood of $100,000.
Following are the principal losses:
-Maine Central Railway about $10,000, insured
-Mr. & Mrs. Foster, general store, buildings, stock $25,000, insured for $7,500
-P.J. Martin, general store, $15,000, insured $9,000
-F. Garland, drugs and jewelry, $2,500, insurance $1,500
-E.O. Garland, building, contents, $15,000 insured $7,000
-J. Emery, house and furnishings, $3,000 insured $1,500
-J. Head house $1,500
-H.E. Brooks (?) grocery store, $2,500 insured $1,000
-H.L. Towle’s building, $3,000, insured $1,000
-A.L. Meserve building and stock, $6,000 insured $2,800
-Miss Emily A. Merserve tenement block, $2000, insured $1,500
-Miss Bates, millinery $500
The town has an ordinary population of 2,000 but this is swelled in summer to three or four times this number.
It is situated in the White Mountain Division of the Maine Central Railroad and the ride over this road from North
Conway through Bartlett to the Crawford Notch is one of the finest in the eastern part of the country.
-From the history files at the Bartlett Public Library
The Portland & Ogdensburg Railroad was chartered on February 11, 1867 to run from Portland to Fabyan, a junction at Carroll, New Hampshire in the White Mountains, where the Boston, Concord & Montreal Railroad would continue west. Their track joined in a ceremony at the summit of Crawford Notch on August 7, 1875, then opened on August 16, 1875.
Here we have, left to right...Edward Boynton Knight...George Lincoln Knight...Baby is Brian Aston Knight...and Charles Edward Knight. Charles worked as signal repairman in the Bartlett train yard and in his fifty years of work he never missed a single day.
Charles also worked as watchman at the Peg Mill. I also heard from a close source..that Charles peddled booze during prohibition.
Photo courtesy of Robert Girouard who received it, and this story, from Brian Knight in June 2009.
Steam locomotives at the Bartlett Roundhouse.
The locomotives and their crews - circa 1891
The five locomotives left to right are Maine Central Railroad Locomotives. The one on the far right is the locomotive of the Bartlett & Albany Railroad. The trains the locomotives are assigned to are on the headlamps of the locomotives. The one that says W on the headlamp was for a work train.
Bartlett Round House - Had a turntable for turning around the locomotives. The turntable was removed in 1913. There were switches into the roundhouse. The date of that photo is September 8, 1947, and the photo was taken by Phillip Hastings.
Bartlett Yard Freight Office - 1960
Men at the Bartlett Yard Office, September 1961. Left to right: Bob Jones, Albert Henn and Bud Burdwood.
Trainmen at the Bartlett Yard with the Mountaineer, Later the Flying Yankee. Dated 1939.
(David Dudley was the man who could always be found in the caboose.)
Snowplow train approaching the Bartlett Yard at Rogers Crossing. Sometime in the 1960's.
Snowplow train at the Bartlett Yard Sometime in the 1960's.
How this abandoned train car ended up in the Bartlett Yard
This article was written in 2014
At one time the Bartlett Peg Mill was serviced by the Maine Central Railroad. The spur came off the wye and ended on the left side of the peg mill. The sidings for the peg mill had a capacity of 49 cars. There is no date as to when the spur and trackage, the rails of which were owned by the Maine Central Railroad, were removed. The site map below is courtesy Bill Gove.
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the bartlett yard circa 1900
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If you use an I-Pad you can enlarge this map to read the building titles.
Ralph M. Hebb - Station Agent in Bartlett, NH for 21 years - 1918 to 1939
