Danbury Railway Museum

Danbury Railway Museum
Established1994
Location120 White Street, Danbury, Connecticut
Coordinates41°23′52″N 73°27′02″W / 41.397842°N 73.450461°W / 41.397842; -73.450461
TypeRailroad History
Public transit accessCommuter rail Danbury
Bus interchange HARTransit: 2, 7, 8
Websitedanburyrail.org
Union Station
Map
Coordinates41°23′52″N 73°27′02″W / 41.39784075086171°N 73.4504619225587°W / 41.39784075086171; -73.4504619225587
Area1.3 acres (5,300 m2)
Built1902
ArchitectA. Malkin
Architectural styleRomanesque Revival[1]
NRHP reference No.86002750
Added to NRHPSeptember 25, 1986
New Haven Railroad Danbury Turntable
Railway Turntable in October 2016
Coordinates41°23′49.9″N 73°26′46.6″W / 41.397194°N 73.446278°W / 41.397194; -73.446278
Area3 acres (12,000 m2)
Built1916
ArchitectNichols, Geo. P. & Bro.; American Bridge Co.
Architectural styleCenter-bearing deck girder
NRHP reference No.05001048
Added to NRHPSeptember 15, 2005

The Danbury Railway Museum (reporting mark DRMX)[2] is a railway museum housed in the former Union Station on the east end of downtown Danbury, Connecticut, United States. It was established in the mid-1990s following the closure of the station by the Metro-North Railroad in favor of a new station nearby, and primarily focuses on the history of railroading in southern New England and neighboring New York. In addition to the former station building, the museum has a collection of heritage railcars in the neighboring rail yard it shares with Metro-North.

The station was built in 1903 by the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad in response to local pressure for a new station after the three railroads that served the city were merged into the New Haven. At its peak, 125 trains stopped there each day. By 1993, that had dwindled to a few commuter trains, and the Connecticut Department of Transportation, which by then owned the neglected building, closed it in favor of a newer station on the other side of the block. Within two years the museum was formed and restored the station to its former appearance.

It is architecturally distinctive, with Colonial Revival touches on a Richardsonian Romanesque structure. Alfred Hitchcock filmed station scenes for Strangers on a Train on its distinctive curved platform. In 1986, prior to the museum's use of the building, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[3] It was joined on the Register in 2005 by the former turntable, the only intact one in the state.

  1. ^ William E. Devlin and John Herzan (January 22, 1986). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Union Station / Danbury Passenger Station". National Park Service. and Accompanying photos, exterior and interior, one from 1918 and fifteen from 1985 and 1986
  2. ^ Railinc, Search MARKs Archived 2011-07-15 at the Wayback Machine, accessed September 2009
  3. ^ "NRIS Search by location". Archived from the original on 2008-09-23. Retrieved 2008-05-17.