Lackawanna Terminal (Montclair, New Jersey)

MONTCLAIR
General information
LocationLackawanna Plaza, Montclair, Essex County, New Jersey 07042
Coordinates40°48′41″N 74°12′48″W / 40.81139°N 74.21333°W / 40.81139; -74.21333
Platforms4
Tracks6
Other information
Station code604[1]
History
OpenedJune 28, 1913[2]
ClosedMarch 2, 1981[3][4]
ElectrifiedSeptember 3, 1930[5]
Former services
Preceding station Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad Following station
Terminus Montclair Branch Glen Ridge
toward Hoboken
Montclair Railroad Station
Abandoned platforms in 1983, with Grove Street Bridge in background.
Map
LocationLackawanna Plaza, Montclair, New Jersey
Area1 acre (0.40 ha)
Built1913
ArchitectWilliam Hull Botsford
Architectural styleGrecian-Doric
NRHP reference No.73001092[6]
NJRHP No.1155[7]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJanuary 8, 1973
Designated NJRHPAugust 7, 1972

Lackawanna Terminal is a former railroad terminal in the township of Montclair, Essex County, New Jersey. Built in 1913, the station was the terminal of the Montclair Branch of the Morris and Essex Lines (part of the Delaware Lackawanna and Western Railroad). The station, boasting four platforms and six tracks, was built by William Hull Botsford, an architect who died in the sinking of the Titanic on April 15, 1912. The station opened on June 28, 1913 in a grand ceremony in Montclair. The station was used until March 2, 1981, when New Jersey Transit moved service to a single platform station at Bay Street. The station was converted to an enclosed shopping mall.

Listed as the Montclair Railroad Station, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 8, 1973, for its significance in architecture and transportation.[8] There were three main reasons that the station was considered to be qualified for the National Register. One was its architectural significance, including the overall design, the tapestry bond brickwork, the marble concrete trim, the interior brick and tile work and ornamentation, the iron work in the ticket windows. Next factor was the importance of the architect, William Hull Botsford and finally, its importance as a transportation center in the history of Montclair Township.[9]

As of 2019, the complex is threatened with demolition.[10]

  1. ^ "List of Station Numbers". Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. 1952. p. 2. Retrieved June 2, 2019.[permanent dead link‍]
  2. ^ "Montclair Joyous in New Terminal". The New York Times. June 29, 1913. p. 11. Retrieved January 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  3. ^ Grodt, Rod (February 26, 1981). "Bay St. Station Opens Monday". The Montclair Times. pp. 1, 12. Retrieved January 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  4. ^ "Bay Street Railroad Station Opens". The Montclair Times. March 5, 1981. p. 1, 9. Retrieved January 14, 2020 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  5. ^ "D.L.&W. Electric Train Hoboken to Montclair". The Madison Eagle. September 5, 1930. p. 6. Retrieved January 31, 2021 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  6. ^ "National Register Information System – (#73001092)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  7. ^ "New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places – Essex County" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection – Historic Preservation Office. September 29, 2022. p. 10.
  8. ^ Historic Sites Section (July 1972). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Montclair Railroad Station". National Park Service. With accompanying two photos
  9. ^ Chance, Jack (1981). {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help); Missing or empty |title= (help)
  10. ^ Winters, Jamie Julia (May 16, 2019). "Lackawanna Train Station Makes Top 10 Most NJ Endangered Historic Sites". Montclair Local.