by Hermann Botzow, Jr.
The first railroad arrived in Keene in 1848. Called the Vermont and Massachusetts Railroad, It came north from South Ashburnham through Winchendon and Troy. One year later it reached Bellows Fall via Walpole. In 1874 the line was leased to the Fitchburg Railroad and, in 1900, the Boston and Maine Railroad.
Between Troy and Keene, there were two stations, Webb Depot and Joslin. Businesses at Troy included the Troy Blanket Mills and the Troy White Granite Company. Troy was the station used by Thoreau when he visited the Half Way House hotel on Mt. Monadnock. Shippers at Joslin included the Keene Chair Co. and the Clipper Mowing & Reaper Works. The railroad’s arrival transformed Keene into a manufacturing hub with numerous shippers of industrial and commercial products. Today the high stone arch railroad bridge between Joslin and Keene, designated a national historic structure, remains over the East Branch of the Ashuelot River.
Between 1880 and 1940 the railroad maintained offices and shops in Keene. During that period, steam locomotives had to fill their tenders from water tanks in Keene for the steep climbs to Troy and Walpole. Between 1944 and 1952 the Boston and Maine Railroad operated a steamlined train, the “Cheshire”, from White River Junction via Keene to Boston. The trip from Keene to Boston took about 3 hours. Then, until the end of passenger service in 1954, the railroad used Budd cars similar to the one soon to be exhibited at the Troy Station for passenger service to Boston.
In 1850, the Connecticut River Railroad officially opened a second line into Keene. This line began in South Vernon, VT, crossed the Connecticut River on a 680 foot long bridge and followed the Ashuelot River upstream to Keene. This route was more level and, with abundant opportunities for waterpower along the river, spawned many industries at Hinsdale, Ashuelot, Winchester, Westport, and Swanzey. The railroad was leased to the Boston and Maine Railroad in 1893 and the last train into Keene from either line ran in 1984. Between 1910 and 1918 you could board a train in Keene at 2:20 pm for direct service to New York City, arriving at 9 pm. And, during the 1950’s, school children from Swanzey rode its single car gas electric “Doodlebug” to high school in Keene.
A third railroad, the Manchester and Keene, began service between the two cities in 1878. When fully operational, the line typically offered two passenger trains daily in each direction. The railroad had a great many grades and trestles that required extensive maintenance and discouraged through freight traffic. Eventually taken over by the Boston and Maine, the line was abandoned in 1938 due to hurricane damage.
Source: Iron Roads of the Monadnock Region, Vol. 1, by Bradford G. Blodget and
Richard R. Richards, Jr.
