Kendal Green station is located on the north side of the Church Street grade crossing in Weston, about 400 feet (120 m) away from North Avenue (Route 117). The station has a single asphalt side platform on the north side of the two tracks of the Fitchburg Route, with a small paved crossing allowing passengers to board trains on the opposite track.[2] The low-level platform is not accessible.[3] Parking spaces for 57 vehicles are located along Lower Field Road south of Church Street.[4]
The former station building is located adjacent to the platform. It is a single-story hip-roofedclapboard building measuring 20 by 42 feet (6.1 m × 12.8 m), with a polygonal bay in the southern corner.[5]: 12 The structure is privately owned and used as a residence, though the MBTA owns the land; the trackside eaves still offer shelter for passengers.[6][5]: 12 The trackside windows and doors have been covered for the privacy of the residents.[6]
History
Early history
Kendal Green station on a 1913 postcard
The Fitchburg Railroad opened along the Stony Brook valley through Weston on June 17, 1844, with stops at Weston and Silver Hill.[7]: 87 [5]: 6 New residential development occurred around Weston station, but not around Silver Hill.[8]: 8 The original Weston station building, constructed around 1843, was a two-story wooden structure with an apartment for the station master on the second floor.[6] A freight house, no longer extant, was constructed nearby in 1875.[6]
The Central Massachusetts Railroad was constructed through Weston in 1881, with its own Weston station closer to the town center.[6] In 1885–86, a post office was opened to serve the North Avenue area. It was named "Kendal Green" at the suggestion of General James F.B. Marshall, co-founder of the Hampton Institute, who had previously used it as the name of his nearby estate. The name was taken from the Kendal green cloth produced in Kendal, England; Kendal was also the surname of Marshall's grandfather.[5]: 19 The railroad station also took the name Kendal Green around 1886, possibly to avoid confusion with the two Weston stations.[6][5]: 19
The railroad built a new station building at Kendal Green in 1896.[6] A single-story wooden structure, it resembled a simpler version of the Central Massachusetts Railroad's stick style Weston station.[5]: 12 The Fitchburg Railroad was acquired by the Boston and Maine Railroad (B&M) in 1900.[7]: 88
MBTA era
The B&M sold off disused station buildings in the mid 20th century; by 1962, Kendal Green and Weston stations both belonged to the same private owner.[9] The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) was formed in 1964 to subsidize suburban commuter rail service. On January 18, 1965, the MBTA began subsidizing some B&M service, including as far as West Concord on the Fitchburg Route.[10] The MBTA bought most B&M commuter rail assets, including the Fitchburg Route, on December 27, 1976.[10]
A February 2005 study for the Fitchburg Line Improvement Project recommended consolidation of the three Weston stations (Silver Hill, Hastings, and Kendal Green) into a single expanded Kendal Green station to reduce travel times, as did a September 2005 preliminary implementation plan.[4][13] However, by 2007, the preferred alternative did not include station consolidation.[14] Silver Hill and Hastings were temporarily closed in December 2020 due to low ridership, which was made permanent in April 2021, but Kendal Green station was not modified.[15][16][17]
^ abcdefgRoy, John H. Jr. (2007). A Field Guide to Southern New England Railroad Depots and Freight Houses. Branch Line Press. p. 174. ISBN9780942147087.
^ abHumphrey, Thomas J.; Clark, Norton D. (1985). Boston's Commuter Rail: The First 150 Years. Boston Street Railway Association. ISBN9780685412947.
