North Bergen station

North Bergen
Homestead c. 1907–1912
General information
Location	North Bergen, Hudson County, New Jersey 07047
Coordinates	40.779422°N 74.039879°W / 40.779422; -74.039879
Owned by	New York, Susquehanna and Western Railroad
Line(s)	New York, Susquehanna and Western Railroad Northern Branch (Erie Railroad)
Platforms	1 island platform
Tracks	2 NYS&W, 1 Northern Branch
History
Opened	c.1853
Electrified	Not electrified
Services
Preceding station Erie Railroad Following station New Durham toward Nyack Northern Branch Susquehanna Transfer toward Jersey City Preceding station New York, Susquehanna and Western Railroad Following station New Durham toward Stroudsburg Main Line Susquehanna Transfer toward Jersey City

North Bergen was a railroad station in North Bergen, New Jersey, United States known Homestead for most of its existence. It as built in the mid 19th century and served by the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway (#1059) and the Erie Railroad's Northern Branch (#1903).^[1][2]

The line and station at the foot of Bergen Hill at the edge of the Meadowlands, 1880

USGS Map from 1900 shows station called Schuetzen Park

The station was located at the foot of the Bergen Hill at Paterson Plank Road west what is now Tonnele Avenue. The village then known as Homestead lay on western slope of lower Hudson Palisades below Schuetzen Park.^[3] The abutting village of New Durham was to the north; an eponymous station was located at what is now 50th Street adjacent to North Bergen Yard and the present day terminus of the Hudson–Bergen Light Rail at Tonnelle Avenue. Babbitt, the northernmost station in the township, was at 83rd Street.^[4]

The right of way was originally developed by the Paterson and Hudson River Railroad (Erie) in the 1850s. The New Jersey Midland, a predecessor of the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway (NYSW), built its line to its terminus a West End Junction circa 1873 and had trackage rights south of that point. Homestead was 6 miles (9.7 km) from the Erie's Pavonia Terminal on the Hudson River waterfront in Jersey City, which was originally reached by the Long Dock Tunnel, and later by Bergen Arches. Passenger service on the line was discontinued in 1966.

The station house was demolished, as were most others along Northern Branch, though former station buildings along the line at Englewood, Tenafly, Demarest, Closter, and Piermont still stand. Extant station buildings from the New Jersey Midland/NYSW can be found at Wortendyke, Butler, and Newfoundland, among other places.^[5]

The rail line is still used for freight transport by CSX as part of the Conrail Shared Assets Area and the NYSW mainline.^[6]

See also

• Timeline of Jersey City, New Jersey-area railroads
• NYSW (passenger 1939–1966) map
• Northern Branch map
• Operating Passenger Railroad Stations Thematic Resource

References

1. "Erie Railroad List of Stations and Numbers". Erie Railroad Company. May 1, 1916. Retrieved June 21, 2015.
2. Kaminski, Edward S. (November 22, 2010). New York, Susquehanna & Western Railroad in New Jersey. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 9781439638972 – via Google Books.
3. "$250,000 Fire Loss in Schuetzen Park" (PDF). The New York Times. May 11, 1910.
4. "Township of North Bergen (1940)". 1942. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
5. "Surviving New Jersey Railroad Stations" (PDF). American-Rails.com. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
6. Northern Branch Corridor Project Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement, March 17, 2017 (PDF))