Annandale station

Annandale
Annandale
	Annandale station facing eastward towards Lebanon in April 2011, several months after the station shelter was replaced.
General information
Location	46 East Street,; Annandale, New Jersey
Coordinates	40°38′42″N 74°52′44″W / 40.6451°N 74.8789°W
Owned by	New Jersey Transit
Line(s)	Raritan Valley Line
Distance	50.4 miles (81.1 km) from Jersey City
Platforms	1 side platform
Tracks	1
Construction
Parking	77 spaces
Accessible	No
Other information
Fare zone	20
History
Opened	July 4, 1852
Rebuilt	1900; November 1935
Previous names	Clinton (July 4, 1852–1873)
Key dates
September 26, 1934	Station depot burned
October 1970	Station agent removed
Passengers
2012	82 (average weekday)
Services
Former services
Location
Location

Annandale is the penultimate station heading westbound on New Jersey Transit's Raritan Valley Line, located in the Annandale section of Clinton Township in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, United States. The station is located just off interchange 18 of Interstate 78 at the junction of Main Street and East Street. The final stop before High Bridge, it has one low-level side platform, with a shelter, 77 parking spaces and bicycle racks.^[2]

Train service through Annandale came in 1852, when the Central Railroad of New Jersey constructed tracks through Clinton Township. Known as Clinton, the railroad had four locals move westward from White House to help build the new village in the area. For a short time, Annandale was the terminus of the line. The station opened on July 4, 1852 with passenger service to Easton, Pennsylvania. The first depot was replaced in 1900, with a new structure that caught fire in September 1934.^[6] The freight station at Annandale, constructed c. 1865, was razed in 1960.^[9]

Service at the Annandale depot ended in October 1970, as the station agent there and at nearby Hampton were eliminated in favor of warming shelters for passengers, who were commuting as far as Allentown, Pennsylvania to use the station.^[7] The station depot constructed in 1934 was razed in 1983.^[10]

History

The Central Railroad of New Jersey, a conglomerate of the Somerville and Easton Railroad and the Elizabeth and Somerville Railroad, constructed tracks through Clinton Township in 1852.^[11] The railroad constructed the railroad through here as a temporary terminus. As a result, they built a new turntable in town so they could turn trains around back to Jersey City.^[4] The tracks through Clinton were completed on June 20, 1852. When the railroad was completed, the agent at White House station, George Frech, picked up and moved to Clinton Station. Along with merchant Jacob Young, N.N. Boeman, a local tavern keeper, and railroad employees James Kenna and Thomas Kinney, Frech helped move and settle the area around Clinton Station. The station depot was completed in 1852 while passenger service began on July 4, 1852 to Easton. Frech, serving as station agent, moved into the depot.^[11] The station built at Annandale was of a wooden design, two stories with a long overhang roof. The structure also had 2 chimneys for warming the structure.^[12]

When the railroad was completed, the village around Clinton Station began to expand. Boeman added a local tavern to the area on the first village lot, controlling it until 1879. Jacob Young constructed a local trading store around Clinton Station and soon added a grain house to the area. Kinney and Kenna became residents and began working for the railroad through town. In 1873, John T. Johnston, the president of the Central Railroad of New Jersey, requested the name of Clinton Station be changed to Annandale when prodded about the name. He chose the name based on his home town of Annandale in Scotland.^[11]

Annandale during this time had an abundance of limestone and lime mines through the area that benefitted from the construction of the railroad. During the 1800s, the lime and limestones were mined through the railroad, along with nearby lumber yards that prospered due to their locations near the rail line.^[12]

Station layout

The station has a single low-level asphalt side platform. The platform is 203 feet (62 m) long and accommodates two cars.^[13]

Popular Culture

Annandale Station makes an appearance in the Bruce Springsteen song "Stray Bullet" with the lyric:

"In the tall grass we held hands Down by the river we made plans Of what would and would not be It was impossible to see Their black boots shone in the sun They were waiting on the Annandale train when my baby come Little girl with the long black hair"^[14]

Bibliography

Bernhart, Benjamin L. (2004). Historic Journeys By Rail: Central Railroad of New Jersey Stations, Structures & Marine Equipment. Outer Station Project. ISBN 1891402072.
Snell, James P. (1881). History of Hunterdon and Somerset Counties, New Jersey: With Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers. Everts and Peck.

References

^ NJ Transit (2005). NJ Transit Rail Operations: Physical Characteristics. pp. 117–119, 142b, 173–182.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Station Park & Ride Guide - Annandale". Newark, New Jersey: New Jersey Transit. 2011. Retrieved December 19, 2011.
^ "Raritan Valley Line Timetables" (PDF) (November 6, 2011 ed.). Newark, New Jersey: New Jersey Transit Rail Operations. November 6, 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 7, 2016. Retrieved December 19, 2011.
^ ^a ^b ^c Lance, Jr., Howard P. (July 9, 1952). "Quiet Annandale Looks back on Century of History". The Plainfield Courier-News. pp. 1, 26. Retrieved March 25, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Bernhart 2004, p. 69.
^ ^a ^b "Fire Destroys CNJ Station at Annandale". The Plainfield Courier-News. September 4, 1934. p. 1. Retrieved March 28, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^a ^b "2 Jersey Central Stations to Close in Hunterdon". The Courier-News. October 14, 1970. p. 9. Retrieved March 28, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "QUARTERLY RIDERSHIP TRENDS ANALYSIS" (PDF). New Jersey Transit. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 19, 2013. Retrieved December 31, 2012.
^ "Freight House Nearly Razed". The Plainfield Courier-News. September 8, 1960. p. 5. Retrieved March 28, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Leeds, Curtis (January 25, 2010). "NJ Transit promises improvements to Annandale train station". Hunterdon County Democrat. Retrieved December 19, 2011.
^ ^a ^b ^c Snell 1881, pp. 538.
^ ^a ^b "Annandale: 1852-2002; The 150th Anniversary Tour" (PDF). Historic Beaver Brook Homestead. October 2, 2002. pp. 7, 27–28. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
^ "RARITAN VALLEY LINE ONE-SEAT RIDE SERVICE TO MANHATTAN" (PDF). July 2020. pp. 75, 81. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
^ "Song of the Week Alternate Edition #15: Stray Bullet". November 19, 2020.