FAQ

Key to Column Headings

Railroad = Name of railroad that built or was the main owner of the depot through merger. For example, a depot might have been built by the Rocehster & Honeoye Valley but the line was owned by the Lehigh Valley and was known as such.

City = City, village, or other locality the station is located in.

Latitude, Longitude = the coordinates of the station. Pages that have not been updated still show Street. As I've re-photographed stations, I've seen many street name changes, as well as house numbers. If you're reading this, you have access to the Internet and can easily see the location by pasting the coordinates into Google Maps. No need to own a Smartphone.

Moved = Has the station been moved from its original location. This can mean moved miles or simply turned 90 degrees or even just shoved back from the tracks. If moved, the Latitude/Longitude reflects the new location, not where it was originally.

Type = P for Passenger, F for freight house or C for combination.

Use = What the station is currently used for.

• Business means a private business
• Business-Dining means a restaurant or bar.
• Municipal means used as a governement building like a village hall, library, or police station.
• Private means private property or house. You might be trespassing if you visit and start walking around.
• Vacant means owned by someone but typically dilapidated with no apparent on-site owner.

Built = Date the station was built. One of the harder pieces of data to find.

Material = Wood, brick, stone, etc.

Trackage = Can you see a train next to the station.

• Gone means the station has not been moved and the tracks have been removed.
• In use means the station has not been moved and you might see a train go by.
• Not in use means the station has not been moved but trains no longer go by.
• n/a means the station has been moved so I don't monitor the tracks anymore.

Current Railroad = Name of railroad currently operating the tracks, if trackage is marked as In use.

Note = Any miscellaneous notes for the station.

Photo = Hopefully, we have a photo of the station. Sometimes I don't. If there is not a photo, please consider sending a current photo to me.

What is this site all about?

In the early 1990s, I had been compiling a database of existing classic railroad stations in New York. After gathering about 200 stations, I decided to construct a web site, which I launched in 1996. Within a year, through collaboration with many others, the count skyrocketed to nearly 1,000. Today, the collection hovers around 850, due to a great number of stations being razed in the last quarter century. While researching these stations has been personally rewarding, I feel that sharing this information on the Internet helps others who are interested in the history and preservation of classic railroad stations.

What do you consider a station?

A building used for the transfer of passengers and/or freight between a railroad and a town. Different railroads traditionally may have used other designations, depending on the railroad or how large the building or town is. This list contains all buildings designated by railroads or historians as stations, depots, and freight houses. The stations on this page represent classic stations built before the advent of Amtrak and not including modern stations, platforms, or commuter shelters.

Why are some counties missing?

The county table is organized by county and contains all 62 counties of New York State. Almost every county is linked to a page containing all of the known stations in that county. There are a few counties that do not have links; these are some of the counties that make up and surround the New York metropolitan area. I have not included the Metro NY area because of the large number of hard-to-classify commuter, subway, and train stations.

Why don't you have Penn Station and GCT?

Apart from being part of the New York metropolitan area (see #3), these large stations have enough books and web pages dedicated to them. People around the world are familiar with them and know of their existence.

How can I see my photos used on this site?

If you have any photos you'd like to contribute, please email me. Let me know what stations you have photos of.

You forgot the station in Somewhere, PA!

I didn't forget it. It's not there because the site only deals with New York State -- not Pennsylvania, New Jersey or Ohio. There are other sites for those. See my Links Page.

You only have 3 stations listed on that rail line. I happen to know there were many more.

As the title implies. the site only covers stations that are still standing.

How much does it cost to travel from Penn Station to Los Angeles on Amtrak?

I am not a travel agent so I don't know. Try contacting your local travel agent, or search the web for travel agencies or Amtrak itself. I only list stations as an historical aid.

I think that XY Railroad's station still exists in Backwoods, NY.

In this case, I will put the station on the Verify Page until I can get confirmation that it really is still there.

What is that station graphic on the main page?

That is the end of a classic "Pagoda" station of the DL&W, specifically Painted Post. This was the next stop north of Corning.

Can you put a link to my page from yours?

The list of links on this site pertain only to stations and structures in New York State. Also included are some other sites dealing with stations in general around the U.S. I do not link sites that are just general railroad sites.

If you have a link you'd like to see on the Links Page, please email me.

Railroad employee records.

Please do not e-mail me concerning railroad employee records. I have no knowledge about what happened to the a particular railroad's employee records, nor do I even know if they still exist. I have no way to help you find your long-lost grandfather who worked for the railroad in any state, so please don't waste my time and yours by asking me--I don't know.