Wow, I love this structure at Bellows Falls, ("Fellow's Balls"?), in this photo from 1973. Still in B&M Cream and Maroon. Anyone know if it's still there?

More info here- > &byrail%3A3%3ABoston_&_Maine

&byrail%3A3%3ABoston_&_Maine
Thanks,
-Steve Fisk

Hmmm. Odd HTML. I'll try again...

I want to say no it isn't. That should be the mainline that comes through Bellows Falls to the right of the freight house and I do not recall seeing the freight house recently. I am not sure when it was razed.

Buddy W

The Bellows Falls freight house was burned down as a practice drill for the Bellows Falls fire department on July 12, 1975. My source for this is Steel Wheels, the newsletter of the Boston Chapter, National Railway Historical Society, July/August 1975. Steve was lucky to have taken his photo when he did.

Wow, I have not checked here in a while. Replies from Rick Conard, AND the elusive Buddy W. Two highly credible sources.

Rick, I didn't take the photo, just found it online and I really loved it. Such a beautiful edifice. I had hoped it was still there, and I would be happy to take a ride up and shoot a couple o' rolls of analog pics. Alas, sounds like it is gone. (BTW, if anyone can't view the pic inline, just hit "view image" while right mouse-clicking on the image with any flavor of Mozilla/Netscape. (Mac users hold down the mouse bottom then hit "view image".) It's not my pic, and therefor not hosted on any of my servers, or else I would make this much easier and just do whatever it took to make it display inline on this message board.

Buddy W, you e-mailed me to provide clues/help identify this depot on my Mystery depots site. http://www.stevefisk.net/depots/mystery/mystery_depot.htm http://www.stevefisk.net/depots/mystery/mystery_depot.htm
(With a little luck the image will post below.)

You said you had some other pics, and I would SO love to see them, but I don't think I heard from you again. My address is steve at marlboronissan dot com. (I don't like to post it on message boards the normal way because that's a sure-fire way for the spam bots to fill your inbox with spam.


(BTW- Rick- thanks so much for your help w/ Jaffrey, NH! You rule.


Now, about this...

"The Bellows Falls freight house was burned down as a practice drill for the Bellows Falls fire department on July 12, 1975."

Grrrrr. Man, does that get my blood boiling. You know, if I was like "King of the World" or something, my first decree would be making that sort of thing a capitol offense. Touch a historic depot and "Off with their heads!" No follin'.
My pal Gary Lapoint and I often lament this heinous practice. IMHO, it's an excuse for a bunch of closet case pyromaniacs to run wild. Firemen are suppose to PROTECT beautiful historic structures like this- not destroy them forever. In fact...

This was the fate of one of my favorite depots, the Central Mass Depot at Bondsville, Ma. last photographed by me in 1991. I loved loved loved that depot! But.... same deal, burned down on purpose by vandals posing as "firefighters". (I have not been back since. I could not bare to see it gone.)

I always wanted to do the following to get back at the bastahds......


I thought how much fun it would be to pose as a very wealthy person and contact the local firefighters, (in this case aka, "firebugs"), who had just burned down a depot and explain that I would very much like to.....

... purchase the derelict depot at [insert the name of some small hamlet where the local fire department burned the depot recently as a "drill"].

I would explain how it was of historical interest to me/my family and I wanted to buy it and have it moved to my estate in Beverly Hills or where ever. (My great-uncle So and So went off to WWI from this depot and never came back, whatever BS story fits.)
I would tell them that I understand its seen better days and is in need of some TLC. (I would say this knowing full well that these are the very bastahds who just destroyed it- but they would not know I knew this.)

I'd then tell them I knew I needed the help of some locals, and figured the local fire department would be the perfect group to help me- and how much I REALLY wanted to buy it and rescue it at any cost.
In fact, I would go on to explain, I would be so grateful to them and to their little town, that I would be willing to buy a nice shiny new firetruck with all the latest gear to thank them for helping me! Bwaahahahahahahahahah! Can ya just see their faces?

Steve; I have been researching your quetions in refernce to Turners Falls. First answer, Yes this is the B&M Depot. The depot was located appoximately at where Food City Grocery store lies in the shopping plaza. There is a dead end street behind the plaza in which access was to the depot and other railroad structures. It was moved to the position in which your photos were taken, where it was placed on blocks in hopes for some use. The yard tracks to the right were last used in the late sixties when new dam gates for the Turners Falls dam were delivered by rail,sometime later the tracks and the bridge were removed. To much of your disapointment the depot and former railroad land belongs to Mackin Construction Company of Greenfield, and they tore it down a few years ago. I am trying to find the date for you. Your second question much easier, the blueprint of the station diagram is the NH Depot which stood about a half a mile south of the B&M depot, a car wash now stands in its place. The NH did have full services at thier terminus at was is now Unity Park in Turners Falls. The bike trail is much under construction, it runs south from north of B&m depot to the south to Depot St. in Montague City. The final leg goes east from depot st accross the road and connects with the NH later B&M row including the redecking of the bridge over th CT river to end up at East Deerfield yard, this should be completeted soon. I had the oppertunity to work on this branch as a brakeman many a times,Including an inspection train in 1974 consisiting of one budd car. If if need further info on this line I can try to fill you in. In the meanwhile I will continue to research for your final aswer to your twice vanished. Brian Cummings

Steve; I have been researching your quetions in refernce to Turners Falls. First answer, Yes this is the B&M Depot. The depot was located appoximately at where Food City Grocery store lies in the shopping plaza. There is a dead end street behind the plaza in which access was to the depot and other railroad structures. It was moved to the position in which your photos were taken, where it was placed on blocks in hopes for some use. The yard tracks to the right were last used in the late sixties when new dam gates for the Turners Falls dam were delivered by rail,sometime later the tracks and the bridge were removed. To much of your disapointment the depot and former railroad land belongs to Mackin Construction Company of Greenfield, and they tore it down a few years ago. I am trying to find the date for you. Your second question much easier, the blueprint of the station diagram is the NH Depot which stood about a half a mile south of the B&M depot, a car wash now stands in its place. The NH did have full services at thier terminus at was is now Unity Park in Turners Falls. The bike trail is much under construction, it runs south from north of B&m depot to the south to Depot St. in Montague City. The final leg goes east from depot st accross the road and connects with the NH later B&M row including the redecking of the bridge over th CT river to end up at East Deerfield yard, this should be completeted soon. I had the oppertunity to work on this branch as a brakeman many a times,Including an inspection train in 1974 consisiting of one budd car. If if need further info on this line I can try to fill you in. In the meanwhile I will continue to research for your final aswer to your twice vanished. Brian Cummings

Steve; I have been researching your quetions in refernce to Turners Falls. First answer, Yes this is the B&M Depot. The depot was located appoximately at where Food City Grocery store lies in the shopping plaza. There is a dead end street behind the plaza in which access was to the depot and other railroad structures. It was moved to the position in which your photos were taken, where it was placed on blocks in hopes for some use. The yard tracks to the right were last used in the late sixties when new dam gates for the Turners Falls dam were delivered by rail,sometime later the tracks and the bridge were removed. To much of your disapointment the depot and former railroad land belongs to Mackin Construction Company of Greenfield, and they tore it down a few years ago. I am trying to find the date for you. Your second question much easier, the blueprint of the station diagram is the NH Depot which stood about a half a mile south of the B&M depot, a car wash now stands in its place. The NH did have full services at thier terminus at was is now Unity Park in Turners Falls. The bike trail is much under construction, it runs south from north of B&m depot to the south to Depot St. in Montague City. The final leg goes east from depot st accross the road and connects with the NH later B&M row including the redecking of the bridge over th CT river to end up at East Deerfield yard, this should be completeted soon. I had the oppertunity to work on this branch as a brakeman many a times,Including an inspection train in 1974 consisiting of one budd car. If if need further info on this line I can try to fill you in. In the meanwhile I will continue to research for your final aswer to your twice vanished. Brian Cummings

Steve; I have been researching your quetions in refernce to Turners Falls. First answer, Yes this is the B&M Depot. The depot was located appoximately at where Food City Grocery store lies in the shopping plaza. There is a dead end street behind the plaza in which access was to the depot and other railroad structures. It was moved to the position in which your photos were taken, where it was placed on blocks in hopes for some use. The yard tracks to the right were last used in the late sixties when new dam gates for the Turners Falls dam were delivered by rail,sometime later the tracks and the bridge were removed. To much of your disapointment the depot and former railroad land belongs to Mackin Construction Company of Greenfield, and they tore it down a few years ago. I am trying to find the date for you. Your second question much easier, the blueprint of the station diagram is the NH Depot which stood about a half a mile south of the B&M depot, a car wash now stands in its place. The NH did have full services at thier terminus at was is now Unity Park in Turners Falls. The bike trail is much under construction, it runs south from north of B&m depot to the south to Depot St. in Montague City. The final leg goes east from depot st accross the road and connects with the NH later B&M row including the redecking of the bridge over th CT river to end up at East Deerfield yard, this should be completeted soon. I had the oppertunity to work on this branch as a brakeman many a times,Including an inspection train in 1974 consisiting of one budd car. If if need further info on this line I can try to fill you in. In the meanwhile I will continue to research for your final aswer to your twice vanished. Brian Cummings

Steve: I have obtained some some more info for you if you would like it. A friend of mine and former co-worker for the B&M/Guilford/PanAm, (yuk) obtained a reprint from the NHRR historical newsletter from the "Shoreliner" 1989-7. It contains alot of good information. It is entitled north of NorthHampton. When you do check in I hope soon, I could send it it to via fax or any which way you would prefer. I am still working on your final question.

Hello there.

Gary tells me you are looking for me.

You can e-mail me at mail@stevefisk dot net. (If you put your e-mail addy exactly correct on any meesage board, you can expect piles of spam. I am sure you can figure that out.)

Thanks!
-Steve

Steve glad you finally signed in. My E-mail has changed to the above. If you would like I can fill you in on the Info you were looking for. I hope what I have supplied so far has helped. Text me anytime, good spam is always welcome.

Steve,
How about the old Nashua Union Station that was torn down to build a Howdy Beefburger joint? How much would it cost to rebuild to exact spec? With all the talk of resurrecting service to Boston, all they have is a wood platform at that location. There is even talk in the local papers of returning Amtrack service to Montreal from Nashua. I'll bet the city officials cringe every time someone brings this up. Not to mention the nice station on the W N & P they tore down for a muffler shop. Can't the local historical or preservation societies put a stop to this!

"Not to mention the nice station on the W N & P they tore down for a muffler shop. Can't the local historical or preservation societies put a stop to this!"


Well, the thing to do is work on saving the ones we still have, rather than lamenting the terrible losses of the ones we have lost.


I know where there is a wonderful WN&P depot still standing- very much forgotten by time. (No, not the dilapitaded freight house at Lancaster.)

I am talking about "S.Lancaster", aka "Thayer". I LOVE this depot.

(Here is my pal Gary's pic )


In any event- you can't wait for "someone else" to save something. You have to get involved yourself.

I'm going to put a link at the bottom of this thread to the seperate thread I started about Turner's Falls, then bump that thread. I will enclude a photo that has recently come to light.


Here is the TF thread....

http://www.network54.com/Forum/43027/thread/1145550009/last-1146862176/Turner%27s+Falls%2C+Mass+B%26amp%3BM+Depot