Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1870-07-09
THE NEW PASSENGER DEPOT OF
THE BOSTON & MAINE r. r. co.

THE BOSION q MAINE IL. H. ".
The elegant new passenger depot of the
Boston and Maine Railroad in Boston, has
just been completed. From description in
the Boston Advertiser, we extract as follows:
'The new offices for the general officers of
the road, located in the upper story, are wor-
thy of notice. They are fitted up in the most
substantial and convenient style, and their
capacity and uses measure and represent the
growth and expansion of a successful New
England railroad. The hall or vestibuAe into
which all the office open is gained by stair
way. The hall is 90 feet wide, and, together
with all the rooms, is 10 feet high. The Off
ces have Il uniform width of q feet and vary
in length according to their uses. Nearest
the stairs on the left is Superintendent Mer-
ritt's business office, and his private office
opens from it, at the front of the building.
The offices are all fitted up neatly and plain
"; the woodwork is of chestnut like the en-
tire interior, and the furniture is of ash with
black walnut trimmings. A counter with
black walnut top runs lengthwise of the room.
and divides it into two sections. In this room
is the Geographic apparatus. Six instruments
are used for the private business of the COM
pany. BY this means the superintendent can
communicate with all the other stations in the
city, as well as with all his own stations, and
when a train which contains many through
passengers is late on either of the roads the
trains on the connecting roads are delayed
accordingly. The superintendent offices
are provided with handsome desks, marble
chimney pieces, and all the conveniences, and
the walls are embellished with fine cngrav-
ings. The adjoining Office is that of the sea-
son ticket agent, whose work is far greater
than might be supposed Att present time
the road is carrying no less than 2600 passen-
gers owning season tickets, most of whom
reside within fifteen miles of Boston. Be-
yond this Office is large store-room where
the passenger tickets used on the road are
kept on hand for use. The room is filed
with closets and drawers, which are subdivid-
ed into thousands of compartments, in which
are kept the vast piles of paste board slips
that passengers use from day to day. The
tickets, which are of the numbered sort now
used on most of the great roads, are manu-
featured on what is called the English system
They come from Buffalo, where nearly all
the railroad tickets Of the country are printed
They are put up in small packages OF one
hundred, tightly pressed together, and tied
UP, and they resemble blocks of wood in
solidity and weight. More than three thous-
and distinct tickets are required, so multifa
rious are the connections and combinations of
the stations. Not only must there be a sepa-
rate ticket from Boston to each one of the
other stations on the road, but between each
station and every other station and when 1t
is further considered that tickets are sold at
all the principal stations for many stations on
other roads, the immense number of the COM
binations is more readily comprehended.
Tons of tickets are kept constantly on hand,
and as the superintendent points to the dimin-
utive boxes which formerly contained the
whole quantity OF tickets prepared for use be-
forehand, an interesting idea is gained of the
development of railroad travel in New Eng
land. Beyond this room is large apart
ment which is to contain a bath room, ulti-
mately beside. the water closets which are
already provided, The front room on the
opposite side is the treasurer's, and is very
nicely fitted up; the fine new safe, of the
very safest build, occupies considerable space
in the outer corner. Next to the treasurer's
Office are the rooms of the president and d.
rectors, fitted up in the same style as the
others. Then there are the passenger and
baggage departments, the newspaper stand
and public telegraph Office, the excellent
restaurant with a kitchen over the baggage
room, cool, airy cellars below. The inward
side of the depot contains a ladies' waiting
room, which is great convenience for arriv-
ing passengers a large room for emigrants,
coachmens room, a large freight room,
car inspectors shop, water closets, rooms for
the storage and delivery of oil and cotton
waste. The last named department is not the
least interesting, from the systematic and
wholesale way in which the ell is housed.
Several hundred barrels are kept in store,
and barrel at time is pumped into tanks in
the room above by rotary engine. The
large rooms in the upper stories of the wings
will soon be fitted up for various purposes.
The rooms in the right wing will be devoted
to the accommodation of the conductors, and
TO library room for the employees of the
road, while the rooms in the opposite wings
will be used, one for models and plans and
the other as printing office. All the great
western roads now do their own printing at a
great saving over job prices, and this company
will soon establish the same feature in their
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