page_title: Boston and Albany Railroad
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Boston and Albany Railroad / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Refunding Bond of the Boston and Albany Rail Road Company, issued 1. October 1913 Deutsch: Refunding Bond über 1000 $ der Boston and Albany Rail Road Company vom 1. Oktober 1913
context_page_description: The Boston and Albany Railroad was a railroad connecting Boston, Massachusetts to Albany, New York, later becoming part of the New York Central Railroad system, Conrail, and CSX Transportation. The line is currently used by CSX for freight. Passenger service is still provided on the line by Amtrak, as part of their Lake Shore Limited service, and by the MBTA Commuter Rail system, which owns the section east of Worcester and operates it as its Framingham/Worcester Line.
context_section_description: When the Erie Canal opened in 1825, New York City's advantageous water connection through the Hudson River threatened Boston's historical dominance as the trade center of the United States. Since the Berkshires made construction of a canal infeasible, Boston turned to the emerging railroad technology for a share of the freight to and from the Midwestern United States. The Boston and Worcester Railroad was chartered June 23, 1831 and construction began in August 1832.  The line opened in sections: to West Newton on April 16, 1834; to Wellesley on July 3; to Ashland on September 20; to Westborough in November 1834; and the full length to Worcester on July 4, 1835. The original single-track line was doubled-tracked from Boston to Framingham in 1839, and on to Worcester by 1843.  In 1843 the B&W introduced season passes to West Newton for $60, effectively introducing the concept of commuter rail.
  The Western Railroad was chartered February 15, 1833 and incorporated March 15, 1833 to connect the B&W to the Hudson and Berkshire Railroad at the New York state line.  Construction began in 1837, and the Eastern Division to the Connecticut River in Springfield opened on October 1, 1839. The summit of Charlton Hill drainage divide between the Atlantic coast and the Connecticut River is a rock cut 57 mi (92 km) west of Boston. The Western Division, through the Berkshire Hills, opened in sections from both ends from the state line to Pittsfield May 4, 1841, West Springfield to Chester May 24, 1841, Springfield to West Springfield (across the Connecticut River) July 4, 1841, Pittsfield to "Summit" August 9, 1841, and Chester to Summit September 13, 1841. The summit through the Berkshires is known as Washington Hill. Eastbound trains climb 6 mi (9.7 km) of 1.4% grade while westbound trains climb 10 mi (16 km) of slightly steeper grade to reach the 4 mi (6.4 km) of fairly level track across the drainage divide between the Connecticut and Hudson Rivers. On October 4, 1841 the first train ran along the full route. The only true tunnel on the B&A is State Line Tunnel in Canaan, New York, about 2 mi (3.2 km) west of the Massachusetts state line. The original bore was augmented by an improved alignment in 1912, and the original bore was abandoned in the late 20th century.
  The Castleton and West Stockbridge Railroad was incorporated in New York in 1834 as the New York part of the Western Railroad, and changed its name to the Albany and West Stockbridge Railroad (chartered May 5, 1836, organized May 20).  Construction began in December 1840 and the line opened from Greenbush (east of Albany) to Chatham on December 21, 1841 and to the Massachusetts state line on September 12, 1842.  It was leased to the Western Railroad for 50 years from November 11, 1841.  This railroad replaced the Hudson and Berkshire Railroad east of Chatham, which was abandoned around 1860.
  The connection from Boston to Albany formed the longest and most expensive point-to-point railroad yet constructed in the United States. Two mergers, on September 4, 1867 and December 28, 1870 brought the three companies, along with the Hudson and Boston Railroad, together into one company, known as the Boston and Albany Railroad.  The New York Central and Hudson River Railroad leased the B&A for 99 years from July 1, 1900.  This lease passed to the New York Central Railroad in 1914; throughout this, the B&A kept its own branding in the public eye.  The NYC merged into Penn Central on February 1, 1968.
  New York Central began a major modernization program in 1912. The Castleton Cut-Off with a very large hi-level bridge over the Hudson River was built from the B&A at Post Road to a new rail yard at Selkirk, New York, to avoid the steep B&A grade from the Hudson River up West Albany Hill. Berkshire locomotives were designed to provide faster freight service over the B&A.
  In 1883, the B&A acquired track then owned by the New York and New England Railroad as far as Newton Highlands, and, in 1884, began the construction of a line northwest to the B&A mainline, creating a commuter loop.  "The 
caption: Refunding Bond of the Boston and Albany Rail Road Company, issued 1. October 1913
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