Greendell, NJ: 1911 State of NJ/DL&W Depot and Signal Tower

Depot: (Satellite)

Tower: (Satellite)

The state bought the depot, but they need to restore it. Hopefully, there will be "after restoration" photos in the future.

Street View, Aug 2019

Joshua Weinstein, Oct 2016

Jim Kelling posted two photos with the comment: "Greendell NJ depot today on the Lackawanna Cutoff."

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Metrotrails posted two photos with the comment: "Metrotrails Then and Now Series: Greendell, New Jersey station on the Lackawanna Cutoff, 1999 image shared by Austin O'Connor recently, and taken by his great grandfather, show the area before the signal bridge and Wolfs Corner Road bridge were removed in favor of a grade crossing.

The Lackawanna's New Jersey cutoff was completed in 1911 and survived until early 1980s removal. Proposals for reactivation were almost immediate, but many times stalled.

Today, work has reached almost to Andover."

Austin O'Connor: The signal bridge in the photo still exists and is stored in Phillipsburg, NJ. I’d love to be able to get it back at the station one day.

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Metrotrails posted two photos with the comment:

Metrotrails Then and Now Series: Historic 1968 Greendell, New Jersey view by Glenn W. Magnell, compared to the same scene on our 2023 visit.

The Delaware, Lackawanna, and Western Railroad's New Jersey Cutoff was the greatest cut and fill project in the history of railroading, opened in 1911.

The double track line eliminated the need for trains to go south to Washington, then east by cutting the corner from Slateford PA to near Lake Hopatcong.

The advent of the automobile for both freight and pleasure led to the decline of the railroad. The tower at Greendell was taken out of service by the mid 1930s, and the station closed in 1938. The line was switched from double to single track in 1958, and the Lackawanna merged with the Erie in 1960.

We see the eastbound bulldog nosed engine bearing the EL logo here.

Freight service continued through the 1970s.

The last train to pass through was an Amtrack inspection train in 1982. The rails were removed soon after.

The bridge overpass was removed, and the road now crosses at grade.

Talks of reactivation were already happening by the end of the 1980s, though movement on the project was stalled multiple times.

As of 2023, work has been done as far as Roseville to the east of here. The Greendell Station has been cared for with plans for a museum.

Metrotrails shared with the comment: "Lackawanna Cutoff in Greendell NJ."

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cdk007, Feb 2024

Metrotrails posted two photos with the comment:

Metrotrails Then and Now Series: Historic 1979 Mike Wikman photo at Greendell Tower on the Lackawanna Cutoff, Greendell, New Jersey, compared to the same scene on our 2023 walk.

The Lackawanna Railroad's New Jersey Cutoff was the greatest cut and fill project in the history of railroading, and opened in 1911. Its great success was short lived with the advent of the automobile, and the tower here was out of service by the end of the 1930s. The double track was made single in 1958, and freight service continued through 1979. The last train before the removal of the rails was a 1979 Amtrack inspecting the line for potential service that never came to be.

The bridge here, Wolfs Corner Road, was removed in the early 2000s in favor of a grade crossing of the right of way. The station and tower remain, and the station has been well kept with plans to make it a museum.

Almost immediately after rail removal, talks of rebuilding the line began. Nothing came about for many years, but as of 2023, work on the line has progressed to Roseville.

Jordan Douglass Barday shared

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