Nutmeg (train)

The Nutmeg train was a unique east-west train through Massachusetts and Connecticut which did not travel along the Atlantic Coast; in the course of following its route it connected several of Connecticut's medium-sized cities. Operated by the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad (NH) from 1950, it took a route from Boston's South Station, running through southwestern Boston suburbs but making no stops until Blackstone, Massachusetts, then through northeast Connecticut along the path of the old Southbridge and Blackstone Railroad, divisions of the old New York and New England Railroad to Hartford's Union Station, and finally to Waterbury's Union Station. Running directly through northeastern Connecticut, it made a shorter trip than the itineraries through Springfield, Massachusetts that the New Haven offered.[1][2]

Nutmeg

Overview
Service type	Inter-city rail
Status	Discontinued
Locale	Northeastern United States
Predecessor	Highland Express
First service	1950
Last service	1955
Former operator(s)	New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad
Route
Start	Boston, Massachusetts
End	Waterbury, Connecticut
Distance travelled	148.5 miles (239.0 km)
Average journey time	3 hours, 57 minutes (eastbound) 3 hours, 42 minutes (westbound)
Service frequency	Daily, except Saturday, Sunday & holidays (1955)
Train number(s)	Eastbound: 128 Westbound: 129
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Route map Boston Back Bay Blackstone Massachusetts Connecticut Putnam Willimantic Manchester Hartford New Britain Plainville Forestville Bristol Waterbury

History

View of the western terminus, Waterbury Union Station

The Nutmeg followed an earlier Highland Express along the same route in the 1930s.[3] There were other unnamed trains that followed this route; however, these were local trains and most of them did not go further west than Hartford. The train was a weekday train, and there were local running trains that made the trip on weekends.[4] The NH could not continue the route further west to Danbury or to Putnam County, New York because the company had removed tracks from essential points from Waterbury west to Southbury in 1937.[5]

Flood damage in Winsted, Connecticut from Diane

The route was rendered unusable after a major flood during Hurricane Diane in August, 1955 washed out the bridge over the Quinebaug River, west of Putnam, Connecticut. The flood led to the suspension of passenger train traffic between Blackstone, Massachusetts and Hartford. The New Haven RR continued daily unnamed trains between Waterbury and Hartford, and several trains a day between Blackstone and Boston. The Waterbury-Hartford service ended in 1960.[6][7][8] With the closing of the route, Connecticut's interior cities no longer have east-west travel options available by rail.

The eastern section, from Franklin to Boston, Massachusetts remains in use by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's Franklin Line.

Major stops

• Boston, Massachusetts
• Willimantic, Connecticut
• Manchester
• Hartford
• New Britain
• Waterbury

References

1. New Haven April 1955 timetable, Table 18
2. Karr, Ronald Dale (2017). The Rail Lines of Southern New England (2 ed.). Branch Line Press. p. 87-88, 110-11. ISBN 9780942147124.
3. New Haven June 1931 timetable, Table 27
4. New Haven April 1955 timetable, Table 18
5. Karr, Ronald Dale (2017). The Rail Lines of Southern New England (2 ed.). Branch Line Press. p. 88. ISBN 9780942147124.
6. Official Guide of the Railways, August 1958, New Haven section, Table 7 (p. 154), Table 31 (p. 165)
7. Karr, Ronald Dale (2017). The Rail Lines of Southern New England (2 ed.). Branch Line Press. p. 112. ISBN 9780942147124.
8. "Track 12: CT Passenger Stations, N-NE". Tyler City Station. Retrieved 1 November 2015.