The summer rain is gently falling, a refreshing respite from the warm summer days. Today I find myself in a rather pensive state of mind, a place that is somewhat pleasing yet still a bit concerning. As a local historian I seek the past with a vengeance, but sometimes when I find the past old concerns return, thoughts of the goodness of nostalgia dissipate and emotions are challenged. It is this day that I find myself standing on Storrs Street with my thoughts and the gentle summer rain. I stand in front of a vacant parking lot that once hosted our very grand Concord Train Depot.
As the world evolves and we construct new buildings the excavators have returned to a location where their predecessors completed a very sad task just over 60 years ago, the demolition of one of the most beautiful train depots in New England. I quietly observe as the backhoe scoops another bucket from the earth in order to pour a new concrete foundation in the parking lot at Capital Shopping Center. I am quite amazed to find the location of the new building to be right on the same location as our beloved train depot.
The world was a very different place in the mid-19th century, cutting edge technology being the advent of the steam locomotive traveling the railroad tracks that were being built across America. With this development there was a need to accommodate passengers and freight as well as the business that it would bring to Concord. There was a need for a train depot, a place for people to arrive and depart, this depot at Concord was viewed as a centerpiece in a very desirable location. Prior to the arrival of the train a depot was built in Concord and used for stagecoach transportation. When the rails were set in place, the Concord Railroad started operating in 1842. As the years progressed, the depot was only used by the railroad as the days of the stagecoach faded into history.
When travelers arrived, they were greeted with a most civilized community as they left the depot, perhaps an evening spent strolling Main Street with dinner and a night stay at the Eagle Hotel. Fine food was served and entertainment provided over the years at the Phenix Hall or White’s Opera House too. Many early shops carried the latest goods so we found that our community was indeed a destination location. Yes, the stagecoach faded into the past as the railroad progressed with affordable transportation.
As the years continued, the Concord Train Depot was replaced by yet another in 1860, larger and more impressive to the passengers. The trains were arriving on a regular basis and commerce continued to benefit. The railroad provided many jobs to the people and many appreciated this wonderful opportunity to earn a fair wage allowing them to provide for their families.
In 1885, a third depot was constructed, this being the grandest depot of all. It was constructed with brick and mortar, an ornate copper roof; the detail was amazing. It was a showpiece in the northeast, gracing Storrs Street, then known as railroad square, for 75 years until the Capital Shopping Center was built in 1960.
Many servicemen and woman departed our train depot, serving in the early wars. It has been said that the Concord Depot was the port that launched thousands of servicemen and woman. I know that my family, and perhaps yours too, saw our ancestors ushered off to war.
For some, it was the last time they stood together and embraced, within this grand depot, for war would harshly claim their futures.
The railroad depot was razed on this 25-acre site just prior to the construction of the Capital Shopping Center. The train shed was razed first and followed by the grand depot. The scrap metal was sent to Argentina for the best price; the bricks perhaps cleaned and used elsewhere.
The men assigned the task to demolish this beauty were said to be deeply saddened, for you see, they were destroying more than a building, they were destroying fond memories from the past.
This depot was a sacred place to many, that last embrace, the memory of the war, too many departures without returns.
The demolition was not the result of the urban renewal program, simply the need to dispose of a building that was no longer used, falling into disrepair the railroad could no longer justify the expense. Valuable properties, once home to train depots around our country, were being sold off by the railroad not so much for profit but to eliminate the need to maintain an industry that was quickly slowing as many people purchased automobiles and used aircraft for transportation.
For many, it is a story that is difficult to tell, for others the years have erased the story of the grand train depot in Concord. Today you see a shopping center where once you saw many people boarding trains with destinations, we can only dream.
As the stage coach went, so did the railroad. Yes, progress has been made, but the depot will always remain the favored memory in our community. The beauty of the grand structure as well as the fond memories will never be forgotten.
I returned to the new construction site late in the day after the excavation halted for the evening. I gazed past the construction fence enclosing the area. The men have uncovered large pieces of granite foundation and countless old bricks.
The granite and bricks were once part of our grand Concord Train Depot. My memories drift back once again to another time. This sacred place where we went to say goodbye one last time as our soldiers and sailors went off to war. That was our train depot and a memory we will always own.
Sometimes history has a way of visiting time and again, old granite and scattered bricks with a gentle summer rain.
Vintage Views is a local history column that explores Concord and its surrounding towns. It runs every week in the Sunday Your Life section. The author is a historian and not a member of the Monitor’s staff.