Sandown Depot facts for kids
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Sandown Depot, Boston and Maine Railroad
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 Location in New Hampshire
Location in the United States
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| Location | Depot Rd., Sandown, New Hampshire |
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| Area | less than one acre |
| Built | 1873 |
| NRHP reference No. | 86002167 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | September 4, 1986 |
The Sandown Depot is an old train station in Sandown, New Hampshire. It was built a long time ago, between 1873 and 1874. This station is special because it's one of the best-preserved train stations from that time. It still looks much like it did when it was first built!
Today, the Sandown Depot is a fun local history museum. It helps people learn about the past of Sandown. Because it's so important, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1986. It was also listed on the New Hampshire State Register of Historic Places in 2011.
Contents
Discovering the Sandown Depot
The old Sandown Depot is in the northern part of Sandown village. You can find it near Main Street, between Depot Road and an old railroad path. This old path is now a popular walking and biking trail called the Rockingham Recreational Trail.
What Does the Station Look Like?
The station is a one-story building made of wood. It's about 20 feet wide and 50 feet long (that's about 6 by 15 meters). The outside walls are covered with wooden boards called clapboards. It has a wide, gently sloped roof that sticks out far from the building. Big wooden supports, called knee brackets, hold up the roof's edges.
On the side where the trains used to run, there's a window that sticks out. Next to it, a tall pole called a semaphore mast goes through the roof. Semaphores were used to signal trains.
Inside the Old Train Station
Inside, the building was divided into different areas. There were waiting rooms for passengers, one for men and one for women. There was also a space to store freight, which means goods being shipped. The station master, who ran the station, had an office there. This office also had a telegraph to send messages. Today, some parts of the inside have been updated for the museum.
A Glimpse into the Past: History of the Depot
The Worcester, Nashua and Rochester Railroad built this station in 1873–74. This railroad company later became part of the larger Boston and Maine Railroad. The Sandown Depot was a very busy spot on the train line.
A Hub of Activity
This station was more than just a place for trains. It had a telegraph office for sending messages and a post office for mail. It also served as a freight depot, where goods were loaded and unloaded. There was a large area next to the tracks where up to 62 train cars could wait. Because of all these services, the depot became a very important place for the people of Sandown. It was a center of activity in the town.
From Train Station to Museum
Train travel started to slow down in the early 1930s. By 1935, the train tracks were removed. The depot building was then used by the state highway department to store things from 1934 to 1977. After that, it was turned into the local history museum you can visit today! It's a great way to see what life was like when trains were the main way to travel.
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