(Image: BTC; southern branch (since abandoned) of the Tremont Street Subway)
Boston MBTA’s Tremont Street Subway opened on September 1, 1897, which makes it the third oldest subway tunnel in the world to use electric traction (and the oldest in North America). The tunnel was designed for streetcars in an attempt to reduce surface level congestion that was rapidly increasing as the thriving Massachusetts city expanded.
(This article briefly examines the abandoned southern branch, accompanied with photographs illustrating the 19th century construction and early years of the Tremont Street Subway.)
(Images: City of Boston Archives)
The Tremont Street Subway tunnel connected Adams Square, Boylston, Haymarket, Park Street and Scollay Square, with original entrances at Boston Public Garden, North Station/Canal Street, and Pleasant Street. But in 1961, the southern tunnel branch of the Tremont Street Subway was abandoned.
(Images: City of Boston Archives)
Those that know where to look can still see what’s left of the original entrances. But unsurprisingly, the landscape of the city and its stations has changed significantly over the decades. The abandoned Pleasant Street portal was sealed and the surface area converted into what is now Elliot Norton Park. Beyond the sealed portals, abandoned stretches of subway lie eerily silent. Among them is the disused Pleasant Street Incline, which periodically features in feasibility studies looking at the potential reuse of the subterranean tracks.
(Images: City of Boston Archives)
One by one, various Boston subway stations fell into disuse. Haymarket station was replaced in 1971, and alterations to the Government Center and Boston City Hall stations struck the death knell for the unfortunate Adams Square.
(Images: City of Boston Archives)
Fortunately, the City of Boston Archives has released some incredible photographs of the construction of the station and its tunnels, reminding us not only of how much a city’s subterranean spaces can evolve over time, but how many people laboured to make underground rapid transit a reality and, in doing so, helped shape the city we know today.
Fan of forgotten underground stations and lost subways? If so, check out our features covering abandoned Tube stations of the London Underground, defunct New York City subways and other derelict ghost stations across the world.
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