[mcdude]

From the Laconia Citizen

New chapter for a RR depot of yesteryear Alton:


Monday, April 27, 2009

Before the sun even came up, people lined the streets of Alton waiting for a glimpse of the old train station as it made its trip through town.

"Hey it's not every day you see a train station drive through town," said one man to another as more and more people with cameras lined Route 11 and Route 28.

With State Police leading the way and Alton Police diverting traffic whenever necessary, the depot began its final trip at exactly 6 a.m.

Accompanied by workers from Union Telephone, MetroCast Cablevision, and New Hampshire Electric Cooperative, the station slowly made its way about two miles through the center of town.

As the depot, which reached about 16 feet into the air, came to a telephone, cable or power line, the appropriate company would lift the line to allow it to sneak under as the structure made its way to Railroad Park where it will become the centerpiece.

Built around 1890, Marty Cornelissen said the old half-yellow half-green wooden depot with the slate roof was one of the first train stations in Alton.

"The Lakeshore Line started running in 1890," said Cornelissen who waited behind Town Hall for the depot's arrival. "It was originally in the woods because that's where the tracks were."

According to Cornelissen, the road that serviced Alton and Alton Bay was actually Rand Road and the train tracks were along Route 11.

As passenger cars began to replace branch line passenger trains, the small depot stayed in the woods on what is now state land.

At some point, it came the property of Maggie Moore who converted it to a home and lived there until her death.

"I knew her," said neighbor Nancy Malone. "Her husband converted it into a little home, but she got old and had to live in a nursing home."

Cornelissen said Moore's son donated it to the town of Alton, with the stipulation it be removed from state land.

Cornelissen and his brother took off the topmost portion of the slate roof so it would clear the power lines during its trip through town. The town will rebuild the roof and restore the depot in its new home behind Town Hall.