Haines Falls station

Haines Falls station

Company type	Former railway station
Industry	Rail transport
Founded	1883
Defunct	1940
Fate	Closed; building repurposed as Mountain Top Historical Society headquarters
Headquarters	Haines Falls, New York , United States
Products	Passenger rail services (historical)

Haines Falls is a disused railway station located in Haines Falls, New York, once part of the Ulster and Delaware Railroad network. After undergoing restoration in 1999, it stands as one of only two remaining stations from the U&D branch lines. Presently, the building functions as the base for the Mountain Top Historical Society and marks the starting point of the Kaaterskill Rail Trail, a picturesque hiking route that follows the path of the former railroad.

Kaaterskill Railroad

Originally, this station belonged to the narrow-gauge Kaaterskill Railroad at milepost 6.6 and was among the busiest stops along the route. Initially named Haines Corners Station after the town’s earlier designation, it was positioned across from a boarding house and adjacent to the Girder Deck Bridge, which was the largest bridge on that railroad. Located opposite another narrow-gauge station, it later became incorporated into the standard-gauge Ulster and Delaware Railroad system when the Kaaterskill Railroad was converted to a branch line and merged with a portion of the Stony Clove and Catskill Mountain Railway.

Ulster and Delaware Railroad

Situated at branch milepost 18.4, this station remained unaltered during the period of prefabricated station construction between 1900 and 1901. However, by the early 1910s, increasing passenger numbers led to concerns from New York State authorities that the facility was inadequate for the community’s needs. Consequently, in 1913, the Ulster and Delaware Railroad replaced it with a new station located a few hundred feet away at milepost 18.5.

The design of this newer station was similar to that of Tannersville’s but notably did not include a portico extension. It served as a year-round passenger stop until 1932 when New York Central (NYC) took over U&D operations; thereafter, it operated seasonally during summer months and functioned as a flagstop during off-peak periods. During these off-seasons, services were handled by staff based at Tannersville station.

Following approval by the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) in 1939 to discontinue service and dismantle branch lines, Haines Falls station ceased operations in 1940. Today, it houses the Mountain Top Historical Society headquarters and remains one of just two surviving stations from U&D’s branch lines.

In 2012, the Ulster & Delaware Railroad Historical Society contributed 132 feet of 105-pound rail to the Mountain Top Historical Society to construct a display track along the former railroad corridor.

The station earned a place on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996 under its original designation as the Ulster and Delaware Railroad Station.

Kaaterskill Rail Trail

The Kaaterskill Rail Trail was completed in 2013 with an initial 1.5-mile segment linking Mountain Top Historical Society grounds to Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) property at the end of Laurel House Road. By 2016, further enhancements extended trail access from Haines Falls Station all the way to North/South Lake Campground via connections with both the Rail Trail and Escarpment Trail. These improvements provided several public vantage points overlooking Kaaterskill Falls while also increasing safety measures following multiple recent fatalities at this popular site.

External links

• Ulster & Delaware Haines Falls Railroad Station (2009)