South Station Tower No. 1 & Interlocking System, Dewey Square, Boston, Suffolk County, MA

Significance: South Station's interlocking system was a prototypical solution to the problem of handling the huge numbers of track and signal changes required at a large railroad terminal. The interlocking system, Tower 1, and its electro-pneumatic interlocking machine were important elements in the design and historical operation of South Station, which was America's largest and busiest railroad station for many years.

Survey number: HAER MA-58

Building/structure dates: 1897- 1899 Initial Construction

Building/structure dates: 1939 Subsequent Work

Building/structure dates: 1959 Subsequent Work

Building/structure dates: ca. 1970 Subsequent Work

Building/structure dates: ca. 1977 Subsequent Work

Building/structure dates: ca. 1977 Subsequent Work

railroad stations brick buildings transportation railroad companies fires depressions commerce commuters boston tower south station tower dewey dewey square suffolk suffolk county massachusetts janice g artemel william edmund barrett boston and albany railroad boston and new york central railroad boston and providence railroad boston and worchester railroad boston terminal company c p clark j p coleman federal railroad administration george b francis e gallagher historic american engineering record massachusetts bay transportation authority new england railroad new york and new england railroad new haven new york old colony railroad josiah quincy ramapo iron works saxby and farmer john saxby south cove associates union switch and signal company george westinghouse ultra high resolution high resolution library of congress

1970

Library of Congress

http://www.loc.gov/

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