Haddon Heights Rail History Highlights
The morning commute to Camden and Philadelphia is underway at the Atlantic City Railroad’s Haddon Heights station in this 1907 postcard view. The station was constructed in 1890, and the Station Avenue grade crossing is to the left. In 1922 the northbound track will become the express track, and a new northbound track will be constructed where many of the commuters are standing. Courtesy Margaret Westfield.
Timeline
1877: Construction of the narrow gauge Philadelphia & Atlantic City Railroad is completed. The first scheduled train from Camden to Atlantic City through Haddon Heights is operated on July 9, 1877.
1883: The Philadelphia & Reading Railroad acquires control of the Philadelphia & Atlantic City Railroad at a foreclosure sale. The P&R standard-gauges the P&AC in 1884.
1889: The Philadelphia & Reading forms the Atlantic City Railroad, a subsidiary which absorbs the Philadelphia & Atlantic City effective April 1. A second main track is laid to create a double track railroad between Camden and Atlantic City.
1890: The Haddon Heights passenger station is constructed at Station Avenue.
1903: Public Service acquires the Camden & Suburban Railway Company and completes construction of the trolley line to Haddon Heights. Regular trolley service between Camden and Haddon Heights begins on July 14.
1906: The Haddon Heights freight station is constructed, replacing an earlier structure. Most of the foodstuffs, hardware, farm implements, and etc. for local consumption arrived in town on the railroad. A team track at the freight station permitted unloading directly from rail car to wagon. Another track curved across West Atlantic Avenue leading to the Pomperin Stone Floor Company and a coal wharf.
Trackside view of the 1906 Haddon Heights freight station, taken on May 26, 1986. Note the team track to the left of the station, which was used by rail customers without the benefit of a private siding. In 1954, Cavalier Brands, Inc., a dealer in perishables, and Eastern Distributors, Inc., a building materials dealer, used the team track for deliveries. The once triple-tracked railroad has been reduced to a single track, which was formerly the southbound track. This station is still extant, along West Atlantic Avenue east of the Station Avenue grade crossing. Photo by John Burlage.
To the left is the former Haddon Heights Lumber Company’s loading dock, now enclosed. This view looks west along West Atlantic Avenue. The Haddon Heights freight station can be seen in the distance. Photo by Robert Cubberley, on July 8, 2023.
1907: The extension of the trolley line from Haddon Heights to Clementon is completed. Regular service between Camden and Clementon begins on May 30.
With the extension of the trolley line from Haddon Heights to Clementon in 1907, a new brick substation was constructed to power the extended line. Note the concrete triangle-within-a-circle Public Service logo on the façade. The Clementon line was the last Camden-area line to offer trolley service, being discontinued on September 4, 1935. After abandonment the trolley right-of-way became East Atlantic Avenue. The five-foot gauge trolley rails can still be seen poking through the asphalt in various places in neighboring Audubon. The substation is located just west of the I-295 overpass, and is owned by PSE&G. This photo was taken on June 11, 2011, by John Burlage.
1922: The Atlantic City Railroad installs a third main track on its main line between Haddon Heights and Magnolia, a distance of 2.71 miles, to allow faster scheduling of express passenger trains to the shore. “NO” (north) tower is constructed just south of Green Street to control train movements thru Haddon Heights and a companion “SO” (south) tower is constructed in Magnolia. The coal wharf has been removed and the Haddon Heights Lumber Company has replaced Pomperin Stone Floor Company.
(Right) In the spring of 1922 a third track was installed between Haddon Heights and Magnolia. The interlocking at Haddon Heights was controlled by “NO” tower, seen in the right foreground. The Haddon Heights station can be seen in the distance. Note the high-speed turnouts and the Hall disc signals protecting the interlocking. A Camden-bound Public Service trolley on the Clementon line can be seen at the left. Photo by L. W. Rice, Robert L. Long Collection, West Jersey Chapter, NRHS.
(Left) A contemporary photo of the pedestrian overpass at Green Street on May 19, 2023. Immediately east of here the double track went to triple track, controlled by “NO” tower, which was located about one-tenth mile west of the Haddon Heights station. Photo by John Burlage.
1927-1931: A new concrete overpass is constructed at Kings Highway, replacing an older structure. The pedestrian overpass at Green Street and the pedestrian underpass at Garden Street are constructed to improve pedestrian safety on the busy railroad.
This view of the Haddon Heights station, taken on May 14, 1932, looks south towards Atlantic City. The roof over the baggage carts is different than the more extensive covers at Audubon and West Collingswood, although all stations shared a similar architecture and basic plan. Beyond the Station Avenue grade crossing is the Atlantic City Railroad’s Haddon Heights freight station. Haddon Heights was at the north end of the triple track between here and Magnolia. The middle track was used by express trains to bypass local trains operating in the commuter zone. The smaller northbound station is across Station Avenue to the left. To the left of the northbound station was the double-tracked Public Service Clementon trolley line, now occupied by East Atlantic Avenue. Note the track fences separating the local tracks from the express track. Photo by Francis Palmer, West Jersey Chapter collection.
1933-1934: Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines is formed through the consolidation of Pennsylvania Railroad and Reading Railroad subsidiaries operating in Southern New Jersey. The railroads took this action to remain viable in the face of declining business brought on by the Great Depression. “NO” tower is closed, and both the tower and third main track thru Haddon Heights are removed.
1935: Regular service on the Public Service trolley line is discontinued on September 1 due to declining ridership as a result of both the Great Depression and development of public highways. An infrequent franchise car is operated until 1937 to retain the franchise to operate the line. The line is permanently taken out of service and effectively abandoned in 1937. Note: The substation originally constructed to power the trolley line still stands on East Atlantic Avenue and continues in operation by Public Service.
1953: The PRSL Clementon Branch (renamed former ACRR Main Line) is reduced from double to single main track through Haddon Heights effective November 24.
The Reading constructed this pedestrian underpass of the railroad at Garden Street in 1931. This contemporary view looks west along East Atlantic Avenue on May 19, 2023. The underpass allowed pedestrians to safely cross the once busy triple-tracked Atlantic City Railroad mainline. East Atlantic Avenue was formerly the Public Service Clementon trolley line right-of-way, so from 1922 to 1933 there was effectively a five-track rail corridor through Haddon Heights. Photo by John Burlage.
1965: The final regularly scheduled passenger trains to serve Haddon Heights, Nos. 609 and 610, operating between Camden and Clementon, are discontinued by PRSL effective July 16. The Haddon Heights station agency remains open to service local freight traffic.
1976: The Consolidated Rail Corporation is created by Congress to absorb the rail assets of seven bankrupt northeastern railroads and the PRSL. The railroad thus formed is known as Conrail. The use of all previous railroad names is discontinued.
1980: The Haddon Heights passenger station is closed as a freight agency. The Communication and Signals Department of Conrail moves into the building. During the 1980s the former freight station is sold and still exists as a private business.
The Haddon Heights station was photographed on May 26, 1986, when it was being used as a base for Conrail’s Communication and Signals Department. The station is located at the corner of Station Avenue and West Atlantic Avenue. Photo by John Burlage.
2006: The Communication and Signals Department is relocated from Haddon Heights to Woodbury. The Delaware & Susquehanna Model Railroad Club leases the station from Conrail for its headquarters. The Club is committed to keeping the 130-plus year old structure as a preserved historic landmark on Station Avenue as well as a home to their model railroad.
(Below) This Sanborn fire insurance map from 1922 shows the recently triple-tracked Atlantic City Railroad mainline through the center of Haddon Heights. The top of the map is toward Camden while the bottom to toward Atlantic City. The map clearly shows the team track leading up to the freight house, and the Haddon Heights Lumber Company’s private siding. Sanborn maps are color-coded to depict the type of construction: yellow means a wooden frame structure, red means brick, and blue means concrete or cinder block. The main (southbound) passenger station was a frame structure, while the freight house and the northbound passenger station were brick structures with wooden eaves or canopies. Typically, streetcar tracks, where they are laid on a public street, are not shown on these maps, and this is the case here. Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division, Sanborn Maps Collection.
The information on this webpage was supplied by members of West Jersey Chapter, NRHS, and the Delaware & Susquehanna Model Railroad Club.