Hawthorne, NJ - Then & Now
NYS&W
Unfortunately for the GSMRRC, no railroads ever ran through our home town of North Haledon, so when
our newest Full Member and NYS&W expert Matt Posthumus told us that the Susquehanna was starting to
remove trackage just down the hill in Hawthorne, we ran to document what was left...
Hawthorne, New Jersey was formerly a part of Manchester Township, Bergen County, which dated back to the Revolutionary War.
In the early 1800s, Paterson businessmen complained about traveling to the County Seat in Hackensack, and so to quiet them,
Passaic County was formed in 1837, taking Paterson, Manchester, and others with it.
As time went on, the township broke up into several independent towns. Hawthorne became its own town on March 24, 1898.
The north end of town provided both the NYS&W and Erie railroads with a good amount of light industry to service. This customer
base, as well as the NYS&W car shops, necessitated the "North Hawthorne" station pictured above. The "Hawthorne" station, less
than a mile to the south, is still standing today and is the common starting point for NYS&W fan trips. An eastbound passenger
train waits at the station on May 18, 1962.
Photo part of the Walter Johnson Collection.
This picture shows NYS&W Alco RS-1 #250 working North Hawthorne on April 9, 1962.
Photo part of the Walter Johnson Collection.
On June 1, 2003, not much remains of this bustling scene. The pointed roof on the left belongs to Macaluso's Italian Restaurant,
a fine dining experience built on top of the station site. It's valet parking lot extends almost to where that sign is.
The white warehouse, now Premio Italian Sausage, is built upon the site of the old car shops. The brick building back on the
right was an old A&P warehouse serviced by the Susquehanna into the 1970s.
In addition to car shops, the NYS&W had a 7-stall roundhouse at North Hawthorne as seen in this April 6, 1940 photograph.
Photo part of the Walter Johnson Collection.
Believe it or not, the roundhouse is still standing on June 1, 2003! Due to the way the land is fenced off and divided up, it
is impossible to capture the above photo.
The back of the building tells it all.
Walter very quickly noticed where the telegraph lines entered the roundhouse. You can see this exact insulator array in the
1940 photo above!
#1802 heads west into North Hawthorne leading this high-and-wide special on July 17, 1974.
Photo by Curtis V. Carlough, from New York, Susquehanna & Western by Paul Tupaczewski, Morning Sun Books, Scotch Plains, NJ, 2002
The brush really covers a lot of the old throat, but the pole marks the spot in this June 2003 photo.
GP18 #1800 is switching cars out of American Bottle and Distributor while RS-1 #240 waits.
Photo by John Treen (Richard Campana Collection), from New York, Susquehanna & Western by Paul Tupaczewski, Morning Sun Books, Scotch Plains, NJ, 2002
In June 2003, only one siding is still in use. The white building in the background is now a warehouse for Premio Italian Sausage.
This page was written by Robert J. Savino
Webmaster@GSMRRClub.org
Last Updated March 1, 2005
For information about the GSMRRClub, feel free to contact us!
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