Every morning I start out my day taking Metro-North down to White Plains. Now one would probably assume that White Plains is the closest train station to my work, but the fact is that it is not. Mount Pleasant is actually the closest, but as it isn’t a regular stop, the closest train station would be Hawthorne. The place I work for has a shuttle bus that goes to and from White Plains though, so it is easier for me. But there are the occasional times where I end up going to Hawthorne or Valhalla, like when I leave work early and such. So although I am not a regular rider from the station, I am a bit more familiar with it than many of the other stations I’ve visited on the tour. I’ve seen it on the sunny days, and even on the snowy days. I am always curious about the changes going on at the station, such as the coffee shop that is supposed to be arriving at some point in the station building. And I was rather excited when the flowers arrived, along with the new clock in front of the station (which in my photos below had yet to be revealed).
Original Hawthorne station, circa 1900. Note the sign on the front which lists the distance in miles to each end of the railroad, in Chatham on one end and in New York City at the other. A similar sign still exists at Mount Kisco.
When the New York & Harlem Railroad first began making stops here in the 1840’s, the station was named Unionville. If the current name of Hawthorne evokes the memory of an American author, you are certainly on the right track (no pun intended). In 1901 Unionville became Hawthorne, honoring Rose Hawthorne Lathrop, daughter of author Nathaniel Hawthorne. Rose became a nun and was known as Mother Mary Alphonsa, founder of a home for those suffering from incurable cancers.
Below are some of the photos I took in Hawthorne at my last visit (which was sometime around July). The clock had recently arrived, the sky was an amazing shade of blue, and the flowers were blooming. In fact I think one of my favorite photos that day was the one of the flower. Although many of the stations I’ve visited I may never go to again, I’ll be checking up on Hawthorne in the future, as I’m eagerly awaiting the new coffee shop… and I’ll probably have to do a before and after of the little station building.
Those pics are sickk!
-Demetrius M.
TTMG Admin Assistant
Just so you know, the New Haven CT Solari is heading for the DRM.
http://www.newhavenindependent.org/index.php/archives/entry/solari_board_bound_for_/id_31980
So when are you going to visit Poughkeepsie and the Walkway on the Poughkeepsie bridge?
Really good pics on a beautiful to show the station in a good light (no pun intended).
I too am interested to see what comes of the station building’s identity crisis: is Hawthorne working class or wall street? pickup or escalade? boxers or briefs? newspaper or nook?
When I was a student at the LindenHill school,in Hawthorne,there was a station called Thornwood,I found out that,station was renamed Pleasentville,and one station was illiminated,because of the clintons moving to Chappaqua,so people would not be able to visit their house,I have nothing but good memories,about Linden Hill School,it was both a boarding school,and a high school,I met wonderful people there,who I miss,and wish I had kept in touch with.Some I have but I really miss Joey Maranzino by best friend.He still lives in Long Island.God bless Linden Hill High School.,
I’m not sure where you found that out, but that info is definitely not correct. Thornwood was eliminated in the early ’80s when high level platforms were being constructed, and had nothing to do with the Clintons (who moved to the area in the late ’90s or early 2000s). The stations were not renamed at all, Pleasantville does, and has always existed. Thornwood was in between Pleasantville and Hawthorne, and the station building still exists and is used as the Chamber of Commerce.
I was told this by someone at Grand Central when I went there for some timetables,by the old ticket counter.But anyway they should have kept the station,I traveled to Hawthorne,after my home visits,concluded,and most of the time the trains were pulled by the now retired FL-9’s I would love to model the Harlem line the way it was before the high level platforms were built,and the line electrofied.the line was superelevated on curves,the coaches were the old Penn-Central clerestory coaches,painted green with a white stripe,the length of the coaches,and had the Penn-Central logo,mating worms.Thanks.