Today’s
Strafford train station was once known as Eagle, a stop on the Pennsylvania
Central Railroad since the 1830’s. Little is known about the original
station building, and only one photograph, dated 1856, is known to exist.
Radnor Historical Society
Collection
There is a lot
of mystery surrounding the station building we know today. It is said that
once the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia closed, the building, which
was probably a merchant’s stand for selling catalogues, was purchased
at auction by the Pennsylvania Railroad and moved fourteen miles on the railroad
to Wayne. It seems very impractical to move such a small frame building all
that way just to serve as a train shed, but it is one of the most ornate and
unusual stations on the Main Line, and this would serve as a reasonable explanation.
Until the picture below was found, it was only speculation that the station
was ever in Wayne.
From "Train Shed Cyclopedia
#24"
The
building was moved on the back of a train to Strafford about a decade later
for unknown reasons. This move seems even more impractical than the move from
Philadelphia, due to the ground level at Strafford and the short distance. A
ground floor was built on the Strafford site due to the elevation of the tracks,
and some other modifications were made. The name of the station was officailly
changed from Eagle to Strafford in 1887, as this February 17, 1887 article from
the Daily Local News of West Chester reports:
Name
of a Station Changed By order of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company the
name of Eagle Station, was dropped on Tuesday last, and the new one, Strafford,
was adopted, and it will hereafter be known by that name. The Government has
also changed the name of the post office from Spread Eagle to Strafford.
Photos of the station from the 1950's.
Internet Source
(1), From "On The Main Line" (2&3)
The station remained in the same spot for
more than a century. After a few minor renovations, repaintings, etc. Septa
decided that it was time for a completely new renovation in 1998. In June
of that year, trajedy struck, and an electrical fire severely damaged the
building’s interior and west side. The renovation ensued, and the station
was dramatically rolled back from it’s platform out into the parking
lot where renovations took place. Later, the same was done to the shed on
the Eastbound side of the tracks. The station was restored completely, and
historically, and was soon up for rent as office space. The pictures below
show the station shortly after the fire, when it was boarded up.
Internet Source
