Gloucester is a regional rail station on the Rockport Branch of the MBTA Commuter Rail Newburyport/Rockport Line, located off Railroad Avenue and Washington Street in the downtown area of Gloucester, Massachusetts. The station consists of a single side platform serving the line's single track. The station has a mini-high platform, making it handicapped accessible.HistoryEastern Railroad and B&MThe Eastern Railroad built their Gloucester Branch in 1847, reaching Gloucester in December. The station was located in downtown Gloucester, at the intersection of Railroad and Maplewood Avenues. Gloucester was the end of the line until 1861, when the Rockport Railroad was built to extend the branch to Rockport station. Due to the new curve heading to Rockport, a new station was built to the west near Washington Street. The old depot, now on a short spur, was still used for freight service for several decades to come.Initially, Rockport trains were operated by the Eastern Railroad and met Eastern mainline trains at Beverly. In 1864, trains began to be through-routed to Boston to increase frequencies on the inner part of the trunk line. The Eastern Railroad bought the Rockport Railroad in 1868, but the branch is still known as the Gloucester Branch. By the 1870s, regular commuter service was available. The Eastern was leased by the Boston and Maine Railroad in 1885 and merged into it in 1890. In 1911, the branch was doubled-tracked to Gloucester. (Today, the double track ends west of the station). Commuter service continued in the same fashion for decades, with 13 inbound round trips in 1906, 14 trips in 1950, and 11 trips in 1962.
