Few People Know About This Home By The Tracks In the Mountains Of New Hampshire
Railroads have played an important part in the history of New Hampshire. They flourished during the 19th-century logging era and opened up the mountains to tourists. In Crawford Notch, one family thrived, grew up next to, and died on the tracks.
The Mt. Willard Section House was located at the foot of its namesake mountain's precipitous cliffs. The Maine Central Railroad constructed the house for the foreman and crew who looked after this section of track.
The scene from Willey Brook Bridge, which carried the railroad up through Crawford Notch, still looks much the same now as it did around the turn of the 20th century.
Hattie Evans was the matriarch of the Evans Family who resided here with her husband and section foreman Loring Evans, along with four crew members. Her four children, Gordon, Mildred, Raymond, and Enola, were also born here. Loring was sadly killed in a train accident in 1913.
Hattie Evans remained in the house until 1942. After being abandoned for decades and suffering from heavy vandalism, the house was burned down by the railroad in 1972.
Today, the Mt. Willard Section House site is marked with a memorial. A stone foundation and other relics from the home can still be seen here. It is illegal to remove any of these artifacts.
After passing the Section House, train passengers were treated to a ride over the Willey Brook Bridge, followed by a spectacular descent through Crawford Notch. The scenery here is some of the best in the White Mountains.
In 1983, author Virginia C. Downs wrote Life By The Tracks: When Passenger Trains Steamed Through The Notch, in which members of the Evans family share their memories of living beside the railroad in Crawford Notch. The book is long out of print but used copies can still be found online.
Fans of New Hampshire’s railroading history may also be interested in taking a ride on the Conway Scenic Railroad, which passes right by the Mt. Willard Section House site as it climbs through Crawford Notch.
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Address: Mount Willard, Mt Willard, Hart's Location, NH 03812, USA
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