# 88 stations case

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{{Use American English|date=September 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2023}}
{{Infobox SCOTUS case
  | Litigants               = Palmer v. Massachusetts
  | ArgueDate               = October 11
  | ArgueYear               = 1939
  | DecideDate              = November 6
  | DecideYear              = 1939
  | FullName                = Palmer et al, trustees, v. Massachusetts
  | USVol                   = 308
  | USPage                  = 79
  | ParallelCitations       = 60 S.Ct. 34 ; 84 L.Ed. 93
  | Prior                   = Converse v. Massachusetts, 101 F.2d 48 (2d Cir. 1939), affirmed
  | Subsequent              = 
  | Holding                 = District Court was without power to order discontinuance of intrastate railroad service
  | Majority                = Frankfurter
  | JoinMajority            = Hughes, McReynolds, Stone, Roberts, Black, Reed
  | Dissent                 = 
  | JoinDissent             = 
  | NotParticipating        = Butler
  | LawsApplied             = [Bankruptcy Act of 1898](/source/Bankruptcy_Act_of_1898) § 77
  | Overruled =
}}
The '''88 stations case''' was a 1935–40 controversy and court case involving the [Old Colony Division](/source/Old_Colony_Railroad) of the [New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad](/source/New_York%2C_New_Haven_and_Hartford_Railroad). The New Haven entered bankruptcy in 1935; the next year, it ended the 1893 lease of the unprofitable Old Colony Division, but continued operating those lines by court order. The Old Colony and New Haven closed 88 stations in [Massachusetts](/source/Massachusetts) (plus five in [Rhode Island](/source/Rhode_Island)) on July 18, 1938, ending passenger service altogether on some lines. In May 1939, the Old Colony filed to abandon all freight and passenger service on its lines. In November 1939, the [Supreme Court of the United States](/source/Supreme_Court_of_the_United_States) ruled in '''''Palmer v. Massachusetts''''' that a district court did not have authority to order the discontinuance of intrastate passenger service. Thirty-two of the stations were reopened in 1940, with 40 percent of service cut in lieu of total abandonment.

==History==
===Background===
The [Old Colony Railroad](/source/Old_Colony_Railroad) consolidated most rail lines in southeastern Massachusetts under its control in the 1870s and 1880s, including a lease of the [Boston and Providence Railroad](/source/Boston_and_Providence_Railroad) in 1888. The [New York and New England Railroad](/source/New_York_and_New_England_Railroad) (NY&NE) controlled several additional lines including the [Charles River Branch](/source/Charles_River_Branch_Railroad), [Dorchester Branch](/source/Fairmount_Line), and its [Boston–Hartford mainline](/source/Franklin_Line). The [New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad](/source/New_York%2C_New_Haven_and_Hartford_Railroad) (New Haven) leased the Old Colony in 1893 and the NYN&NE in 1895, creating a railroad monopoly in southeastern Massachusetts and much of Rhode Island.<ref name=150years />{{rp|9}}

The New Haven's [99-year lease](/source/99-year_lease) of the Old Colony was treated as equivalent to ownership, with the Old Colony fully integrated into the New Haven system.<ref name=interest>{{cite journal |url=https://scholarship.law.duke.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2034&context=lcp |title=Protecting the User Interest in Railroad Reorganization |first=Armistead B. |last=Rood |journal=Law and Contemporary Problems |year=1940 |volume=7 |issue=3 |publisher=Duke University School of Law |pages=495–508|doi=10.2307/1189708 |jstor=1189708 }}</ref>{{rp|498}} Redundant routes were cut, and both public and internal documents used only the New Haven name. By the 1930s, the New Haven's largest freight terminal and [only steam locomotive shop](/source/Readville_station) were both on the ex-Old Colony system; more passengers entered Boston on Old Colony lines than entered New York on the New Haven.<ref name=interest />{{rp|499}}

Short-distance passenger service in New England peaked around 1900, and began falling as electric streetcars and then automobiles took traffic. Increased freight traffic during World War I further reduced passenger operations.<ref name=150years />{{rp|11}} Several lightly used Old Colony branch lines were replaced with buses in the 1920s and early 1930s, while the [Shawmut](/source/Shawmut_Branch_Railroad) and [Milton](/source/Dorchester_and_Milton_Branch_Railroad) branches were replaced by [a rapid transit extension](/source/Red_Line_(MBTA)).<ref name=150years />{{rp|96}} The New Haven suffered a sharp reduction in revenues during the early years of the Great Depression.<ref name=150years />{{rp|12}}

Cases such as ''[Munn v. Illinois](/source/Munn_v._Illinois)'' (1876) and [Wabash, St. Louis & Pacific Railway Co. v. Illinois](/source/Wabash%2C_St._Louis_%26_Pacific_Railway_Co._v._Illinois) (1886) had established the rights of the state and federal governments to regulate railroads to protect the public interest. Interstate service was largely regulated by the federal [Interstate Commerce Commission](/source/Interstate_Commerce_Commission) (ICC), which had limited intrastate authority – it could prevent a railroad from abandoning service on a line, but could not regulate the quantity of service provided. State agencies, such as the Massachusetts Public Utilities Commission (PUC), had more regulatory power over intrastate service.<ref name=interest />{{rp|497}}

Prior to 1933, railroad reorganizations rarely had negative effects on users (passengers and freight shippers), as receivership typically involved a deferment of debts rather than cuts to service. Management changes and a reduction in [deferred maintenance](/source/deferred_maintenance) sometimes even resulted in improved service for users.<ref name=interest />{{rp|495}} The Act of March 3, 1933 (the final day of [Herbert Hoover](/source/Herbert_Hoover)'s presidency) added three new sections to the [Bankruptcy Act of 1898](/source/Bankruptcy_Act_of_1898); Section 77 brought railroads under the Bankruptcy Act for the first time.<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/uclrev/vol1/iss1/5/ |last=Garrison |first=Lloyd K. |author-link=Lloyd K. Garrison |year=1933 |title=Reorganization of Railroads under the Bankruptcy Act |journal=University of Chicago Law Review |volume=1 |issue=1|pages=71–81 |doi=10.2307/1596812 |jstor=1596812 }}</ref> Major amendments on August 27, 1935, attempted to streamline the bankruptcy process, as the complexity of railroads had resulted in protracted proceedings.<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://scholarship.law.duke.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5470&context=faculty_scholarship |title=The 1935 Amendments of the Railroad Bankruptcy Law |journal=Harvard Law Review |first1=Leslie |last1=Craven |first2=Warner |last2=Fuller |pages=1254–1285 |volume=49 |year=1936|issue=8 |doi=10.2307/1333023 |jstor=1333023 }}</ref> The Depression and automobile competition made increasing revenues near-impossible, while the [Railway Labor Act](/source/Railway_Labor_Act) disallowed wage reductions. Since only major corridors tended to be profitable, lesser-used lines and stations were increasingly targeted for elimination during bankruptcy proceedings.<ref name=interest />{{rp|496}}

===New Haven bankruptcy===
On October 23, 1935, the New Haven petitioned the [United States District Court for the District of Connecticut](/source/United_States_District_Court_for_the_District_of_Connecticut) to begin bankruptcy proceedings under Section 77. The court appointed
trustees for the railroad, who "tentatively" continued paying the Old Colony lease.<ref name=interest />{{rp|499}} The public largely saw the proceedings as a chance for the New Haven to escape its early-20th-century debt; Old Colony stock rose from 39 to 70 by March 1936.<ref name=interest />{{rp|499}} On June 1, 1936, the trustees rejected the Old Colony lease based on studies that found it unprofitable. As the Old Colony was merely a "bookkeeping device" with all railroad operations directed by the New Haven, the court ordered on June 3 that the New Haven continue to operate the Old Colony but on the Old Colony's account.<ref name=interest />{{rp|499}} The court also approved the Old Colony's petition to enter the same reorganization proceedings as the New Haven; on June 18, the three New Haven trustees were also designated trustees of the Old Colony.<ref name=interest />{{rp|500}}

On June 1, 1937, the New Haven submitted its reorganization plan, under which the Old Colony would be acquired at a rate of two New Haven shares per Old Colony share. Old Colony shareholders demanded a higher rate, leading the ICC to examine the value and costs of the Old Colony to the greater New Haven system. The trustees produced a formula to segregate the earnings and costs of the Old Colony to establish charges for continued operation. The ICC approved the formula, albeit with substantial doubts about the validity of its results, on April 15, 1938. The court approved it on May 25; the Old Colony did not appeal.<ref name=interest />{{rp|500}} Abandonments of several minor lines during this time deprived the Old Colony of connecting traffic, as did the July 1937 discontinuance of [Fall River Line](/source/Fall_River_Line) steamship service between New York City and the [South Coast](/source/South_Coast_(Massachusetts)).<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30590438/fall-river-line/ |title=Old Fall River Line had colorful history |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=July 30, 1937 |page=22 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref><ref name=interest/>{{rp|501}}

===Station closures case===
The railroad attempted to close 22 low-ridership stations effective September 27, 1937, and removed them from public timetables.<ref name=checkers />{{efn|The 22 stations were Stanley, East Freetown, Weld Street, {{stl|NYNH&H|Springdale}}, West Stoughton, Easton, Whittendon, {{stl|NYNH&H|Ferry Street}}, {{stl|NYNH&H|Boylston}}, {{stl|NYNH&H|Jamaica Plain}}, {{stl|NYNH&H|Forest Hills}}, {{bts|Mount Hope}}, {{stl|NYNH&H|Sharon Heights}}, {{bts|East Foxboro}}, West Mansfield, Ashcroft, Winslows, Highland Lake, {{bts|Plimptonville}}, City Mills, Spring Street, and {{bts|Needham Heights}}.<ref name=nov19 />}} The Massachusetts Public Utilities Commission (PUC)<!--also styled as Department of Public Utilities (DPU)--> rejected the closures because they were improperly filed, and the stations remained open; passenger counts were taken at most of the stations in October.<ref name=checkers>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/72604790/the-boston-globe/ |title=Checkers to report on station traffic |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=October 9, 1937 |page=5 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> On November 18, the PUC ordered that the 22 stations be restored to timetables effective November 29, and remain open for at least 30 days afterward.<ref name=nov19>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/72604029/the-boston-globe/ |title=Commuters get former service |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=November 19, 1937 |page=3 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> The same day, the railroad filed a new petition with the PUC to abandon 14 of the stations.<ref name=nov18>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/72604001/the-boston-globe/ |title=Ask station service cut |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=November 18, 1937 |page=4 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref>{{efn|The 14 stations were Springdale, West Stoughton, Easton, Whittendon, Sharon Heights, East Foxboro, West Mansfield, Ashcroft, Winslows, Highland Lake, Plimptonville, City Mills, Spring Street, and Ferry Street.<ref name=nov18 />}} On December 28, 1937, the Old Colony trustees filed with the PUC to abandon passenger service to 74 additional stations in Massachusetts, bringing the total to 88, while retaining freight service.<ref name=taylor /><ref name=interest />{{rp|501}}

The railroad filed the proposed new schedules on January 31, 1938; the PUC began "lengthy" hearings.<ref name=jan1938>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/64861116/the-boston-globe/ |title=Old Colony Seeks to Reduce Losses |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=January 31, 1938 |page=12 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref><ref name=interest />{{rp|501}} All passenger service was to end on the [Randolph Branch](/source/Dighton_and_Somerset_Railroad), the Cape Main Line between Yarmouth and Provincetown, the Newport Secondary between Newport and Fall River (including five additional stations in Rhode Island), the [Dorchester Branch](/source/Fairmount_Line), the Wrentham Branch, the [Charles River Branch](/source/Millis_Branch), between {{bts|West Roxbury}} and {{bts|Dedham}}, and [between North Easton and Taunton](/source/Dighton_and_Somerset_Railroad); some minor stations would be closed on lines that retained service.<ref name=wouldclose /><ref name=jan1938 /><ref name=timetables /> Fifty-eight of the stations were on Old Colony lines; ten were on B&P lines, and 25 on NY&NE lines.<ref name=wouldclose />

On June 20, 1938, the trustees and a bondholders committee petitioned the court to allow closure of the 93 stations regardless of the PUC outcome. The PUC (which had not yet finished its hearings) appeared in the hearing but did not call or cross-examine witnesses, and did not argue whether the court had jurisdiction in the matter. On July 7, Judge [Carroll C. Hincks](/source/Carroll_C._Hincks) issued an order allowing the railroad to close the stations; the PUC appealed, and the state formed a legislative committee to investigate the matter.<ref name=interest />{{rp|501}} The 93 stations were closed effective Sunday, July 17, 1938.<ref name=timetables>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/67985976/the-boston-globe/ |title=New Haven Announces Changes in Timetables |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=July 13, 1938 |pages=1, 2 |via=Newspapers.com}} ([https://www.newspapers.com/clip/67986336/the-boston-globe/ part 2], [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/67986367/the-boston-globe/ part 3]) {{open access}}</ref><ref name=alibi>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/67985700/the-boston-globe/ |title=Train service alibi for lateness today |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=July 18, 1938 |page=2 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref>

The PUC, doubtful the validity of Hicks' order, selected the Yarmouth–Provincetown service – the most disruptive of the closures – as a test case.<ref name=alibi /><ref name=taylor>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68051815/the-boston-globe/ |title=Old Colony Railroad Plan Includes Abandonment |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=June 1, 1939 |page=8 |first=John I. Jr. |last=Taylor |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> In late July, the PUC ordered the Old Colony to reinstate one round trip and seven of the fourteen stations. The railroad filed a [bill in equity](/source/bill_in_equity) in the [United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts](/source/United_States_District_Court_for_the_District_of_Massachusetts), seeking an injunction to prevent the PUC or [Massachusetts Attorney General](/source/Massachusetts_Attorney_General) [Paul A. Dever](/source/Paul_A._Dever) from enforcing the PUC order. Dever, in return, petitioned the [Massachusetts Supreme Court](/source/Massachusetts_Supreme_Court) to enforce the PUC order, and appealed Hincks' decision to the [United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit](/source/United_States_Court_of_Appeals_for_the_Second_Circuit). The parties agreed to postpone the conflicting court filings until the appeals court ruled.<ref name=taylor />

The PUC appeal went to the appeals court before judges [Learned Hand](/source/Learned_Hand), [Thomas Walter Swan](/source/Thomas_Walter_Swan), and [Augustus Noble Hand](/source/Augustus_Noble_Hand). On January 16, 1939, the court ruled 2–1 in ''Converse v. Massachusetts'' that Hincks had exceeded his jurisdiction by issuing the order closing the 88 stations.<ref name=taylor /><ref>{{cite court |litigants=Converse v. Commonwealth of Massachusetts |vol=101 |reporter=F.2d |opinion=48 |court=2d Cir. |date=1939 |url=https://casetext.com/case/converse-v-commonwealth-of-massachusetts|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201201050654/https://casetext.com/case/converse-v-commonwealth-of-massachusetts|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 1, 2020}}</ref><ref name=interest/>{{rp|501}} The trustees appealed, and the stations remained closed.<ref name=interest/>{{rp|501}} On November 6, 1939, the [United States Supreme Court](/source/United_States_Supreme_Court) ruled 8–0 in '''''Palmer v. Massachusetts''''' to confirm the circuit court ruling that only the PUC had the power to allow station closures, and that the ongoing bankruptcy proceedings did not give Hincks the power to overrule the PUC.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68168720/the-boston-globe/ |title=New Haven Loses |first=Louis M. |last=Lyons |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=November 6, 1939 |pages=1, 19 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref><ref name=interest/>{{rp|502}}

On November 28, 1939, the PUC issued an order that the 88 stations in Massachusetts be reopened by December 10.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68211344/the-boston-globe/ |first=John G. |last=Harris |title=88 R.R. Stations Must Reopen |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=November 29, 1939 |pages=1, 2 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68205154/the-boston-globe/ |title=Delay in Action for Opening of 88 Stations |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=November 30, 1939 |page=16 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> The New Haven and the PUC reached an agreement on December 5 under which the order would be stayed for 30 days and that the PUC would allow some lesser-used stations to close, in exchange for the railroad agreeing to reopen some stations. After hearings, the PUC ruled on February 21, 1940, that the railroad must restore service to 32 of the 88 stations, with the remaining 56 allowed to permanently close.<ref name=feb22>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63128742/the-boston-globe/ |title=New Haven Must Open 32 Stations |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=February 22, 1940 |pages=1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63128773/the-boston-globe/ 6] |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> Service was restored to 25 stations – including Readville–Boston service on the Dorchester Branch, and service on the Charles River Branch as far as Caryville – on March 11, 1940.<ref name=march9>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63128951/the-boston-globe/ |title=New Haven Road Will Reopen 25 Stations Monday |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=March 9, 1940 |pages=1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63128999/the-boston-globe/ 3] |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> Many of the station buildings had been abandoned or sold, with small wooden shelters provided instead.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63128383/the-boston-globe/ |title=Thousands Commute on New Haven Again as 25 Stations Open |newspaper=Boston Evening Globe |date=March 11, 1940 |pages=1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63128380/the-boston-globe/ 7] |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> Seven additional stations on the Yarmouth–Provincetown segment reopened around June 24 for summer seasonal service.<ref name=feb22 /><ref name=march9 />

===Abandonment proposal===
On July 18, 1938, the court approved the New Haven charging the Old Colony over $11 million (equivalent to over ${{Inflation|US-GDP|11|1938}} million in {{Inflation/year|US-GDP}}) in operating costs under the segregation formula.{{Inflation/fn|US-GDP}}<ref name=interest/>{{rp|500}} The Old Colony could not appeal the charges because it had not appealed the formula earlier in the year.<ref name=interest/>{{rp|500}} By this point, Old Colony stock was below 50 cents.<ref name=interest/>{{rp|501}}

On May 31, 1939, with ''Palmer v. Massachusetts'' pending, the Old Colony filed an amended reorganization plan calling for the abandonment of all passenger service in the "Boston Group" – the primary group of lines into Boston, including the Greenbush, Plymouth, and Middleborough lines and the shared mainline north of Braintree. At that time, 121 daily trains were operated on those lines.<ref name=interest/>{{rp|501}} Freight service on some lines of the Boston Group would continue, though others would be fully abandoned.<ref name=48more>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68055122/the-boston-globe/ |title=Would close 48 more stations on South Shore |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=May 16, 1939 |pages=1, 4 |via=Newspapers.com}} ([https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68055174/the-boston-globe/ part 2], [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68055585/the-boston-globe/ part 3]) {{open access}}</ref> The New Haven simultaneously filed its own amended plan which stated that it was not willing to directly acquire the Old Colony unless all Boston Group passenger service was discontinued, but did wish to directly acquire the B&P.<ref name=interest/>{{rp|501}} The New Haven would continue to operate passenger trains from the South Coast and Cape Cod, which together lost one-third of what the Boston group did, reaching Boston via Taunton and the B&P mainline.<ref name=48more /><ref name=divisions /> It would purchase the Old Colony's lines in Cape Cod and west of Boston (which collectively made a profit on freight), as well as the South Boston Market Terminal; the New Haven and Old Colony would split the latter's share of the [Union Freight Railroad](/source/Union_Freight_Railroad).<ref name=taylor /><ref name=divisions>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68138760/the-boston-globe/ |title=Old Colony R. R. Still Losing About $2,000,000 Yearly Now |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=May 23, 1939 |page=20 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref>

On June 12, 1939, the trustees filed for a September 24 discontinuance of all passenger service in the Boston Group, as well as to Cape Cod (which had not been slated for discontinuance in the May proposal).<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68137443/the-boston-globe/ |title=State to Fight Shutdown Of Old Colony Sept. 24 |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=June 13, 1939 |pages=1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68137529/the-boston-globe/ 15] |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> This resulted in an "uproar of confusion, resentment, and panic" from the public and the Massachusetts government.<ref name=interest/>{{rp|502}} Dever, alleging that the New Haven had betrayed the public trust and failed to prove the claimed losses on the Old Colony, threatened to revoke the franchise of the New Haven in the state.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68137946/the-boston-globe/ |title=Dever Demands Old Colony Line Prove Its Loss |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=June 14, 1939 |page=8 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref><ref name=interest/>{{rp|502}} On June 14, the ICC unexpectedly announced that the proposed abandonment would not be considered as part of the ongoing reorganization, but would instead require separate proceedings.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68138867/the-boston-globe/ |first=Charles S. |last=Groves |title=Refuses Hearing Now on Old Colony Abandonment |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=June 15, 1939 |page=8 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref>

In late August, the state legislature and the railroad agreed to postpone any discontinuance until January 1, 1940.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68139047/the-boston-globe/ |title=South Shore Commuters Granted Short Reprieve |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=August 29, 1939 |page=19 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref><ref name=interest/>{{rp|502}} In September 1939, the New Haven proposed to cut most Old Colony passenger service. Boston–Braintree service would continue to operate, with three trips each serving {{bts|Campello}}, {{bts|Whitman}}, and Hingham at peak hours. Service to Greenbush, Plymouth, Middleborough, Hyannis, and Woods Hole would be replaced by buses, as would all off-peak service south of Braintree.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68166588/the-boston-globe/ |title=Hearings Set Next Week on Old Colony Offer |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=September 20, 1939 |page=7 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref>

In November 1939, the trustees filed with the ICC to outright abandon freight and passenger service on the entire Boston Group.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68183410/the-boston-globe/ |title=Utilities Commission Opposes Rail Closing |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=November 3, 1939 |page=1 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68183643/the-boston-globe/ |title=I. C. C. Examiner Opposes Old Colony Abandonment |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=November 17, 1939 |page=1 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68183784/the-boston-globe/ |title=Notice |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=November 20, 1939 |page=15 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> Under a December deal between the New Haven and a legislative commission, Boston Group service was reduced from 121 to about 80 daily trips effective January 7.<!-- source says 61 to 40, this is clearly round trips rather than one-way trips.--><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68205377/the-boston-globe/ |title=Old Colony May Reopen Some of 88 Closed Stations: Board, Railroad Agree on 30-Day Stay of Order |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=December 6, 1939 |first=Louis M. |last=Lyons |pages=1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68206109/the-boston-globe/ 14] |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> As PUC hearings continued into 1940, the railroad continued to advocate for its September proposal with only limited service beyond Braintree.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63124554/the-boston-globe/ |title=First Hearing on Old Colony R. R. Tuesday Night |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=February 22, 1940 |page=36 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> In March, the PUC approved schedules with 72 daily trains.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68208639/the-boston-globe/ |title=State Board Grants Plea of Trustees: Hopes to Prevent Abandonment of Railroad Lines |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=March 9, 1940 |pages=1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68208774/the-boston-globe/ 3] |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> These schedules, which eliminated most midday and evening service past Braintree, took effect on April 1.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68182188/the-boston-globe/ |title=Old Colony Cars Jammed as New Service Starts |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=April 1, 1940 |page=12 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref>

The ICC began abandonment proceedings on March 16, 1940.<ref name=interest/>{{rp|502}} On February 18, 1941, the ICC refused abandonment of the Boston Group, forcing the Old Colony to continue operations.<ref name=1942report />{{rp|12}} (Passenger service on one short line in the Boston Group, the [West Quincy Branch](/source/Granite_Railway), was separately discontinued by PUC approval in September 1940.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/68171473/the-boston-globe/ |title=W. Quincy Branch of Old Colony to Cease Sept 30 |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=September 7, 1940 |page=14 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref>) Whether to incorporate the Old Colony into the New Haven, and whether the Old Colony should be required to continue passenger service, continued to be argued as part of the reorganization.<ref name=1942report>{{cite book |url=http://archives.lib.state.ma.us/2452/224619 |title=Report Of The Special Commission To Investigate Railroad Transportation Facilities Within The Commonwealth Under Chapter 43, Resolves Of 1941 |date=December 2, 1942 |publisher=Commonwealth of Massachusetts |author=Special Commission to Investigate Railroad Transportation Facilities within the Commonwealth}}</ref><ref name=1949case />

===Later changes===
Most of the reopened stations did not remain in service for long. Provincetown service ended after the 1940 summer season, and three stations (Forest Hills, Boylston Street, and Jamaica Plain) also closed that year.<ref name=sne>{{cite book |title=The Rail Lines of Southern New England |edition=2 |last=Karr |first=Ronald Dale |publisher=Branch Line Press |year=2017 |isbn=9780942147124 }}</ref>{{rp|409}} Caryville service was cut back to West Medway in September 1941.<ref name=150years />{{rp|46}} Dorchester Branch service ended on March 12, 1944, with nine stations closed.<ref name=150years>{{cite book |title=Boston's Commuter Rail: The First 150 Years |last1=Humphrey |first1=Thomas J.|last2=Clark |first2=Norton D. |publisher=Boston Street Railway Association |year=1985 |isbn=9780685412947 }}</ref>{{rp|46}} [Ferry Street station](/source/Battleship_Cove_station) reopened sometime after 1940.<ref name=1955timetable />

Increased passenger and freight traffic during World War II lifted the fortunes of the New Haven.<ref name=150years />{{rp|13}} The reorganization continued; the railroad was ultimately required to continue Old Colony passenger service unless losses exceeded $850,000 in a single calendar year.<ref name=1949case>{{cite court |url=https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/223929/commission-of-department-of-public-utilities-of-commonwealth-of/ |litigants=Commission of Department of Public Utilities of Commonwealth, of Massachusetts v. New York, N.H. & H.R. Co |vol=178 |reporter=F.2d |opinion=559 |court=2d Cir. |date=1949}}</ref> The New Haven emerged from bankruptcy on September 11, 1947, and fully acquired the Old Colony a week later; the B&P was kept as a separate New Haven-owned company.<ref name=1949case /><ref name=150years />{{rp|13}} ''Palmer v. Massachusetts'' had been just one of eight Supreme Court cases generated by the reorganization.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.2307/1338796 |title=The New Haven Railroad Reorganization Proceedings, or the Little Railroad That Couldn't |journal=Harvard Law Review |volume=78 |issue=4 |date=February 1965 |pages=861–880|jstor=1338796 }}</ref>{{rp|862}} Losses on the Old Colony reached the critical value in October 1948; after threatening to discontinue all service, the New Haven cut back to a 26-train peak-only schedule on the Boston Group in March 1949.<ref name=1949case /><ref name=150years />{{rp|13, 96}}

Under the 1951–1954 presidency of [Frederic C. Dumaine Jr.](/source/Frederic_C._Dumaine_Jr.), the New Haven increased passenger service, using new [Budd Rail Diesel Car](/source/Budd_Rail_Diesel_Car)s to reduce costs.<ref name=150years />{{rp|13}} Boston service reached 86 trains in April 1954.<ref name=150years />{{rp|96}} As losses mounted, Boston-area railroads made major cuts in the late 1950s. All service to Taunton, Fall River, and New Bedford (which now used the B&P rather than the original Old Colony mainline) ended in 1958.<ref name=150years />{{rp|36}} All remaining year-round Old Colony Division service ended on June 30, 1959, though limited seasonal service continued for several more years.<ref name=netransit /><ref name=150years />{{rp|96}} The [Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority](/source/Massachusetts_Bay_Transportation_Authority) (MBTA) was founded in 1964 to subsidize remaining suburban service. West Medway service was cut back to Millis in 1966, and ended entirely the next year. East Foxboro station closed in 1977.<ref name=netransit />

[MBTA Commuter Rail](/source/MBTA_Commuter_Rail) service expansions have restored several former Old Colony lines, including some stations closed in 1938. Service on the Dorchester Branch began in 1979 as a temporary bypass during [Southwest Corridor](/source/Southwest_Corridor_(Massachusetts)) construction (at which time [Mount Hope station](/source/Mount_Hope_station) was closed). The service was made permanent in 1987, with several additional stations near former station sites opened in 2012, 2013, and 2019.<ref name=netransit /> The MBTA restored service on the [Plymouth/Kingston Line](/source/Plymouth%2FKingston_Line) and [Middleborough/Lakeville Line](/source/Middleborough%2FLakeville_Line) in 1997 (including 1938-closed {{bts|Halifax}}), and on the [Greenbush Line](/source/Greenbush_Line) in 2007 (including 1938-closed {{bts|West Hingham}} and {{bts|Nantasket Junction}}).<ref name=netransit /> A new [Bourne station](/source/Bourne_station), relocated from the original site, opened in 2019 for the seasonal [CapeFLYER](/source/CapeFLYER) service. Only one station reopened in 1940 – {{bts|Plimptonville}} – remained continuously open past 1979; it was temporarily closed in 2020, and subsequently permanently closed in 2021.<ref name=netransit />

==Stations==
{{maplink|frame=yes|frame-align=right|frame-width=400|frame-height=300|type=line|raw={{Wikipedia:Map data/88 stations case}}|text=Locations of the 93 stations}}
{{Annotated image | float=right
| caption=Detail from a 1940 map of the New Haven Railroad, showing its lines in Eastern Massachusetts
| alt=See caption.
| image=New Haven Railroad 1940 system map.jpg
| image-width=1300
| image-left=-730
| width=400
| height=320
| image-top=-110
| annotations =       <!-- empty or not, this parameter must be included -->
}}
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!Line
!Station<ref name=wouldclose>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63041896/the-boston-globe/ |title=Would Close 93 Stations |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=June 28, 1938 |page=13 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref>
!Reopened<ref name=feb22 /><ref name=march9 />
|-
|rowspan="6" | [Greenbush Branch](/source/Greenbush_Line)
|East Braintree
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{bts|West Hingham}}
|October 31, 2007<ref name=netransit>{{NETransit}}</ref>
|-
|{{bts|Nantasket Junction}}
|October 31, 2007<ref name=netransit />
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|North Cohasset}}
|–
|-
|Black Rock
|–
|-
|Beechwood
|–
|-
|[Randolph Branch](/source/Dighton_and_Somerset_Railroad)
|Randolph
|–
|-
|rowspan="4" | [Plymouth Branch](/source/Kingston_Line)
|North Hanson
|–
|-
|Burrage
|–
|-
|{{bts|Halifax}}
|September 30, 1997<ref name=netransit />
|-
|Plympton
|–
|-
|rowspan="3" | [Middleborough Main Line](/source/Middleborough_Main_Line)
|Matfield
|–
|-
|Westdale
|–
|-
|Stanley
|–
|-
|rowspan="22" | [Cape Main Line](/source/Cape_Main_Line)
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Rock}}
|–
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|South Middleboro}}
|–
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Tremont}}
|–
|-
|{{bts|Bourne}}
|May 24, 2019<ref name=netransit /> (seasonally, for [CapeFLYER](/source/CapeFLYER) service)
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Sagamore}}
|–
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|East Sandwich}}
|–
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Bass River}}
|–
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|South Dennis}}
|June 24, 1940
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|North Harwich}}
|–
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Harwich}}
|June 24, 1940
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Pleasant Lake}}
|–
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Brewster}}
|–
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|East Brewster}}
|–
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Orleans}}
|June 24, 1940
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Eastham}}
|June 24, 1940
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|North Eastham}}
|–
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|South Wellfleet}}
|–
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Wellfleet}}
|June 24, 1940
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|South Truro}}
|–
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Truro}}
|June 24, 1940
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|North Truro}}
|–
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Provincetown}}
|June 24, 1940
|-
|Woods Hole Branch
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Gray Gables}}
|–
|-
|rowspan="4" | [New Bedford Subdivision](/source/New_Bedford_Subdivision)
|Norton
|–
|-
|East Freetown
|–
|-
|Brayleys
|–
|-
|Weld Street
|–
|-
|rowspan="6" | Fall River–Newport
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Ferry Street}}
|{{circa|1940s}}<ref name=1955timetable>{{cite book |title=THE SCENIC SHORELINE ROUTE SERVING NEW YORK AND NEW ENGLAND |date=April 24, 1955 |title-link=:commons:File:New Haven Railroad 1955 timetable.pdf |publisher=New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad |page=31 |chapter=Table 19: Boston-New Bedford-Fall River |via=Wikimedia Commons}}</ref>
|-
|Tiverton, RI
|–
|-
|Bristol Ferry, RI
|–
|-
|Portsmouth, RI
|–
|-
|Middletown, RI
|–
|-
|Newport, RI
|–
|-
|rowspan="4" | [Canton Junction–Whittendon](/source/Dighton_and_Somerset_Railroad)
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Springdale}}
|–
|-
|West Stoughton
|–
|-
|Easton
|–
|-
|Whittendon
|–
|-
| rowspan="7" | [Providence–Boston](/source/Providence%2FStoughton_Line)
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Boylston}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Jamaica Plain}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{bts|Forest Hills}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{bts|Mount Hope}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Sharon Heights}}
|–
|-
|{{bts|East Foxboro}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|West Mansfield
|–
|-
|rowspan="9" | [Dorchester Branch](/source/Fairmount_Line)
|{{bts|Uphams Corner}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|Bird Street
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Mount Bowdoin}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Harvard Street}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Dorchester}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{bts|Morton Street}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{bts|Blue Hill Avenue}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|River Street
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{bts|Fairmount}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|rowspan="9" | Wrentham Branch
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Morrills}}
|–
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|East Walpole}}
|–
|-
|Walpole Heights
|–
|-
|Pondville
|–
|-
|Wrentham
|–
|-
|Lake Pearl
|–
|-
|Wampum
|–
|-
|Plainville
|–
|-
|North Attleboro
|–
|-
|rowspan="5" | [Midland Division](/source/Franklin_Line)
|Ashcroft
|–
|-
|{{stl|NYNH&H|Winslows}}
|–
|-
|{{bts|Plimptonville}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|Highland Lake
|–
|-
|City Mills
|–
|-
|{{bts|Dedham}}–{{bts|West Roxbury}}
|Spring Street
|–
|-
|rowspan="11" | [Charles River Branch](/source/Millis_Branch)
|{{bts|Charles River}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{bts|Dover|Millis}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{bts|Farm Street}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{bts|Medfield Junction}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{bts|Clicquot}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{bts|Millis}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{bts|Medway}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|{{bts|West Medway}}
|March 11, 1940
|-
|Caryville
|March 11, 1940
|-
|North Bellingham
|–
|-
|Bellingham Junction
|–
|}

==References==
{{reflist}}

===Notes===
{{notelist}}

==External links==
* {{caselaw source
 | case = ''Palmer v. Massachusetts'', {{ussc|308|79|1939|el=no}}
 | cornell = https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/308/79
 | courtlistener = https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/103237/palmer-v-massachusetts/
 | googlescholar = https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=3625154913051844306
 | internetarchive = {{IA SCOTUS URL |id=micro_IA40386401_0196}}
 | justia = https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/308/79/case.html
 | loc = http://cdn.loc.gov/service/ll/usrep/usrep308/usrep308079/usrep308079.pdf
 }}

Category:United States Supreme Court cases in 1939
Category:Old Colony Railroad
Category:1930s in Massachusetts
Category:United States Supreme Court cases of the Hughes Court
Category:United States Supreme Court cases
Category:United States railway case law

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [88 stations case](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/88_stations_case) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/88_stations_case?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.