Railroad service into Asbury Park began in 1875 with the construction of an extension of the
New York and Long Branch Railroad (NY&LB), a subsidiary of the
Central Railroad of New Jersey and the
Pennsylvania Railroad. The NY&LB began as a railroad between
Elizabethport (in
Elizabeth,
Union County) to
Long Branch, finished in 1875. The railroad made an agreement with the Campmeeting Association on May 5, 1883, for the Sunday services. An amendment was made to this deal on June 1, 1889, that kept trains from stopping at North Asbury Park station. Timber and staking came by August 27. Construction of the station at Interlaken finished and opened in late-June 1890. As a result of the new station at Interlaken, North Asbury Park station was closed by the railroad on November 23, 1890, despite pleas to keep it open. Passengers started using the Asbury Park station instead of the new depot at Interlaken, however. However, a new station opened at North Asbury Park in July 1892 at the cost of $8,000. A new agreement was signed between the railroad and the Campmeeting Association on August 1, 1904. This allowed Sunday service to begin at North Asbury Park station. In July 1911, the railroad applied to the Public Service Commission to begin Sunday service at the downtown Asbury Park station. On October 10, 1911, despite pleas from the Campmeeting Association, the commission filed in favor of the railroad, feeling it was not furnishing proper service by forcing trains to skip Asbury Park station on Sundays. The order was to take effect on November 1, 1911. This station depot, a majestic replacement over the original, opened on November 2, 1922. However, there was still concern that the depot was not large enough to handle the expected amount of business, which proved to be true for several decades after its construction. The Historic Preservations Advisory Council came to protest to the demolition of the 55-year old depot in 1977, citing the historic nature of the depot. They were hoping to get an injunction against the demolition, stating the depot was eligible for listing on the
National Register of Historic Places. On January 4, 1978, the city approved a contract with Mazza and Sons, Inc. of
Oceanport for $10,910 (1978 USD). The station depot would be replaced with a wooden trailer for Conrail employees to sell tickets. Demolition of the old station came in March 1978. ==References==