Early stations The New Haven, New London and Stonington Railroad opened from Stonington to Groton in December 1858 and was shortly thereafter acquired by the
New York, Providence and Boston Railroad. A wooden depot, similar to those still extant at West Mystic and Noank, was constructed. The station was built with a lengthy gabled canopy which stretched both directions along the platform. The canopy was destroyed in September 1938 by the
1938 New England hurricane; the station was damaged but repaired. The New Haven Railroad folded into
Penn Central in 1969, and passenger operations transferred to
Amtrak on May 1, 1971. The station was in poor shape and closed to passengers; although ownership was uncertain, the property was claimed by Amtrak.
Restoration In 1976, a group of local residents formed Mystic Depot, Inc. to renovate and reopen the building. They received $40,000 from Amtrak, $15,000 from the state, and raised $36,000 from donations and memorabilia sales. Work began in late 1977 and the station was finished in April 1978. The Mystic Garden Club landscaped the station grounds. The station was restored to a typical
mustard and
maroon paint scheme. Amtrak leased the station to Mystic Depot, Inc. for $1.00 annually. Three proposals were submitted for reuse; a Rhode Island–based company won the lease in June 2015 to use the building as a cafe and gift shop. The new lessees began renovating the exterior in late 2015; the Mystic Planning and Zoning Commission approved the interior plan in December 2015. The shop, Mystic Depot Roasters, has seating and a ticket machine for Amtrak passengers; it opened on September 30, 2016. Weekday stopping service was scheduled to increase from three northbound and two southbound trains to five northbound and six southbound trains on March 16, 2020. However, on that date Amtrak temporarily reduced Northeast Corridor service due to the
COVID-19 pandemic. ==References==