White House Station

White House Station. Date: 1892. The Somerville and Easton Railroad first reached the rural community of White House in 1848 and a modest depot was constructed to shelter travelers as they waited for the stagecoach. By 1860, a small community, aptly named White House Station, had developed around the depot. In the 1880s, farming had become an important industry in Hunterdon County and, to speed the shipment of produce to the New York market, a branch line, the Rockaway Valley Railroad, was constructed in 1888. Known affectionately as the Rockabye Baby because of its bumpy ride, the line extended thirteen miles from White House Station to Morristown. In 1849, the S and E. was renamed the Central Railroad of New Jersey and as freight and passenger traffic increased at White House Station, now a junction stop, the C.N.J., also enjoying a period of prosperity, commissioned noted architect Bradford L. Gilbert to design a new station. Gilbert chose a popular Victorian style, Richardsonian Romanesque, which is characterized by a heavy, rough-cut stone exterior, broad roof planes, deeply recessed arched window and door openings and the use of a variety of shapes and forms, such as the polygonal porch on the front of the building. Through citizen initiative and the NJ TRANSIT Station Leasing Program, the station was restored to its original grandeur. On December 7, 1981, after seven months of dedicated community effort, White House Station opened its doors as Readington Township's first public library. White House Station was listed on both the State and National Registers of Historic Places in 1984,