This octagonal shanty was once positioned on Main Street at the Boston & Albany (B&A) Railroad crossing to ensure the safety of motorists and pedestrians crossing the tracks.
The original shanty was equipped with a chair, telephone, and wood burning stove. If the crossing had no gates, there may have been a handheld STOP sign, red flag, or lantern. The guard’s primary goal was to manually lower the crossing gates when he received notification that there was an incoming train. Automatic gates were not installed until the late 1940s or early 1950s when the guard and his shanty were no longer needed.
The Main Street shanty in the photo above has both the brick Masonic Building to the left and the State Bank Building to its right in the Depot Square background.
The crossing shanty is owned by Chatham Village Historical Society.
While the photo below is not dated, it shows a fascinating aerial view of the heart of Chatham Village – if you look closely just below the center of the photo, you’ll note the crossing shanty in its original location.
