Rego Park

Rego Park is a former Long Island Rail Road station. It was made of wood, unlike most other stations that were concrete. The station opened in May 1928 with two side platforms outside the two Rockaway Beach Branch tracks that bracketed the four-track Main Line, so only Rockaway trains stopped there. After the Rockaway Trestle fire in 1950, the line was closed station by station. The station closed on June 8, 1962, one day before the Rockaway Beach Branch was abandoned. Nothing remains at the site today.Station layoutThe station, located on the west side of 63rd Drive, had two high-level side platforms, located at the north and south ends of the six-track Main Line right-of-way. The platforms only served the Rockaway Beach Branch, which used the outer two tracks. The platforms were constructed of wood with concrete bases, and featuring shelters along the platform. A single staircase from the east end of each platform went down to 63rd Drive, and an additional staircase was located at 63rd Avenue (formerly Marion Avenue) from the northbound platform. The 63rd Drive entrance also featured a ticket office and heated waiting room, with restrooms.HistoryPrior to the construction of the Rego Park station, two former stations near Whitepot Junction were named Matawok, and were located on both the Main Line and Rockaway Beach Branch. Both stations were named for the Matawok Land Company, which built the neighborhood surrounding the junction known at the time as "Forest Hills West."Matawok Rockaway Beach Line stationThe first station to be given the name Matawok, near the junction at Rego Park was located along the Rockaway Beach Branch at Fleet Street on the northeast corner of a bridge over the street. It was opened between 1910 and 1913, although LIRR records of the station show its existence dating back to 1908 and into 1915. Some maps show the station existing as recently as 1922.