88 stations case
| Palmer v. Massachusetts | |
|---|---|
| Argued October 11, 1939 Decided November 6, 1939 | |
| Full case name | Palmer et al, trustees, v. Massachusetts |
| Citations | 308 U.S. 79 (more) 60 S.Ct. 34 ; 84 L.Ed. 93 |
| Case history | |
| Prior | Converse v. Massachusetts, 101 F.2d 48 (2d Cir. 1939), affirmed |
| Holding | |
| District Court was without power to order discontinuance of intrastate railroad service | |
| Court membership | |
| |
| Case opinion | |
| Majority | Frankfurter, joined by Hughes, McReynolds, Stone, Roberts, Black, Reed |
| Butler took no part in the consideration or decision of the case. | |
| Laws applied | |
| Bankruptcy Act of 1898 § 77 | |
The 88 stations case was a 1935–40 controversy and court case involving the Old Colony Division of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad. The New Haven entered bankruptcy in 1935; the next year, it ended the 1893 lease of the unprofitable Old Colony Division, but continued operating those lines by court order. The Old Colony and New Haven closed 88 stations in Massachusetts (plus five in Rhode Island) on July 18, 1938, ending passenger service altogether on some lines. In May 1939, the Old Colony filed to abandon all freight and passenger service on its lines. In November 1939, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled in Palmer v. Massachusetts that a district court did not have authority to order the discontinuance of intrastate passenger service. Thirty-two of the stations were reopened in 1940, with 40 percent of service cut in lieu of total abandonment.