Originally opened from Concord to West Lebanon in 1847, the Northern Railroad become part of the Boston and Maine system by 1890.

"[11] It was soon found that this charter contained no provisions that allowed the Northern to take land, and as such, the railroad was re-chartered on December 27 of the same year.

[12][13] By September 1, 1847, the Northern took operation of the route to Canaan, and by November 17, had finally reached its terminus in West Lebanon.

[34] The New Hampshire Supreme Court ruled in favor of the shareholders, and on July 1, 1887, the Northern resumed direct operation of its lines.

[36] Following the New Hampshire Legislature's inability to pass a bill permitting a renewal of the lease with the Boston and Lowell under substantially similar terms, and seeking to avoid the expenses of directly operating the railroad, the Northern contracted with the Boston and Maine Railroad to operate the line in November of that year, beginning effective January 1, 1888.

[37] In order to avoid violating the previous court decision, this contract merely provided for the recovery of the net revenue generated by the Boston and Maine on its lines, rather than a fixed-rate lease.

The Boston and Maine system itself was reorganized in 1970, resulting in the suspension of lease payments to remaining Northern Railroad stockholders.

[41] Three years later, the state acquired the remaining two miles to White River Junction, including the large Westboro Rail Yard, which was subsequently leased to the Claremont Concord Railroad and a local business.

[42] A notice of intent to abandon the last remaining 6.63 miles (10.67 km) segment of the Northern Railroad main line from Concord to Boscawen was filed with the Surface Transportation Board in September 2016.