In 1848 the legislature approved Webster's plan and granted his group1 a charter for the Saugus Branch Railroad Co.[1] Before construction began, the route was extended to Lynn Common and altered to include the Saugus neighborhood of Sweetser's Corner (now known as Cliftondale) and the Malden neighborhood of East Malden (now known as Linden).

To overcome this challenge, Eastern's directors chose to purchase stock in the Saugus Branch Railroad Co. at the inflated price of $80 a share.

[9] Historian Francis B. C. Bradlee would describe the Saugus Branch as "one of the few fortunate investments of the Eastern" as it gave it access to the growing suburbs of Boston.

Once B&M took control, the Saugus Branch underwent improvements, including telegraphs for dispatching train orders and turning the line into a double track.

rejected the petition on November 18, 1949, finding that the railroad did not show that there was a lack of public interest in maintaining the Saugus Branch.

[1] In 1956, the B&M ended all steam operations and began using Budd Rail Diesel Cars (also known as Buddliners or RDCs).

In 1933, the Malden News described them as "the most mousey, dilapidated, antique stations to be found this side of the land of the Hottentots".

In 1968 and 1969, the line was used to transport gravel from Bow, New Hampshire to Revere during construction of roadbeds for the expansion of the Northeast Expressway.

Between April and November 1968, there were four trips a day from Bow to the construction site with each train carrying 48 or 60 cars.

Construction was completed on May 27, 1969,[1] although the new expressway (intended to become part of Interstate 95 in Massachusetts) was never finished, being cancelled due to regional opposition.

On April 27, 1969, the New England division of Railroad Enthusiasts ran the North Shore Rail Ramble, a day-trip over freight lines formerly used by passenger trains, including the Saugus Branch.

[1] On December 27, 1976, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority purchased the remaining B&M commuter assets, including rolling stock and the four active northside lines (save for the lower Haverhill Line, purchased three years earlier for the Haymarket North Extension).

[26] The reactivation of the Saugus Branch was considered during the MBTA's North Shore Transit Improvements project in the 2000s, as reactivation would allow for the continued operation of MBTA Commuter Rail service as well as new rapid transit service between Revere and Salem.

The North Shore Transit Improvements Project-Major Investment Study concluded that the Saugus Branch plan provided the MBTA with an option to accommodate a rapid transit system while preserving commuter rail service north of Salem, by rerouting commuter trains over the Saugus Branch and converting the Eastern Route mainline into a Blue Line branch at least as far as Lynn.

Unlike the Eastern Route, the Saugus Branch is curvy; it would require 15 to 20 extra minutes for commuter trains to travel, leaving them no longer time-competitive with driving.

The section of the Newburyport/Rockport Line south of Salem is one of the busiest segments of mainline railroad in Massachusetts; diverting as many as 60 trains per day would pose significant environmental, social, and physical impacts to the communities along the Saugus Branch.