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Published Jul/Aug 2005 |
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Restored railroad depots and stations serve their communities.
By Jackie Sheckler Finch |
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 t the famed Whispering Arch in St. Louis Union Station, visitors can whisper secrets to each other across the entrance hall. Thanks to an architectural phenomenon, one person can lean close to the wall, murmur a message and have it travel across the arch and over the heads of people to a friend’s ears some 40 feet away.Railroad depots are full of architectural and historic marvels. If their venerable walls could talk, imagine the secrets and tales they could tell. At railroad stations across the nation, people said goodbye to loved ones, young men left for war, families were reunited, mail and messages were delivered, fresh California oranges arrived in Midwest-ern winters, and farmers sent their milk in huge tin cans. Depots were an important hub for cities and towns. Then came interstates and airports. Transportation changed. Travelers began favoring cars and planes rather than trains. Huge trucks started hauling mail and products. As a result, railroad stations fell by the wayside, their grandeur and glory left to crumble and decay. But some depots were saved from the wrecking ball and lovingly restored to their former beauty. As treasured reminders of yesteryear, they have been given new life and are serving their communities once again as museums, shopping centers, restaurants and hotels. For a trip down memory lane, climb aboard and enjoy one of these historic gems. All aboard The famous picture of President Harry S. Truman holding the newspaper headline “Dewey Beats Truman,” erroneously reporting his defeat in 1948, was taken aboard a rail car at St. Louis Union Station. The depot opened in 1894 as the nation’s largest rail terminal. The station featured a Grand Hall with gold leaf, Romanesque arches, a 65-foot barrel-vaulted ceiling and stained glass windows. In its heyday during the 1940s, the station–a National Historic Landmark–served more than 100,000 passengers a day. When the last train pulled out of the station in October 1978, the structure sat vacant for five years and was nearly beyond restoration. But Union Station reopened in August 1985 and is a festive marketplace with 100 shops and restaurants, the Hyatt Regency St. Louis hotel and four active train tracks. Rail Cruise America departs from the station on short, scenic and luxury dinner excursions. In the station’s train shed, visitors can take a paddleboat on the small lake. Save time for a poignant collection of letters exhibited inside the station, as former railroad employees, travelers and friends share stories about Union Station and how it touched their lives. Across the state in Kansas City, Union Station is a 1914 train terminal that was restored and reopened in 1999. In 1917, rail traffic peaked with more than 79,000 trains passing through the station, including 271 in one day. Today, Union Station is an entertainment center, housing Science City, restaurants, shops and theaters. Union Station closed to train traffic in 1985 and sat waiting for redevelopment for 10 years. In 1996, Jackson, Clay and Platte counties in Missouri and Johnson County in Kansas passed a sales tax to redevelop Union Station to include a science center (Science City). The tax raised $118 million toward the $250 million project. Workers removed an amazing 10 million pounds of debris during the clean-up phase. This fall, a new attraction–KC Rail Experience–will highlight the station’s railroad history with exhibited artifacts and historic train cars. Amtrak service since has returned to Union Station, which also connects to another popular downtown entertainment venue, Crown Center, via an aboveground covered walkway. The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Some train depots across the Midwest have strong ties to particular historic rail lines. Atchison, Kan., has a depot connected to the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad. The first train rolled out of Topeka in 1869. Railroad construction began in Topeka and continued westward, reaching Atchison in 1872 and later moving into Wichita, Kan.; Pueblo, Colo.; and Santa Fe, N.M. By the early 1890s, the line boasted 9,000 miles of track and connections between Chicago and Los Angeles. Kansas may have more restored depots than any other state, and they have been put to many different uses. The Santa Fe Freight Depot in Atchison is a native limestone, two-story building constructed in 1880. At the depot’s museum, visitors can see photos of the railroad and watch a film clip of “The Harvey Girls,” starring Judy Garland. The Amelia Earhart Room at the depot honors native daughter and famed aviatrix. Rail buffs will enjoy the restored railcars in the rail yard. Four hundred residents of LaPlata in northeast Missouri turned out to celebrate the restoration of its Santa Fe station in December 2001. Built in 1887 and remodeled after a fire in 1945, the station is now the only stop for the Southwest Chief Amtrak in Missouri outside Kansas City. A newspaper reprint displayed on a station wall recalls the day when the Santa Fe chose to build its line through LaPlata on its way to Chicago. Movin’ down the line The city of Russellville, Ark., grew up around the Missouri-Pacific Railroad. Now the historic depot has been revitalized as a community center for the downtown. Opened in May 2004, the depot, which includes park property across the street, offers an old-fashioned soda fountain/ice cream parlor/sandwich shop, a gift shop with local products, picnic tables, a bandstand for open-air concerts and a theater. The entire district runs about three blocks along the railroad tracks. The Mediterranean-style depot was built in 1910 to replace the original 1880 depot, which was destroyed by fire. The Great Western Railroad Depot (known as the Lincoln Depot) in Springfield, Ill., still has two waiting rooms–one for women and one for tobacco-spitting men. The Lincoln Depot got its name for being the place where president-elect Abe Lincoln bade an emotional farewell before heading off to the White House. Open April through August, the depot features an interesting photo display of places Lincoln lived and folks he knew before he became president. Visitors also can trace the 12-day journey to Lincoln’s inauguration in a slide show. Jackie Sheckler Finch is a contributor based in Bloomington, Ind. |
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