Union Station - Chicago, IL - Train Stations/Depots on Waymarking.com

Excerpts from from (visit link) :

"Union Station was the primary passenger terminal of four major railroads serving the city during the early twentieth century: the Pennsylvania Railroad, the Burlington Route, the Alton Railroad, and the Milwaukee Road. From Union Station, Chicagoans boarded trains bound for both coasts and many other cities and towns throughout the Midwest. The most famous trains to depart from the colossal station were the Pennsylvania's marquee trains to the east coast, including the legendary Broadway Limited, which provided crack overnight service direct to Pennsylvania Station in New York City.

Union Station was truly a crossroads depot, where travellers from all over the country converged and then transferred to trains bound for other regions without ever leaving the station itself.

Opened in May of 1925, the new Union Station was one of the largest train stations to be built in the twentieth century.

Union Station's glory years were during World War II, when wartime mobilization dramatically increased its use. During the early 1940s, as many as three hundred trains and 100,000 passengers passed through the station each day.

During the 1950s and 1960s, as intercity passenger-train travel declined throughout the United States, Union Station remained an important, albeit less dominant, link in the nation's transportation network. In 1969, the concourse was demolished so that two office buildings and a modernized concourse could be constructed. The founding of Amtrak in 1972 led to the consolidation of most of the city's intercity passenger-train service at Union Station. The station underwent a major renovation during the early 1990s and continues to serve as a major transportation center for both suburban commuters and intercity travellers."

www.metrarail.com provides info on suburban rail service.

The magnificent Great Hall at Chicago Union Station, originally designed by famed architect Daniel Burnham (“make no small plans, they have no magic to stir men’s blood”) and completed in 1925 by the Graham, Anderson, Probst and White Firm, is considered to be one of the greatest indoor spaces in the United States. A 20,000 foot classic Beaux Arts style room which boasts 18 soaring Corinthian columns, terracotta walls, a pink Tennessee marble floor and is crowned with a spectacular five-story, barrel-vaulted, atrium ceiling.

Is the station/depot currently used for railroad purposes?: Yes Is the station/depot open to the public?: Yes What rail lines does/did the station/depot serve?: currenlty Metra and Amtrak Station/Depot Web Site: [Web Link] If the station/depot is not being used for railroad purposes, what is it currently used for?: Not listed

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