Union Station
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member CacheSafari
N 33° 39.602 W 095° 34.018
15S E 261975 N 3727418
Texas historical marker for Union Station in Paris, Lamar County, Texas
Waymark Code: WM74JB
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 08/31/2009
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member clayj
Views: 16

Texas historical marker for Union Station in Paris, Lamar County, Texas
Marker Number: 13688

Marker Text:
Attempts to bring rail service to Lamar County began in the mid-1800s, but a line did not reach the city of Paris until one was built to the south side of town in 1875. Residents raised money to entice the St. Louis & San Francisco (Frisco) to extend its line to Paris from the north, and the Gulf, Colorado & Santa Fe to extend from Galveston from the southeast. The lines met here in 1887. By 1912, five lines served Paris: The Texas & Pacific, the Santa Fe, the Frisco, the Texas Midland, and the Paris & Mount Pleasant. In addition to small depots serving individual railroads, the city had a wooden Union Station by the early 1900s at this site. In 1910, construction on the present Union Station began, and it opened for business in 1912 serving Frisco, Santa Fe and Texas Midland passenger trains. Segregated waiting rooms served patrons, and the railway express agency occupied the south wing. The architect is unknown, but the Prairie and Italianate style design is similar to others on the Frisco rail line. The building's dark-colored brick is complemented by lighter stone sills and lintels. The tiled, hipped roof features dormers and deep, overhanging eaves with brackets. The 77-foot tower resembles an Italian campanile, or watch tower. Rail passenger numbers in Paris peaked during World War II due to nearby Camp Maxey, but as automobile usage increased, passenger rail travel declined. The Santa Fe ended service in 1954 and the final Frisco passenger train left Union Station in 1956, but the depot continued to serve freight operations until the late 20th century. In 1997, the Kiamichi Railroad acquired Frisco and Santa Fe interests and donated the depot for restoration to the city of Paris. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2003


Visit Instructions:
Please include a picture in your log. You and your GPS receiver do not need to be in the picture. We encourage additional information about your visit (comments about the surrounding area, how you ended up near the marker, etc.) in the log.
Search for...
Geocaching.com Google Map
Google Maps
MapQuest
Bing Maps
Nearest Waymarks
Nearest Texas Historical Markers
Nearest Geocaches
Create a scavenger hunt using this waymark as the center point
Recent Visits/Logs:
Date Logged Log  
WalksfarTX visited Union Station 09/29/2019 WalksfarTX visited it
wb96bobwhite visited Union Station 07/26/2015 wb96bobwhite visited it
QuarrellaDeVil visited Union Station 08/05/2012 QuarrellaDeVil visited it
Dancing_Duo visited Union Station 05/27/2012 Dancing_Duo visited it
CacheSafari visited Union Station 08/29/2009 CacheSafari visited it

View all visits/logs