New London Union Station - New London, CT
Posted by: nomadwillie
N 41° 21.253 W 072° 05.593
18T E 743165 N 4582157
Three-story brick union station was erected in 1887. It was the last and largest railroad station designed by famed architect H. H. Richardson.
Waymark Code: WM17D38
Location: Connecticut, United States
Date Posted: 01/29/2023
Views: 1
Rail service to New London began with the New London, Willimantic, and Palmer Railroad in 1848 and the New Haven and New London Railroad in 1852. The original stations were each replaced in the 1860s; after several consolidations, they were served by the Central Vermont Railway (CV) and New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad (New Haven) by the 1870s. After one of the stations burned in 1885, a new three-story brick union station was erected in 1887. It was the last and largest railroad station designed by famed architect H. H. Richardson, and his best according to biographer Henry-Russell Hitchcock.
Passenger service declined in the 20th century; all CV passenger service to New London ended in 1949. The New London Redevelopment Agency began planning in 1961 to demolish the station as part of urban renewal. Amtrak took over passenger service in May 1971; Union Station was added to the National Register of Historic Places the next month following a local effort. After several years of controversy over whether to demolish or preserve the structure, it was purchased by architect George M. Notter in 1975. Notter's firm renovated the station for combined use by Amtrak and commercial tenants; it was the first station to be restored for Amtrak use, and one of the earliest cases of adaptive reuse of an industrial-age building in New England.
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