- Dearborn Station
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Dearborn StationChicago Landmark
Dearborn Station, prior to 1922.Location: Chicago, Illinois Coordinates: 41°52′19.78″N 87°37′41.89″W / 41.8721611°N 87.6283028°WCoordinates: 41°52′19.78″N 87°37′41.89″W / 41.8721611°N 87.6283028°W Built: 1883 Architect: Cyrus L. W. Eidlitz Architectural style: Romanesque Revival Governing body: Private NRHP Reference#: 76000688 [1] Significant dates Added to NRHP: March 26, 1976 Designated CL: March 2, 1982[2] 
A view of Dearborn Station's train shed being demolished in May of 1976; the "head house" can be seen at the rear.
Dearborn Station was the oldest of the six intercity train stations serving downtown Chicago during the heyday of rail in the twentieth century. Additionally, the station was used as a terminal for commuter traffic. Located at Dearborn and Polk Streets, it was also referred to as Polk Street Station. The station was owned by the Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad, which itself was owned by the companies operating over its line.
The Romanesque Revival structure, designed by Cyrus L. W. Eidlitz, opened on May 8, 1885. The three-story building's exterior walls and twelve-story clock tower were composed of pink granite and red pressed brick topped by a number of steeply-pitched roofs. Modifications to the structure following a fire in 1922 included eliminating the original pitched roof profile. Behind the head house were the train platforms, shielded by a large train shed. Inside the station were ticket counters, waiting rooms, and one of the legendary Fred Harvey Company restaurants.
The station was closed on May 2, 1971, as the first step of Amtrak's consolidation of Chicago's remaining intercity train operations at Union Station. By 1976, Dearborn Station's trainshed was demolished and tracks were removed. However, the headhouse building escaped the fate of several other Chicago stations like Central Station and Grand Central Station, which were both demolished.
The train station stood abandoned into the mid-1980s when it was converted to retail and office space. The former rail yards provided the land that is now known as Dearborn Park. This Chicago urban community is one of the nation's most successful urban renewal projects and comprises several parks, an elementary school, high rise and mid rise apartment towers, townhomes and single family homes. Today Dearborn Station remains as a landmark that is reminiscent of the railroad era but is now the focal point for a dynamic residential neighborhood.
The station is repeatedly mentioned in the 1974 "Adam's Ribs" episode of M*A*S*H, in which Hawkeye Pierce raves about the barbecued ribs at a fictional Adam's Ribs restaurant located across the street from Dearborn Station.
Contents
Services
Dearborn Station served as terminal for the following railroads, with some of the more well-known name trains listed:
The former station in 2006.- Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway — the Chief, Super Chief, El Capitan, and Grand Canyon Limited (to name but a few) to Los Angeles; the Texas Chief to Dallas; the Antelope to Oklahoma City; the Kansas Cityan (and its eastbound counterpart, the Chicagoan) to Kansas City and The San Francisco Chief to San Francisco California.
- Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (moved to Grand Central Station February 28, 1925).
- Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad — Zipper and Silent Knight to St. Louis; Dixie Flyer to Evansville. From July 31, 1904[3] to August 1, 1913[4], Chicago & Eastern Illinois trains used LaSalle Street Station.[5]
- Chicago, Indianapolis and Louisville Railway (Monon) — Hoosier and Tippecanoe to Indianapolis.
- Erie Railroad (Erie Lackawanna Railway from 1960) — Erie Limited and Atlantic Express to New York City.
- Grand Trunk Western Railroad — Maple Leaf, Inter-city Limited and International Limited to Toronto and Montreal. Mohawk to Detroit.
- Wabash Railroad (Norfolk and Western Railway from 1964) — Blue Bird and Banner Blue to St. Louis.
Note: Although the Santa Fe by far operated the greatest number of trains from the station, it was only a tenant.
The following commuter rail services also operated from the station:
- Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad (until 1935) — operated from Dearborn Station to Crete, Illinois.
- Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad (until 1964) — operated between Dearborn Station and Dolton, Illinois, serving mostly local stops within Chicago's far south side.
- Erie Railroad — operated from Dearborn Station to Rochester, Indiana.
- Grand Trunk Western Railroad (until 1935) — operated from Dearborn Station to Valparaiso, Indiana (later service was cut back to Harvey, Illinois).
- Wabash Railroad (Norfolk and Western Railway from 1964) — used a track west of the station until 1976, when moved to Union Station); now Metra's SouthWest Service.
See also
Notes
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2006-03-15. http://nrhp.focus.nps.gov/natreg/docs/All_Data.html.
- ^ "Chicago Landmarks - Dearborn Street Station". 2010. http://webapps.cityofchicago.org/LandmarksWeb/landmarkDetail.do?lanID=1286. Retrieved 2010-02-22.
- ^ Official Guide of the Railways, September 1904, p. 707
- ^ Goss, William Freeman Myrick, Smoke Abatement and Electrification of Railway Terminals in Chicago. Report of the Chicago Association of Commerce, Committee of Investigation on Smoke Abatement and Electrification of Railway Terminals, Chicago Association of Commerce and Industry, 1915, p. 505
- ^ ibid.
References
External links
Preceding station Erie Railroad Following station 47th Streettoward Pavonia TerminalMain Line Terminus Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway toward Los AngelesMain Line Terminus toward Los AngelesMain Line Major stationsTerminus U.S. National Register of Historic Places Topics Lists by states Alabama • Alaska • Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia • Hawaii • Idaho • Illinois • Indiana • Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Louisiana • Maine • Maryland • Massachusetts • Michigan • Minnesota • Mississippi • Missouri • Montana • Nebraska • Nevada • New Hampshire • New Jersey • New Mexico • New York • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania • Rhode Island • South Carolina • South Dakota • Tennessee • Texas • Utah • Vermont • Virginia • Washington • West Virginia • Wisconsin • WyomingLists by territories Lists by associated states Other 
Category:National Register of Historic Places • 
Portal:National Register of Historic PlacesMajor inter-city railroad stations of Chicago Active terminals Former terminals Central Station · Dearborn · Grand Central · Central Depot · Galena and Chicago Union · Nickel Plate · Wells St. Station · Wells St. Terminal · Columbian ExpositionOther stations Chicago Landmark transportation National Historic Landmark,
National Register of Historic Places,
Chicago LandmarknoneNational Historic Landmark,
National Register of Historic PlacesnoneNational Register of Historic Places,
Chicago LandmarkChicago Harbor Lighthouse · Dearborn StationChicago Landmark Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Bridge No. Z-2 · Chicago & Northwestern Railway Bridge · Cortland Street Drawbridge · Garfield Boulevard "L" Station and Overpass · LaSalle Street Cable Car Powerhouse · Michigan Avenue Bridge and Esplanade · Pennsylvania Railroad Bridge · Union StationApartments · Culture · Education · Historic Districts · Houses · Memorials and Monuments · Municipal · Skyscrapers · Transportation · Worship Categories:- Former railway stations in Illinois
- Railway stations on the National Register of Historic Places in Illinois
- National Register of Historic Places in Chicago, Illinois
- Railway stations in Chicago, Illinois
- Landmarks in Chicago, Illinois
- Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway stations
- Chicago, Indianapolis and Louisville Railway
- Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad
- Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad
- Stations along Chesapeake and Ohio Railway lines
- Stations along Erie Railroad lines
- Stations along Grand Trunk Western Railroad lines
- Stations along Wabash Railroad lines
- Buildings and structures completed in 1885
- Clock towers in the United States
- Romanesque Revival architecture in Illinois
- Railway stations opened in 1885
- Railway stations closed in 1971
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