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Fort Street Union Depot

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Coordinates: 42°19′38″N 83°03′16″W / 42.3273°N 83.0545°W / 42.3273; -83.0545
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The Fort Street Union Depot in 1909

The Fort Street Union Depot was a passenger train station located at the southwest corner of West Fort Street and Third Street in downtown Detroit, Michigan. It served the city from 1893 to 1971. Today, the downtown campus of Wayne County Community College occupies the site.

History

The union station began construction in 1891 and opened to the public January 21, 1893.[1] It consolidated the operations and services of several rail companies serving Detroit with the exception of the New York Central Railroad, which used Michigan Central Station, and the Grand Trunk Western Railroad, which used Brush Street Station. Upon its opening, the station was located in a transportation district which included the original Michigan Railroad Central Depot two blocks south, and the Detroit and Cleveland Navigation Company nearby on the Detroit River. The station was extensively renovated in 1946, adding a restaurant, fluorescent lighting, a baggage room, train gates and other updated amenities. Urban renewal in the 1950s saw the construction of Cobo Hall to the south of the station, and the tunneling of the Lodge Freeway beneath the railway tracks. However, due to dwindling ridership, the station closed April 30, 1971, and despite the attempts of preservationists to repurpose the building, was demolished in January 1974.[2]

Architecture

The depot was built in the Romanesque Revival architectural style by architect James Stewart, a follower of Henry Hobson Richardson. "The depot was described by architectural critics as monumental and gutsy, and of being in a solid, aggressive style. W. Hawkins Ferry, in his The Buildings of Detroit, described the station as being of 'robust plastic composition'. Ross and Carlin mention it proudly as 'an ornament to the city' in their Landmarks of Detroit, published before the turn of the century."[2]

Service

Several named passenger trains departed from the station; many were long-distance flagship trains of their respective railroads.

A contemporary description read, "The station is used by the trains of the Pennsylvania, the Pere Marquette and the Wabash. In addition to trains which the Pere Marquette operates on its own lines, it also operates through trains in and out of the station in conjunction with the Baltimore & Ohio and the Chesapeake & Ohio by way of Toledo, Ohio."[3]

Operators Named trains Destination Year discontinued
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Ambassador Washington, D.C. 1964
Pennsylvania Railroad Red Arrow Washington, D.C. and New York, New York 1959
Pennsylvania Railroad and Wabash Railroad Chicago Arrow Chicago 1949
Pere Marquette Railway Pere Marquette Grand Rapids, Michigan 1971
Wabash Railroad Wabash Cannon Ball St. Louis, Missouri 1971

Remnants

Parts of the structure are housed at the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore, Maryland. Several large pieces from the station have been saved in a warehouse in Fort Wayne, Indiana.[2]

See also

References

  1. ^ Austin, Dan (31 January 2015). "The day Detroit's 'other' train station opened its doors". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  2. ^ a b c Austin, Dan. "Union Depot". historicdetroit.org. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  3. ^ "Begin Remodeling of Detroit Station". Railway Age. February 2, 1946. Retrieved January 26, 2013.

42°19′38″N 83°03′16″W / 42.3273°N 83.0545°W / 42.3273; -83.0545

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