St. Louis Union StationWhen St. Louis' Union Station opened to the public in 1894, nearly 10,000 people gathered to celebrate. What they saw rivaled famed stations in the East, with its barrel-vaulted ceiling, sweeping archways, and Tiffany stained-glass windows. Modeled after the walled city of Carcassone, France, Union Station was one of the busiest in the world during its heyday. Follow the history of this great architectural triumph from its original glory days through its demise and rebirth. The days of rail transportation come to life in more than 200 historic images, from steam engines hissing into the 11-acre train shed, to the perky smiles of the renowned "Harvey Girls." Union Station is also seen here as tens of thousands of passengers a day dwindled to mere hundreds. As the automobile and airplane gained momentum in the 1950s and 60s, railroading lost popularity and St. Louis' Union Station fell into disrepair and eventually closed. Now restored to its original splendor, Union Station is again a bustling center of urban entertainment and activity. |
Contents
Acknowledgments | 6 |
The Midway | 31 |
Grand Hall | 57 |
Operations | 71 |
Postcards | 93 |
Renovated Facilities and Amusements | 107 |
A New Life Springs | 121 |
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Common terms and phrases
Aloe Plaza Amtrak beauty building built called the Woodlawn captures Carl Milles cars celebrate century Charles Guenther crowded decline DELMAR STATION downtown St Eads Bridge early railroads elegant engineering entertainment entrance famed Ferguson Historical Society Ferguson Station Fred Harvey Book Fred Harvey Restaurant Grand Hall grand opening grew Harvey Girls hordes Hyatt Regency Illinois IMAGES of America Iron Mountain Jefferson KANSAS CITY Kirkwood Station LAKE Louis Public Library Louis Union Station Lounge main lobby Market Street Midway Mill Creek MISSOURI PACIFIC LINES mythic nineteenth numbers ornate passengers Pictured poem pool popular Postcard powerhouse rail railcars railroad station REC CLUB restoration route shops shot silence Skip Gatermann Collection stands steam locomotive stops structure Sunshine Special Terminal Hotel Texas Eagle Theodore Link TICKETS tower tracks traffic train shed train station train yards transportation twentieth UNION STATION ST various visitors Webster-Kirkwood