Built in the early 20th Century and now listed on the National Register, the Illinois Traction Depot in Mackinaw provided service between Peoria, Danville and St. Louis.
The McKinley Bridge originally carried the railroad to St. Louis's downtown.
I like the streamlined design of the station, as well as the prominent black holes where the electrical lines no doubt attached to the station.
Now a tea room, the station provides a welcome landmark on the north side of the small town.
Such an amazing space, and in my opinion much more useful as a wide open space, clear of impediments.
We will see what the future holds for the train shed.
Wow, it's been a while but Union Station's mall is just about empty. What were once Dierdorf and Harts and a bookstore now sit empty. Abandonment is sort of like a snowball; if it starts rolling it can be hard to stop the momentum.
But on a happier note, the hotel is still just as stunningly beautiful as it has always been since its renovation. The side lobby still elicits the same sense of style that it had a hundred years ago.
The detailing, with its gilding and Romanesque Revival elements are still crisp and clean.
The lighted floor, which my father said were once common throughout the United States, still impresses me.
I've always been impressed with the exterior of Union Station, a grand edifice that sits on what was once Chouteau's Pond, as well as Mill Creek.
Once the busiest train station in the world, it is much more quiet nowadays. I let the limestone, Richardsonian Romanesque Revival building speak for itself.
The Grand Hall of the Union Station hotel always impressed me as a child. Coming back as an adult, it still impresses me for different reasons.
For a turn of the century, Richardsonian Romanesque building, this hall is one of the most perfectly preserved that I have seen, and not cluttered with later additions or other alterations.
The stained glass is stunning as well, complementing the the lavish interior of the vault.
Webster Groves was a city built by the access to railroads, and the two major stations that served the area still stand. The one in downtown Webster Groves is now a Montessori school, while the southern train station, serving the Frisco Line, sits empty, though well-preserved. Sitting right by the tracks, one must wonder what use it could serve. Perhaps a small company would be a perfect tenant.
I think I found one of the most interesting and hidden gems of West County, the former resort area of the Meramec Highlands. After taking a wrong turn, my traveling companions and I stumbled on this unique hamlet of cottages dating from the 1890s.
Each cottage has its own name, which originally functioned as the address. Of the original cottages, only two are gone, leaving an almost intact subdivision of late Victorian shingle style houses.
I think every house is unique, with its own paint scheme and slightly different style of architecture.
The original hotel is gone, but it sat on the summit of this hill, which I have seen referred to as "Sunset Hill."
Above and below are two wonderful cottages, each with their original name tag affixed to the side of the houses.
The Meramec Highlands train station, sold by the original developer to the railroad for one dollar (to encourage train service to the new resort), sat empty for years, until an architect fixed it up for his own house.
I think this blue house was one of my favorites in the community.
The last building, now a house, was originally a store for the resort, and where bank robbers once hid from the police.
They know how to build good looking train stations in Naples. The Margellina Train Station is only what I would call a "suburban" train station, but it is bedecked in true Gilded Age glory.
Great mass transit should make people feel like they're royalty while riding it.
Florence is so famous for its Renaissance culture, that one forgets that it has a great Early Modern train station, welcoming travelers into the city.
It's so not like Renaissance architecture, it provides a little bit of a respite from the oppressive ubiquity of Albertian or Brunelleschian architecture.
