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Indianapolis Union Station: then and now

1970 vs 2024 · Indianapolis, IN

Indianapolis Union Station, 2024Indianapolis Union Station, 1970
NowThen
Then, 1970A survey photograph from August 1970 looking at the clock tower and arched windows from the northeast.Photo: Jack E. Boucher (HABS, Library of Congress) · Public domain · Source · resized, cropped
Today, 2024The head house with its clock tower, rose window and fir trees out front.Photo: Warren LeMay · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Source · resized

The story

Wikipedia says Indianapolis created the world's first union station in 1848. That means one shared station for several railroads instead of one for each. The station building opened on September 20, 1853.

The larger station you see today opened in September 1888. Pittsburgh architect Thomas Rodd designed it in the Richardsonian Romanesque style. It is built of granite and brick, trimmed with Hummelstown brownstone, and it has an enormous rose window and a soaring 185-foot clock tower.

The head house and clock tower of this second station still stand. Amtrak's Cardinal line serves the station today, from a waiting area beneath the train shed.

Did you know? The tower is 185 feet tall.
Historians argue about this. Many people think the 1853 building is the one standing. Wikipedia says the larger station replaced it and opened in 1888.

Fact or tall tale?

Sources

More: Look for historic photos at the Library of Congress

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Next: Indiana World War Memorial. Written from the cited sources, not yet walked on site unless noted.