Broad Street Station (originally Union Station) was a union railroad station in

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, across Broad Street from the Fan district. The building is now used by the

Science Museum of Virginia The Science Museum of Virginia is a science museum located in Richmond, Virginia. Established in 1970, it is an agency of the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is housed in the former Broad Street Station, built in 1917. History Early proposals In ...

History

It was built as the southern

terminus Terminus may refer to: Ancient Rome *Terminus (god), a Roman deity who protected boundary markers Transport *Terminal train station or terminus, a railway station serving as an end destination *Bus terminus, a bus station serving as an end des ...

for the

Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad The Richmond, Fredericksburg, and Potomac Railroad was a railroad connecting Richmond, Virginia, to Washington, D.C. The track is now the RF&P Subdivision of the CSX Transportation system; the original corporation is no longer a railroad co ...

(RF&P) in 1917 in the neoclassical style by the architect

John Russell Pope John Russell Pope (April 24, 1874 – August 27, 1937) was an American architecture, architect whose firm is widely known for designing major public buildings, including the National Archives and Records Administration building (completed in 193 ...

. The station also served the trains of the

Atlantic Coast Line Railroad The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad was a United States Class I railroad formed in 1900, though predecessor railroads had used the ACL brand since 1871. In 1967, it merged with long-time rival Seaboard Air Line Railroad to form the Seaboard Coast ...

(ACL) and

Norfolk and Western Railway The Norfolk and Western Railway , commonly called the N&W, was a US class I railroad, formed by more than 200 railroad mergers between 1838 and 1982. It was headquartered in Roanoke, Virginia, for most of its existence. Its motto was "Precisio ...

(N&W). Eventually, the

Seaboard Air Line Railroad The Seaboard Air Line Railroad , known colloquially as the Seaboard Railroad during its time, was an American railroad that existed from April 14, 1900, until July 1, 1967, when it merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, its longtime ri ...

(SAL), which had formerly used Richmond's other union station,

Main Street Station Main Street station may refer to: Canada * Main Street station (Toronto), a subway station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada * Main Street–Science World station, a SkyTrain station in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada United Kingdom * Main Street ra ...

, switched to Broad Street Station. At

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

's inception in 1971, it was served by the ''

Champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, Competition, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional/provincial/state, national, continental and world champi ...

'', ''

Silver Meteor The ''Silver Meteor'' is a Long-distance Amtrak routes, long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak between New York City and Miami, Florida. Introduced in 1939 as the first diesel-powered streamliner between New York and Florida, it was t ...

'', and ''

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

'' (all inherited from the

Seaboard Coast Line Railroad The Seaboard Coast Line Railroad was a Class I railroad company operating in the Southeastern United States beginning in 1967. Its passenger operations were taken over by Amtrak in 1971. Eventually, the railroad was merged with its affiliate lin ...

, successor to ACL and SAL). It was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

on February 23, 1972. Passenger service to the station ceased in 1975, when Amtrak consolidated all Richmond-area service at a suburban station on Staples Mill Road, north of downtown. By 1976, Broad Street Station became the new home of the

, which remains in the substantially remodeled and expanded building.

References

Former Atlantic Coast Line Railroad stations History of Richmond, Virginia John Russell Pope buildings National Register of Historic Places in Richmond, Virginia Neoclassical architecture in Virginia Railway stations on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia Railway stations in the United States opened in 1917 Former Seaboard Air Line Railroad stations Former Norfolk and Western Railway stations Richmond Broad Street Transportation in Richmond, Virginia Union stations in the United States 1917 establishments in Virginia 1975 disestablishments in Virginia Railway stations in the United States closed in 1975 {{Virginia-railstation-stub

History

See also

References