Durand Union Station is a historic

train station A train station, railroad station, or railway station is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight, or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track, and a station building providing suc ...

Durand, Michigan Durand () is a city in Shiawassee County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 3,507 at the 2020 census. Nicknamed "Railroad City, USA", it is best known for its large train station which was a major hub for the Grand Trunk Western ...

. The station, which now serves

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 ...

Blue Water Maritime geography is a collection of terms used by naval military units to loosely define three maritime regions: brown water, green water, and blue water. Definitions The elements of maritime geography are loosely defined and their meanings hav ...

'' trains, was originally a busy

Grand Trunk Western Railroad The Grand Trunk Western Railroad Company was an American subsidiary of the Grand Trunk Railway, later of the Canadian National Railway operating in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. Since a corporate restructuring in 1971, the railroad ha ...

and Ann Arbor Railroad hub, as well as a local office for Grand Trunk Western, from its construction in 1903 until 1974. It is currently owned by the city of Durand and leased by Durand Union Station, Inc. a

nonprofit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

dedicated to the

preservation Preservation may refer to: Heritage and conservation * Preservation (library and archival science), activities aimed at prolonging the life of a record while making as few changes as possible * ''Preservation'' (magazine), published by the Nat ...

, restoration, and maintenance of the building and its surrounding property. The building also houses three small

railroad history ''Railroad History'' (initially, ''The Railway & Locomotive Historical Society Bulletin'') is a biannual peer-reviewed academic journal An academic journal (or scholarly journal or scientific journal) is a periodical publication in which Schola ...

museums: the Michigan Railroad History Museum (which doubles as a gift shop), the Grand Trunk Western Railroad Museum, and the Ann Arbor Railroad History Museum. Also in the building is a model railroad club, the Durand Union Station Model Railroad Engineers and its large layout, and a ballroom for special events and parties. The station sits at the junction of

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company () is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN is Canada's largest railway, in terms of both revenue a ...

's busy mainline interchange of the

Flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Historically, flint was widely used to make stone tools and start ...

and Holly Subdivisions. Additionally,

Great Lakes Central Railroad The Great Lakes Central Railroad is an American regional railroad operating in the state of Michigan. It was originally called the Tuscola and Saginaw Bay Railway , which was formed on August 26, 1977, to operate over former Penn Central lines ...

and Huron and Eastern Railway operate near the station, and a

freight yard A rail yard, railway yard, railroad yard (US) or simply yard, is a series of tracks in a rail network for storing, sorting, or loading and unloading rail vehicles and locomotives. Yards have many tracks in parallel for keeping rolling stock or ...

used by all three carriers is located just north of it. It is one of Michigan's most popular locations for

railfan A railfan, train fan, rail buff or train buff (American English), railway enthusiast, railway buff, anorak (British English), gunzel (Australian English), trainspotter (British English) or ferroequinologist is a person who is recreationally in ...

s to visit, especially during the annual Durand Railroad Days Festival in May. The station 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 June 6, 1971, and the Michigan Register of Historic Places in 1987. The station's lessees are currently attempting to raise $50,000 for building repairs.

History

The station is an important part of railway history in the state. Built in 1903 by the

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

firm of

Spier and Rohns Spier, Rohns & Gehrke was a noted Detroit, Michigan architectural firm operated by Frederick H. Spier and William C. Rohns, best remembered for designs of churches and railroad stations. These were frequently executed in the Richardson Romanesque ...

it had a high volume of rail traffic as the Grand Trunk Western and

Ann Arbor Ann Arbor is a city in Washtenaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851, making it the List of municipalities in Michigan, fifth-most populous cit ...

railroads crossed at that location. It was almost destroyed by fire in 1905, but quickly rebuilt. At its peak, 42 passenger, 22 mail, and 78 freight trains passed through Durand on a daily basis. It serviced almost 3,000 passengers a day. On March 30, 2025, the station was hit by a tornado which was captured live on the Railstream. The extent of the damage is currently unknown at this time.

Final years of peak passenger service

In July, 1950, the station lost northwest–southeast service with the Ann Arbor Railroad's terminating passenger service, which went from

Toledo Toledo most commonly refers to: * Toledo, Spain, a city in Spain * Province of Toledo, Spain * Toledo, Ohio, a city in the United States Toledo may also refer to: Places Belize * Toledo District * Toledo Settlement Bolivia * Toledo, Or ...

to Frankfort and Elberta on Lake Michigan. (Elberta was a launch point for ferries north and west across Lake Michigan.) Into the 1960s the Grand Trunk Western (operating in Canada under the

) three trains a day operated as part of Chicago - Port Huron -

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

- Toronto trains: ''Inter-City Limited,'' '' International Limited'' (only making stops on the eastbound trip), ''La Salle'' and ''

Maple Leaf The maple leaf is the characteristic leaf of the maple tree. It is most widely recognized as the national symbols of Canada, national symbol of Canada. History of use in Canada By the early 1700s, the maple leaf had been adopted as an emblem by ...

.'' Until 1960 the Grand Trunk also into ran through trains from Detroit to Grand Rapids and Muskegon, where ferries could be boarded, for travelling across Lake Michigan, to Milwaukee. From Durand passengers could also board Detroit - Bay City

mixed train A mixed train or mixed consist is a train that contains both passenger and freight cars or wagons. In some countries, the term refers to a freight train carrying various different types of freight rather a single commodity. Although common in the ...

Decline

In 1971, the Grand Trunk Western terminated its last trains through Durand. These included the ''International Limited,'' its Chicago-Detroit ''Mohawk'' and an unnamed duplicate itinerary train with that route.''Official Guide of the Railways,'' September 1971, Canadian National Railways-Grand Trunk section, struck from timetable In 1974, the GTW decided to close the station due to declining traffic. The historic building was going to be torn down, however, the city of Durand filed for an injunction to stop the demolition and eventually purchased the station in 1979 for $1.00.

restored service through the station in 1974 and today Amtrak continues to provide daily intercity passenger rail service on the ''Blue Water'' route between

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

and

Port Huron Port Huron is a city in and seat of government of St. Clair County, Michigan, United States. The population was 28,983 at the 2020 census. The city is bordered on the west by Port Huron Township, but the two are administered autonomously. Por ...

, a remnant of the Grand Trunk service. Baggage cannot be checked at this location; however, up to two suitcases in addition to any "personal items" such as briefcases, purses, laptop bags, and infant equipment are allowed on board as carry-ons. From 1982 to 2004, it was instead served by the modern incarnation of the ''International Limited,'' operated jointly by

Via Rail Via Rail Canada Inc. (), operating as Via Rail or Via (stylized as VIA Rail), is a Canadian Crown corporation that operates intercity passenger rail service in Canada. As of December 2023, Via Rail operates 406 trains per week across eight ...

and Amtrak between Chicago and

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

References

External links

Durand Union Station, Inc Official SiteDurand Union Station Model Railroad Engineers Official Site

Durand Union Station / Michigan Railroad History Museum on Facebook

{{authority control Amtrak stations in Michigan Durand Railroad museums in Michigan Museums in Shiawassee County, Michigan Railway stations on the National Register of Historic Places in Michigan Former Grand Trunk Western Railroad stations Spier & Rohns buildings Railway stations in the United States opened in 1903 National Register of Historic Places in Shiawassee County, Michigan 1903 establishments in Michigan

History

Final years of peak passenger service

Decline

See also

References

External links