The Normal Park branch was a

rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT) or heavy rail, commonly referred to as metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport that is generally built in urban areas. A grade separation, grade separated rapid transit line below ground su ...

line which was part of the

Chicago "L" The Chicago "L" (short for "elevated railway, elevated") is the rapid transit system serving the city of Chicago and some of its surrounding suburbs in the U.S. state of Illinois. Operated by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), it is the four ...

system from 1907 to 1954. The branch served the Englewood neighborhood of

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 consisted of four elevated stations. It opened on May 25, 1907, and closed on January 29, 1954.

Operations

The Normal Park branch was a elevated line which served four stations. The branch began at the

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

station, which served a transfer point to the

Englewood Branch The Ashland branch, formerly known as the Englewood branch, is a long branch of the Chicago "L" currently operated as the Green Line, serving the Englewood and West Englewood neighborhoods of Chicago, Illinois. History The first station on th ...

, and ran southwestward toward the branch's terminal at 69th and Parnell. The branch generally ran only single-car trains, although two-car trains were occasionally run during weekday rush hours. The branch separated from the Englewood branch at Stewart Junction, west of the Harvard station. Although ridership was low, the stations had enough capacity for 8-car trains, rare around the CTA during that time period. The vast majority of the line's traffic came from the terminal at 69th; the Chicago Normal School was located in this area, along with a small commercial district. Ridership had always been low on this line: There was very little passenger traffic between Harvard and the 69th St. terminal. By the time the branch was closed in January 1954, it was a shuttle only service between Harvard and 69th. Most of the intermediate stations had been gutted before, and 69th St. station was halfway locked down. The line was completely torn down around Summer 1954. When the Dan Ryan branch (serving the Red Line) was built from 1967 to 1969, a brand new

69th station 69th is a station on the Chicago Transit Authority's 'L' system, serving the Red Line. The station is located in the median of the Dan Ryan Expressway, within the Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood. This station connects with the second most ...

was built a half-mile away from the former Normal Park station. While the original 69th St. was a low ridership station, the new 69th St. is one of the busiest stations on the CTA system.

Station listing

References

{{Chicago L Chicago Transit Authority Defunct railroads Railway lines in Chicago Railway lines opened in 1907 Railway lines closed in 1954 Chicago "L" infrastructure

Operations

Station listing

See also

References