Ardmore Avenue station is (along with
Villa Avenue station) one of two former
Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad
The Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad (CA&E), known colloquially as the "Roarin' Elgin" or the "Great Third Rail", was an interurban railroad that operated passenger and freight service on its line between Chicago and Aurora, Batavia, Geneva, St. ...
(CA&E) stations in
Villa Park, Illinois
Villa Park is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States, within the Chicago metropolitan area. The population as of the 2020 Census is 21,113. Villa Park is a western suburb of Chicago.
History
When Ovaltine established its facto ...
. It was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 1980 as Ardmore Avenue Train Station.
History
The station is a stone-faced structure built in 1910 by the Ballard & Pottinger real estate firm. The station was erected to draw passengers to property that the firm was developing. The plan was successful, and enough people moved into the station vicinity to prompt incorporation as Villa Park in 1917. The station catered to passengers until July 3, 1957, when the CA&E abruptly shut down after years of financial losses. The Ardmore Avenue station is one of very few of what was once seventy-three railroad stations that served the CA&E. On November 21, 1980, it was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
. Today, the station is the headquarters of the Villa Park Chamber of Commerce. The building now lies along the
Illinois Prairie Path
The Illinois Prairie Path (often called the Prairie Path and abbreviated IPP) is a network of of bicycle trails, mostly in DuPage County, Illinois. Portions of the trail extend west to Kane County and east to Cook County. Most of the trail is ca ...
, a recreational path built along the former CA&E
right-of-way
Right of way is the legal right, established by grant from a landowner or long usage (i.e. by prescription), to pass along a specific route through property belonging to another.
A similar ''right of access'' also exists on land held by a gov ...
.
[Illinois Historic Preservation Agency]
/ref>
Architecture
The one story structure is built in an English motif and served mostly as a waiting shelter. Doors and windows are made of wood with steel lintel
A lintel or lintol is a type of beam (a horizontal structural element) that spans openings such as portals, doors, windows and fireplaces. It can be a decorative architectural element, or a combined ornamented structural item. In the case of w ...
s. The tile roof has galvanized iron gutters and a brick chimney. The building features a wood cornice
In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, around the top edge of a ...
. The station could be heated by a wood-burning fireplace and had electric lighting. Windows are found on all sides and two doors are on the north, leading to the platform. The interior was originally furnished with wood benches and flip-top seats.[
]
References
External links
Villa Park Chamber of Commerce
{{CA&E, Main=y
National Register of Historic Places in DuPage County, Illinois
Railway stations in the United States opened in 1910
Railway stations closed in 1957
Ardmore Avenue
Former railway stations in Illinois
Railway stations on the National Register of Historic Places in Illinois
Villa Park, Illinois
1910 establishments in Illinois
1957 disestablishments in Illinois
Railway stations in DuPage County, Illinois