Canton station, or Canton–Akron station, is a former

train station A train station, railway station, railroad station or depot 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 ...

Canton, Ohio Canton () is a city in and the county seat of Stark County, Ohio. It is located approximately south of Cleveland and south of Akron in Northeast Ohio. The city lies on the edge of Ohio's extensive Amish country, particularly in Holmes and ...

History

Canton's

Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...

first station at the site was built in 1915. It served the Pennsylvania Railroad's Chicago–Philadelphia–New York City

main line Mainline, ''Main line'', or ''Main Line'' may refer to: Transportation Railway * Main line (railway), the principal artery of a railway system * Main line railway preservation, the practice of operating preserved trains on an operational railw ...

, with Canton being the largest Ohio city on the line. At the mid-century peak, the station served ten trains eastbound to Pittsburgh on the mainline, eight trains westbound on the main line, am and pm trains in both directions on the Detroit–Pittsburgh circuit, daytime departures both directions on an overnight Cincinnati–Columbus–Youngstown–Pittsburgh route. Prestige express trains, such as the PRR's ''

Broadway Limited The ''Broadway Limited'' was a passenger train operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) between New York City and Chicago. It operated from 1912 to 1995. It was the Pennsylvania's premier train, competing directly with the New York Central R ...

,'' did not stop at the station. Named passenger trains in 1958 included: *Chicago–New York City: ''

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

,'' ''

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

'' (eastbound only), ''

Manhattan Limited The ''Manhattan Limited'' was a passenger train of the Pennsylvania Railroad which served the Chicago—New York City route. History The ''Manhattan Limited'' was originally the ''Seashore Limited'', an eastbound-only train which was rena ...

,'' ''Pennsylvania Limited'' *Chicago–Pittsburgh: ''Fort Pitt'' and ''Golden Triangle'' *Detroit–Washington and New York City: '' Red Arrow'' (eastbound only)

Penn Central era

In 1968, the first year of the merged

Penn Central The Penn Central Transportation Company, commonly abbreviated to Penn Central, was an American Railroad classes, class I railroad that operated from 1968 to 1976. Penn Central combined three traditional corporate rivals (the Pennsylvania Railroad ...

, the storied ''Broadway Limited'' began making stops at Canton; the other trains serving the station included the ''Manhattan Limited'' and the ''Pennsylvania Limited.'' An unnamed successor to the ''Fort Pitt'' made a westbound only trip through Canton. In 1970 the Penn Central petitioned the

Interstate Commerce Commission The Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) was a regulatory agency in the United States created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The agency's original purpose was to regulate railroads (and later trucking) to ensure fair rates, to eliminat ...

to drop trains running through the station, among a total of 34 trains to cut. The ICC refused the request, and mandated that the service continue until the national service (the future Amtrak) would pick up the service.

Amtrak era

The ''Broadway Limited'' was the train continuing to serve the station into the Amtrak era. The city of Canton condemned the station and it was demolished in 1976. Amtrak agreed the next year to build a

station building A station building, also known as a head house, is the main building of a passenger railway station. It is typically used principally to provide services to passengers. A station building is a component of a station, which can include tracks, p ...

for $200,000, of a standard design to accommodate fifty passengers. The new building opened on June 29, 1978, after less than half a year of construction. Amtrak's ''

Capitol Limited The ''Capitol Limited'' is a daily Amtrak train between Washington, D.C., and Chicago, running via Pittsburgh and Cleveland. Service began in 1981 and was named after the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad's ''Capitol Limited'' which ended in 1971 u ...

'' joined the station when the Amtrak incarnation of the train was launched in 1981. Amtrak service with the ''Broadway Limited'' and the ''Capitol Limited'' at the station ended in 1990 as those trains were rerouted that fall to the north: the ''Broadway Limited'' to

Akron Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city prop ...

and the ''Capitol Limited'' to

Alliance, Ohio Alliance is a city in eastern Stark County, Ohio, United States. With a small district lying in adjacent Mahoning County, the city is approximately northeast of Canton, southwest of Youngstown and southeast of Cleveland. The population was 21 ...

.Amtrak National Timetable, October 28, 1990, p. 44, 45

Post abandonment

After the station was abandoned, it was used first as a restaurant, then as a convenience store. As of 2022, the station currently sits unused. It was considered for use as part of the proposed Canton streetcar project, but ultimately ruled out.

References

Bibliography

External links

Canton Amtrak Station (USA Rail Guide – Train Web)
Canton, Ohio Former Amtrak stations in Ohio Former Pennsylvania Railroad stations Railway stations closed in 1990 {{Ohio-railstation-stub