DeKalb station is a former railway station in Downtown

DeKalb, Illinois DeKalb ( ) is a city in DeKalb County, Illinois, United States. The population was 43,862 according to the 2010 census, up from 39,018 at the 2000 census. The city is named after decorated Franconian- French war hero Johann de Kalb, who died ...

. It served passenger trains of the Chicago and North Western Railway (C&NW) along its main line between Chicago and

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest city ...

. The station was designed by Charles Sumner Frost and Alfred Hoyt Granger in 1891 and closed for passenger service in 1971. The building still stands and is used by the Union Pacific Railroad for offices.

Description

The station is built in a rectangular design, on the south side of the tracks. It was designed in a

Richardsonian Romanesque Richardsonian Romanesque is a style of Romanesque Revival architecture named after the American architect Henry Hobson Richardson (1838–1886). The revival style incorporates 11th and 12th century southern French, Spanish, and Italian Romanesque ...

style by Charles Sumner Frost and Alfred Hoyt Granger. The building is made from brick and stone, and features a tower facing the tracks. A

freight depot A transport hub is a place where passengers and cargo are exchanged between vehicles and/or between transport modes. Public transport hubs include railway stations, rapid transit stations, bus stops, tram stops, airports and ferry slips ...

once existed across the tracks from the passenger station. The area featured five tracks, and has since been reduced to two. A near identical twin of the station was built in

Fond du Lac, Wisconsin Fond du Lac () is a city in Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 44,678 at the 2020 census. The city forms the core of the United States Census Bureau's Fond du Lac United States metrop ...

History

The

Galena and Chicago Union Railroad The Galena and Chicago Union Railroad (G&CU) was a railroad running west from Chicago to Freeport, Illinois, never reaching Galena, Illinois. A later route went to Clinton, Iowa. Incorporated in 1836, the G&CU became the first railroad built out ...

first entered DeKalb on August 22, 1853. DeKalb was initially the western terminus of the "Dixon Air Line" branch. The railroad was eventually extended to the Mississippi River at Fulton, Illinois, in December 1855. A bridge was constructed over the Mississippi and the railroad was bought by the Chicago and North Western Railway in 1864. The line was eventually extended to Council Bluffs and

. A north–south line was completed by the Northern Illinois Railway, extending from Belvidere to Spring Valley. This was bought by the C&NW on June 9, 1888, although passenger service only lasted until the 1920s. The first station in DeKalb, built by the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad, was on 3rd Street. All that remains in this location is a historical marker placed in 1953 to honor the centennial of the railroad arriving in DeKalb. The location of the station was eventually moved to the current location, between 6th and 7th Streets. A joint passenger/freight depot was used until the construction of the present depot. The current station was opened in 1891, after

double track A double-track railway usually involves running one track in each direction, compared to a single-track railway where trains in both directions share the same track. Overview In the earliest days of railways in the United Kingdom, most lin ...

ing of the line. It served Chicago and North Western trains, as well as jointly operated trains that operated via Union Pacific Railroad's Overland Route west of Omaha. These trains included the '' San Francisco Challenger'', ''

Pacific Limited The ''Pacific Limited'' was an American named passenger train which from 1913 to 1947 was jointly operated by three railroads on the Overland Route between Portland, Oregon, Oakland, California, Los Angeles, California and Chicago. The Southern P ...

'', and the ''

Los Angeles Limited The ''Los Angeles Limited'' was a named passenger train in the United States. It was operated by the Union Pacific Railroad from 1905 to 1954. History Beginning in 1905 the ''Los Angeles Limited'' was the flagship train of the Union Pacific ...

''. First-class

streamliner A streamliner is a vehicle incorporating wikt:streamline, streamlining in a shape providing reduced air resistance. The term is applied to high-speed railway trainsets of the 1930s to 1950s, and to their successor "High-speed rail, bullet trai ...

trains such as the ''

City of Denver Denver () is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States#State capital, capital, and List of municipalities in Colorado#, most populous city of th ...

'', '' City of Los Angeles'', and '' City of Portland'' did not stop at DeKalb. Union Pacific trains were shifted from the C&NW to the

Milwaukee Road The Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (CMStP&P), often referred to as the "Milwaukee Road" , was a Class I railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States, Midwest and Pacific Northwest, Northwest of the United States fr ...

in 1955, and the ''

Kate Shelley 400 The ''Kate Shelley 400'' was a short-lived streamlined passenger train operated by the Chicago and North Western Railway between Chicago, Illinois and Iowa. The train drew its name from the CNW's popular ''Twin Cities 400'', so-named for making th ...

'' and ''The Omahan'' served DeKalb. The ''Kate Shelley 400'' initially ran to Boone, Iowa, before it was shortened to

Cedar Rapids Cedar Rapids () is the second-largest city in Iowa, United States and is the county seat of Linn County. The city lies on both banks of the Cedar River, north of Iowa City and northeast of Des Moines, the state's capital and largest city. ...

and finally Clinton, Iowa. The name was eventually dropped, and the unnamed #1 and #2 trains were the final trains to stop at DeKalb on April 30, 1971. C&NW passenger service ended and Amtrak took over intercity rail in the United States. The C&NW was eventually bought by the Union Pacific Railroad in 1995, and DeKalb station has remained in use as an office. Metra's commuter rail service on the Union Pacific / West Line was extended to Elburn, Illinois in 2006, east of DeKalb. An extension to DeKalb was listed in the "2040 Long-Range Transportation Plan" in Chicago. However, an extension of the line would require DeKalb County to join the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA), the operator of Metra. Northern Illinois University provides a shuttle from DeKalb to

Elburn station Elburn is a station on Metra's Union Pacific West Line located in Elburn, Illinois. The station is the western terminus of the West Line. The station is away from Ogilvie Transportation Center along the railroad tracks. Elburn station opened on J ...

, and stops adjacent to DeKalb station at Locust and 6th Street.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Photo of the station in 2014
Former Chicago and North Western Railway stations DeKalb, Illinois Transportation buildings and structures in DeKalb County, Illinois Richardsonian Romanesque architecture in Illinois Charles Sumner Frost buildings Railway stations in the United States opened in 1853 Railway stations in the United States opened in 1891 Railway stations closed in 1971 Former railway stations in Illinois