The Illinois Central West Line was a commuter line operated by the

Illinois Central Railroad The Illinois Central Railroad , sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, was a railroad in the Central United States, with its primary routes connecting Chicago, Illinois, with New Orleans, Louisiana, and Mobile, Alabama. A line also co ...

between the Randolph Street Station in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

and

Addison, Illinois Addison is a village located in the Chicago Metropolitan Area, in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 36,942 at the 2010 census. History The community itself was originally named Dunkley's Grove after the settler Hezekia ...

. The service began in 1892 and ended in 1931.

History

The Illinois Central Railroad opened a westerly line from Chicago to

Freeport, Illinois Freeport is the county seat and largest city of Stephenson County, Illinois, United States. The population was 23,973 at the 2020 census, and the mayor of Freeport is Jodi Miller, elected in 2017. Freeport is known for hosting the second Linc ...

in 1891. A suburban passenger service over a portion of this line between Chicago and Addison was inaugurated on May 1, 1892. Stations were initially located at Wabash Avenue and 16th Street, Crawford Avenue, Hyman (Cicero) Avenue, Robinson (Laramie) Avenue, Ogden Avenue, Parkview Avenue, Brook View, Hill Side, and South Addison. Service consisted of three trains in each direction Monday to Saturday and two trains in each direction on Sundays. A collision between an Addison suburban train and another locomotive occurred on February 25, 1893. On April 15, 1931, the Illinois Central Railroad asked the

Illinois Commerce Commission The Illinois Commerce Commission is a quasi-judicial tribunal that regulates public utility services in the U.S. state of Illinois. The mission of the ICC is "to pursue an appropriate balance between the interest of consumers and existing and emer ...

to allow discontinuance of passenger trains over the line. Discontinuance was granted and the commuter service ended.

Route

The West Line's eastern terminus was the Randolph Street Station on the east side of the

Chicago Loop The Loop, one of Chicago's 77 designated community areas, is the central business district of the city and is the main section of Downtown Chicago. Home to Chicago's commercial core, it is the second largest commercial business district in Nort ...

. From Randolph, trains traveled south over the suburban tracks of the Illinois Central's main line (still used by Metra Electric District trains). South of

Roosevelt Road Roosevelt Road (originally named 12th Street) is a major east-west street in the city of Chicago, Illinois, and its western suburbs. It is 1200 South in the city's street numbering system, but only south of Madison Street. It runs under this ...

and

Central Station Central stations or central railway stations emerged in the second half of the nineteenth century as railway stations that had initially been built on the edge of city centres were enveloped by urban expansion and became an integral part of the ...

, the West Line diverged from the main line between 14th and 16th Streets over a section of trackage that no longer exists that connected with what is now the Canadian National’s

Freeport Subdivision The Freeport Subdivision is a railroad line in Illinois which runs from 16th Street in downtown Chicago to Freeport, Illinois. It is owned and operated by the Canadian National Railway (CN). the line is almost exclusively freight-only, with only ...

. From there, the trains headed west to the vicinity of the South branch of the

Chicago River The Chicago River is a system of rivers and canals with a combined length of that runs through the city of Chicago, including its center (the Chicago Loop). Though not especially long, the river is notable because it is one of the reasons for ...

, where the line angled to the southwest and roughly paralleled the river. Near 35th Street, the line crossed the river and continued west. From Central Avenue, it angled northwest through suburban

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the estab ...

, Berwyn, North Riverside, Hines, Broadview, Hillside, Elmhurst, and

Villa Park Villa Park is a football stadium in Aston, Birmingham, England, with a seating capacity of 42,682. It has been the home of Premier League side Aston Villa since 1897. The ground is less than a mile from both Witton and Aston railway stations ...

, before reaching Addison. At the crossing of North Avenue in Addison, the line left the Freeport Subdivision , heading north along a branch on the west side of Addison Road before terminating in the vicinity of Lake Street.

Stations

References

{{Chicago Rail Passenger trains of the Illinois Central Railroad Railway lines in Chicago Railway lines opened in 1892 Railway lines closed in 1931 1892 establishments in Illinois