Roosevelt, originally known as Westchester, was a

rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT), also known as heavy rail or metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport generally found in urban areas. A rapid transit system that primarily or traditionally runs below the surface may be c ...

station that served the

Westchester branch The Westchester branch was a rapid transit line which was part of the Chicago "L" system from 1926 to 1951. The branch served the suburbs of Forest Park, Maywood, Bellwood, and Westchester, and consisted of nine stations. It opened on October 1 ...

of the

Chicago "L" The Chicago "L" (short for "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 fourth-largest rapid tr ...

between 1926 and the branch's discontinuation in 1951. It was the branch's terminus from its opening until the 1930 extension of the line to 22nd Street.

History

The Westchester branch, originally intended as a bypass route of the

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), opened on October 1, 1926. As actually built, it was a branch from the CA&E's main line rather than a bypass, and as the CA&E had no immediate need for such a branch it was operated as part of the

by the

Chicago Rapid Transit Company The Chicago Rapid Transit Company (CRT) was a privately owned firm providing rapid transit rail service in Chicago, Illinois and several adjacent communities between 1924 and 1947. The CRT is one of the predecessors of the Chicago Transit Autho ...

. The branch terminated at Roosevelt Road, which terminal was simply called "Westchester". Work began on an extension to 22nd Street near Mannheim Road in 1927; the extension led to

Cook County Cook County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, California. More than 40% of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. As of 20 ...

's insistence that the "L" be grade-separated from Roosevelt Road; the grade separation was complete by September 1929, but the extension itself would not open until December 1, 1930. The extension was initially a shuttle to and from Roosevelt, but was through-routed in 1933. The branch was replaced with a bus service by the CTA on December 9, 1951.

Station details

The station house was influenced by the

Prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...

and Craftsman schools of architecture. After the grade separation was carried out, the station house was located on the north side of Roosevelt Road near a parking lot; passengers went through the station house and across a bridge above the tracks and parallel to Roosevelt Road, which descended to an island platform between the tracks.

Ridership

In the last year individual Westchester station ridership statistics were collected, 1948, Roosevelt served 90,188 riders, an 18.94 percent decline from the 111,267 served in 1947. Roosevelt was the most distant station on the branch where statistics were collected; no such figures were ever collected for

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

or Mannheim/22nd. Globally for the Chicago "L", Roosevelt's 1948 performance made it the 205th-busiest of 223 "L" stations that were at least partially staffed at the beginning of the year, whereas in 1947 it had been the 204th-busiest of 222 such stations.

Notes

References

Works cited

* {{Former Chicago "L" stations navbox, Westchester=y Defunct Chicago "L" stations 1926 establishments in Illinois 1951 disestablishments in Illinois Railway stations in the United States opened in 1926 Railway stations in the United States closed in 1951