Savannah Union Station was a train station in

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Br ...

. It was located at 419 through 435 West Broad Street, between Stewart and Roberts streets, on the site that is now listed as 435 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. It hosted the

Atlantic Coast Line Railroad The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad was a United States Class I railroad formed in 1900, though predecessor railroads had used the ACL brand since 1871. In 1967 it merged with long-time rival Seaboard Air Line Railroad to form the Seaboard Coast L ...

, the

Seaboard Air Line Railroad The Seaboard Air Line Railroad , which styled itself "The Route of Courteous Service," was an American railroad which existed from April 14, 1900, until July 1, 1967, when it merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, its longtime rival, t ...

and the Southern Railway. While the term, ''

union station A union station (also known as a union terminal, a joint station in Europe, and a joint-use station in Japan) is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway companies, allowing passengers to ...

,'' in the United States generally implies a station that hosts all train companies stopping in a city, the

Central of Georgia The Central of Georgia Railway started as the Central Rail Road and Canal Company in 1833. As a way to better attract investment capital, the railroad changed its name to Central Rail Road and Banking Company of Georgia. This railroad was cons ...

and the

Savannah and Atlanta Railway The Savannah and Northwestern Railway was a railroad in the U.S. state of Georgia. From 1906 to 1914, it was named the Brinson Railway after its owner, George M. Brinson, a businessman who had earlier built the Stillmore Air Line Railway. The l ...

used other stations in Savannah.

Architecture

Union Station, Savannah, GA (NBY 429332)

It was designed by

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city ...

architect

Frank Pierce Milburn Frank Pierce Milburn (December 12, 1868 - September 21, 1926) was a prolific American architect of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His practice was primarily focused on public buildings, particularly courthouses and legislative buildings, ...

and completed in 1902 at a cost of $150,000. It was an example of

Spanish Renaissance The Spanish Renaissance was a movement in Spain, emerging from the Italian Renaissance in Italy during the 14th century, that spread to Spain during the 15th and 16th centuries. This new focus in art, literature, quotes and science inspired b ...

and Elizabethian styles. The main feature of the structure was an octagonal rotunda which measured 80 feet in diameter and served as the general waiting room. Since most of the station's history took place under the

South South is one of the cardinal directions or Points of the compass, compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Pro ...

Jim Crow The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws enforcing racial segregation in the Southern United States. Other areas of the United States were affected by formal and informal policies of segregation as well, but many states outside the Sout ...

segregation system, a ''colored waiting room'' was assigned to

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

s. The exterior walls were made of pressed brick with granite and terra cotta trimmings. The building also had two towers.

Significance and history

Many visitors disembarked trains onto West Broad Street. They brought enough business for theaters, bars, stores to open in that section of town. For decades, the Union Station and its surroundings became known as the economic and cultural center for Black Savannah. In August 1962 the remaining passenger trains were shifted to the new Atlantic Coast Line station on the periphery of Savannah, which remains in use today by

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

. A year later, Union Station was demolished to make room for

Interstate 16 Interstate 16 (I-16), also known as Jim Gillis Historic Savannah Parkway, is an east–west Interstate Highway located entirely within the US state of Georgia. It carries the hidden designation of State Route 404 (SR 404) for its ...

and what would eventually be known as the Earl T. Shinhoster Interchange.Acosta, Ruben A. 'Savannah‟s Union Station: Architecture and the Gateway in the South' Master's Thesis, Savannah College of Art and Design, 2010

Named trains

Several named trains made stops at the station:

Current use of the site

An Enmark service station (405 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd) is located nearby what was once the site of the Union Station. The Savannah Visitor Information Center is in the former

Central of Georgia Depot and Trainshed Central of Georgia Depot and Trainshed is a former passenger depot and trainshed constructed in 1860 by the Central of Georgia Railway (CofG) before the outbreak of the American Civil War. This pair of buildings was declared a National Historic Lan ...

, located nearby, at 301 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd.

References

{{Savannah, Georgia Former railway stations in Georgia (U.S. state) Railway stations in the United States opened in 1902 Demolished railway stations in the United States

Union Station A union station (also known as a union terminal, a joint station in Europe, and a joint-use station in Japan) is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway companies, allowing passengers to ...

Railway stations closed in 1962 Union stations in the United States Frank Pierce Milburn buildings Former Atlantic Coast Line Railroad stations Former Southern Railway (U.S.) stations Former Seaboard Air Line Railroad stations 1902 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) Seaboard Air Line Railroad stations

Architecture

Significance and history

Named trains

Current use of the site

See also

References