Spartanburg station is an

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 ...

train station in

Spartanburg, South Carolina Spartanburg is a city in and the county seat, seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. The city of Spartanburg has a municipal population of 38,732 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the 11th-largest c ...

, United States. It is located at 290 Magnolia Street, within walking distance of

Wofford College Wofford College is a private liberal arts college in Spartanburg, South Carolina. It was founded in 1854. The campus is a national arboretum and one of the few four-year institutions in the southeastern United States founded before the America ...

, the Spartanburg County government administration building and the

Donald S. Russell Donald Stuart Russell (February 22, 1906 – February 22, 1998) was an American attorney from South Carolina who served as Assistant Secretary of State for Administration, President of the University of South Carolina, governor of South Car ...

Federal Building, which includes the federal courthouse for the

U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina The United States District Court for the District of South Carolina (in case citations, D.S.C.) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of South Carolina. Court is held in the cities of Aiken, Anderson, Beaufort, Charlest ...

History

Opened in 1904, the Spartanburg Union Depot (also referred to as Union Station) was built by Southern Railway and also served the

Clinchfield Railroad The Clinchfield Railroad was an operating and holding company for the Carolina, Clinchfield and Ohio Railway . The line ran from the coalfields of Virginia and Elkhorn City, Kentucky, to the textile mills of South Carolina. The 35-mile segment ...

and the Charleston & Western Carolina Railway. Nicknamed "Hub City," the two-story station had one

side platform A side platform (also known as a marginal platform or a single-face platform) is a platform positioned to the side of one or more railway tracks or guideways at a railway station, tram stop, or transitway. A station having dual side platforms ...

and two

island platforms An island platform (also center platform, centre platform) is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway interchange. Island platforms are popular on ...

operating on five tracks. The building included waiting areas, baggage facilities, and offices. A few years later, the station was expanded to include a three-story tower in the center. In 1915, a separate building, located west adjacent to station, was built for the Southern Express Company (packaging services). By 1940, the three-story tower had been removed from the station. Over the next three decades, the station was gradually scaled down as passenger rail service dropped. In 1973, the main station was razed while the former Southeastern Express building was converted into the current station. In 1996, the station was damaged by fire; however, instead of being demolished it was restored thanks to a 16-year-old who launched a crusade to save the station through letters, editorials and meetings with local politicians. In mid-twentieth century the station was a hub for passenger eservices in different directions. In addition to serving the New Orleans-Washington-New York City corridor with six departures a day to Atlanta, the station hosted two trains a day on the

Asheville Asheville ( ) is a city in, and the county seat of, Buncombe County, North Carolina. Located at the confluence of the French Broad and Swannanoa rivers, it is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the state's 11th-most populous cit ...

to Columbia line with the (including the South Carolina section of the ''

Carolina Special The ''Carolina Special'' was a passenger train operated by the Southern Railway between Cincinnati, Ohio and the Carolinas. It operated from 1911 to 1968. It was the last passenger train to use the route of the Charleston and Hamburg Railroad, w ...

'' ran from

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

to Knoxville, Asheville, Spartanburg, Columbia and finally to Charleston). The '' Skyland Special'' ran from

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the ...

, having a cessation from 1942 to 1947, owing to World War II. The ''Skyland Special'' was discontinued in 1958. Into the mid 1960s, the station continued to be rather busy. The Southern Railway continued to run several

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

trains, of which a few such as the ''

Crescent A crescent shape (, ) is a symbol or emblem used to represent the lunar phase in the first quarter (the "sickle moon"), or by extension a symbol representing the Moon itself. In Hinduism, Lord Shiva is often shown wearing a crescent moon on his ...

'' continued to Birmingham and New Orleans. The Southern Railway lost the ''Carolina Special'' in 1968.

Services

The station, operated by Amtrak, provides

inter-city rail Inter-city rail services are express passenger train services that run services that connect cities over longer distances than commuter or regional trains. There is no precise definition of inter-city rail; its meaning may vary from country ...

service via the . The facility is open nightly at 11:00pm-6:00am, which includes the waiting area. No ticket sales office nor baggage services are available at this station.

Hub City Railroad Museum

Located inside the depot building, the museum showcases Spartanburg's railroads and two major industries, textiles and peaches. Open on Wednesdays and Saturdays, it is operated by the Greenville Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society.

References

External links

Spartanburg Amtrak Station (USA Rail Guide -- Train Web)
{{Amtrak South Carolina stations Buildings and structures in Spartanburg, South Carolina Amtrak stations in South Carolina Former Southern Railway (U.S.) stations Former Atlantic Coast Line Railroad stations Union stations in the United States Transportation in Spartanburg County, South Carolina Railway stations in the United States opened in 1904