The South Side Elevated is a branch 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 ...

system in

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

that is served by the Green Line. It has on average 12,509 passengers, counting branch divisions, boarding each weekday as of February 2013, according to the

Chicago Transit Authority The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) is the operator of mass transit in Chicago, Illinois, United States, and some of its surrounding suburbs, including the trains of the Chicago 'L' and CTA bus service. In , the system had a ridership of , o ...

. The branch is long with a total of 8 stations, and runs from the Near South Side to the Washington Park neighborhood of Chicago.

Route

The South Side Elevated serves the Near South Side,

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, Bronzeville, Grand Boulevard, and Washington Park neighborhoods of

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

and has stops near the

Illinois Institute of Technology Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Tracing its history to 1890, the present name was adopted upon the merger of the Armour Institute and Lewis Institute in 1940. The university has prog ...

and the

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. The South Side Elevated continues to the

Englewood branch The Ashland branch, formerly known as the Englewood branch, is a long branch of the Chicago "L" currently operated as the Green Line, serving the Englewood and West Englewood neighborhoods of Chicago, Illinois. History The first station on the ...

() and the

Jackson Park branch The East 63rd branch, formerly known as the Jackson Park branch, is a long branch of the Chicago "L" operated as part the Green Line by the Chicago Transit Authority, serving the Woodlawn neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. History The first st ...

().

History

The South Side Elevated started passenger service on June 6, 1892, with service as far south as 39th Street (Pershing Road), making the branch the oldest section of the Chicago "L". On January 22, 1893, service on the line was extended as far south as 61st Street. The Jackson Park branch was added later in 1893 to serve the site of the

1893 World's Fair The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The centerpiece of the Fair, hel ...

. Several other branches over time to serve parts of the city, though most have since been demolished. The Englewood branch was opened in 1905, followed by the Kenwood and

Normal Park Normal Park is the name of a former football and baseball field in Chicago, Illinois, during approximately 1914 through 1951. It was most notably the home field of the Chicago Cardinals before they moved to Comiskey Park. The field was on a bloc ...

branches in 1907, and the Stock Yards branch in 1908. Today, only the Englewood (now Ashland) and Jackson Park (now East 63rd) branches remain. In 1993, the Green Line was created when the CTA color-coded the lines. In 1994, the 58th station closed while remaining stations were renovated or rebuilt entirely depending on their condition. In 2012, the platform of the 58th station was completely demolished. In 2015, a new station opened in the same location as the original Cermak station, to serve the

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convention center.

Station listing

Image gallery

Image:South Side Elevated Railroad car 1.jpg, Railcar #1 is one of the oldest trains from the South Side Elevated Railroad Image:Chicago-Loop-SEcorner.jpg, An Orange Line train (behind the turning train) at the northern end of the South Side Elevated branch Image:Cottage Grove.jpg, The Cottage Grove station is the terminus of the Jackson Park branch Image:CTA Pillar at Ashland-63rd Green Line.jpg, A CTA monument overlooking the Ashland/63rd terminal

External links

Green Line: South Side Elevated
at Chicago-L.org

References

{{Chicago L Railway lines in Chicago Chicago Transit Authority