Springfield station is a brick

railroad depot A train station, railway station, railroad station or depot is a Rail transport, railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passenger train, passengers, freight rail transport, freight or both. It generally consists of at least one r ...

Springfield, Illinois Springfield is the capital of the U.S. state of Illinois and the county seat and largest city of Sangamon County. The city's population was 114,394 at the 2020 census, which makes it the state's seventh most-populous city, the second largest o ...

, the

state capital Below is an index of pages containing lists of capital cities. National capitals *List of national capitals *List of national capitals by latitude *List of national capitals by population *List of national capitals by area *List of capital citie ...

. It is at mile 185 on

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 ...

's ''Illinois and Missouri Route''. As of 2007, it is served by five daily round trips each way: the daily ''

Texas Eagle The ''Texas Eagle'' is a daily passenger train route operated by Amtrak between Chicago and San Antonio in the central and western United States. Prior to 1988, the train was known as the ''Eagle''. Trains #21 (southbound) and 22 (northbound) ...

'', and four daily ''

Lincoln Service The ''Lincoln Service'' is a higher-speed rail service operated by Amtrak that runs between Chicago, Illinois and St. Louis, Missouri. The train is a part of the ''Illinois Service'' and is partially funded by the Illinois Department of Transp ...

'' frequencies. It will be replaced by the

Springfield-Sangamon Transportation Center Springfield-Sangamon Transportation Center is a planned intermodal transit station in Springfield, Illinois, that will serve Amtrak trains, intercity buses, and Sangamon Mass Transit District bus and paratransit services. The station is under cons ...

, which is currently under construction, and expected to open in 2025.

History

The station was originally constructed by the

Chicago and Alton Railroad The Alton Railroad was the final name of a railroad linking Chicago to Alton, Illinois; St. Louis, Missouri; and Kansas City, Missouri. Its predecessor, the Chicago and Alton Railroad , was purchased by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1931 an ...

in 1895 and is one of three historic railroad stations still existing in the city, along with the

Lincoln Depot Lincoln Depot is located in Springfield, Illinois. It is so called because Abraham Lincoln's bittersweet 1861 Farewell Address to Springfield was delivered here as he boarded the train to Washington D.C. at the beginning of his presidency. H ...

built by the Great Western Railroad in 1852 and Springfield Union Station built 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 ...

in 1898. Prior to the start up of Amtrak on May 1, 1971 it was operated by a successor company, the

Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad The Gulf, Mobile and Ohio was a Class I railroad in the central United States whose primary routes extended from Mobile, Alabama, and New Orleans, Louisiana, to St. Louis and Kansas City, Missouri, as well as Chicago, Illinois. From its two pa ...

, and was served by a variety of named trains, including the ''Alton Limited'', the ''Abraham Lincoln'', and the '' Midnight Special''. Springfield was intended to be the southwestern terminus of the '' State House,'' predecessor of today's ''Lincoln Service.'' However, Amtrak extended this train to

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

at its own expense because the Chicago and Alton/GM&O station was not designed to turn trainsets around. The passenger station is decorated with a small

mural A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' is a Spani ...

. Painted on the wall atop the ticket office, the mural features a route map of the post-1947 Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad and the state seals of Alabama, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee. The mural is the work of

Louis Grell Louis may refer to: * Louis (coin) * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also Derived or associated terms * Lewis (d ...

of Chicago. In a 2010–2011 project, authorities supervised the railroad station's comprehensive refurbishment. Overhauled elements included the GM&O mural, trackside landscaping, passenger seating, handicapped accessibility, parking lot repaving and a new station roof. The $714,500 project was financed by the city and Amtrak. Springfield used $571,500 obtained through the Central Area Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district that covers much of the downtown. Other stakeholders involved in the renovation included Union Pacific Railroad, which owns the track and platform, and the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, which reviewed project plans to ensure that the station's historic elements were preserved.

Replacement station

In October 2021, ground was broken on the Springfield-Sangamon Transportation Center, a transit hub that will consolidate Amtrak service and

Sangamon Mass Transit District The Sangamon Mass Transit District (SMTD) is a regional mass transit district that mostly serves Springfield, Illinois along with a few neighboring communities. It is governed by a seven-member board of trustees, who are all appointed by the Sang ...

buses. It is expected to open in 2025, replacing the current Amtrak station.

References

External links

More images of Springfield Station at USA Rail Guide (TrainWeb)
{{Amtrak Illinois stations Amtrak stations in Illinois Railway stations in the United States opened in 1895 Former Chicago and Alton Railroad stations Buildings and structures in Springfield, Illinois