The Two Brothers Roundhouse, formerly the Walter Payton Roundhouse, America's Historical Roundhouse, and Chicago, Burlington, & Quincy Roundhouse and Locomotive Shop is a historic building converted to a restaurant in Aurora, Illinois. It was originally constructed in 1856 as a roundhouse for the Chicago & Aurora Railroad (later

Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illin ...

) and served in this capacity until 1974. It was abandoned until 1995, when a group of investors led by

Walter Payton Walter Jerry Payton (July 25, 1953Although most sources at the time of his death gave Payton's birth year as 1954, reliable sources subsequently state he was born in 1953. – November 1, 1999) was an American football running back who played ...

purchased it and converted the building to an entertainment complex. Its most recent tenant is

Two Brothers Brewing Two Brothers Brewing Company is an independently owned Illinois-based microbrewery founded by brothers Jim and Jason Ebel in 1996. The brothers brought their knowledge of different brewing styles to the Chicago craft brew market after living in ...

. The building is the oldest

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

roundhouse in the United States and is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

History

The roundhouse was constructed in 1856 to serve Aurora on the Chicago & Aurora Railroad (C&A). The C&A built its own maintenance shops to facilitate further expansion of the rail system westward. The shops were also capable of producing new equipment for the

rolling stock The term rolling stock in the rail transport industry refers to railway vehicles, including both powered and unpowered vehicles: for example, locomotives, freight and passenger cars (or coaches), and non-revenue cars. Passenger vehicles can ...

. The roundhouse was designed by Levi Hull Waterhouse, who designed several important structures in the Aurora vicinity. The walls of the structure were constructed with locally quarried

from

Batavia, Illinois Batavia () is a city mainly in Kane County and partly in DuPage County in the U.S. state of Illinois. Located in the Chicago metropolitan area, it was founded in 1833 and is the oldest city in Kane County. Per the 2020 census, the population w ...

. There were originally twenty-two stalls in the roundhouse, with an additional eight added three years after completion. Ten stalls were added at an unknown later date. A small shop was also present in the roundhouse which catered to locomotive engines. The C&A merged with the

in 1868, which became the most trafficked railroad in Illinois by 1870. In the 1930s, the focus of the complex shifted to the new ''Zephyr'' line of diesel engines. It also constructed many passenger cars, including Pullman cars and the very first

dome car A dome car is a type of railway passenger car that has a glass dome on the top of the car where passengers can ride and see in all directions around the train. It also can include features of a coach, lounge car, dining car, sleeping car or obse ...

. As the

automobile A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarde ...

increased in usage in the mid-20th century, rail traffic declined. The roundhouse and shops closed in 1974; most of the other shops in the district were demolished soon after. The structure was abandoned for twenty-one years. It was added to the

on February 16, 1978. In May 1988, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers recognized the roundhouse as a landmark in mechanical engineering for its "innovative railroad yard machine shop." In 1995, the Aurora City Council voted to allow an investment group led by former Chicago Bears

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball, and block. Ther ...

to purchase the building. The building re-opened in 1996 and hosted a brewpub, restaurant, museum, and open-air pavilion. Among the artifacts in the museum is Payton's championship ring from Super Bowl XX. The complex received a National Preservation Award on October 22, 1999, only days before Payton's death. Aurora roundhouse front

On May 2, 2011

Company announced via Facebook and Twitter that they had acquired America's Historical Roundhouse in Aurora Illinois. They opened a restaurant on June 18, 2011, featuring ten of their locally available beers on tap plus an additional two that are exclusive to the establishment.

Architecture

The roundhouse portion of the building complex is long with a local

exterior and an iron

loggia In architecture, a loggia ( , usually , ) is a covered exterior gallery or corridor, usually on an upper level, but sometimes on the ground level of a building. The outer wall is open to the elements, usually supported by a series of columns ...

interior. The roundhouse is actually a tetracontagon (40 sides). A steel

truss A truss is an assembly of ''members'' such as beams, connected by ''nodes'', that creates a rigid structure. In engineering, a truss is a structure that "consists of two-force members only, where the members are organized so that the assembl ...

structure supports wood-sheathed steel

rafter A rafter is one of a series of sloped structural members such as wooden beams that extend from the ridge or hip to the wall plate, downslope perimeter or eave, and that are designed to support the roof shingles, roof deck and its associated ...

s, covered on the exterior by

tar paper Tar paper is a heavy-duty paper used in construction. Tar paper is made by impregnating paper or fiberglass mat with tar, producing a waterproof material useful for roof construction. Tar paper is distinguished from roofing felt, which is impreg ...

. The locomotive shop is attached to the north side and is with two stories.

References

External links

*
ASME Landmark
*{{HAER , survey=IL-8 , id=il0390 , title=Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, Roundhouse & Shops

by TripAdvisor Buildings and structures in Aurora, Illinois Industrial buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Illinois Historic American Engineering Record in Illinois Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmarks National Register of Historic Places in Kane County, Illinois Railroad roundhouses in Illinois Transport infrastructure completed in 1856 Tourist attractions in Aurora, Illinois Railway roundhouses on the National Register of Historic Places Railway buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Illinois Transportation buildings and structures in Kane County, Illinois 1856 establishments in Illinois