Abandoned Passenger Train Station in Youngstown
Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Terminal, Youngstown Ohio
The Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Terminal in Youngstown was built in 1905. The railroads played a significant role in the city's development as a manufacturing and population center in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The design of the building in a popular revival style of the period reflects the importance of passenger rail travel during the early years of the 20th century and, in particular, the significance of the B & O line to passengers traveling through Youngstown from either Washington or Chicago. The terminal occupies a significant site on a curve of the tracks overlooking the Mahoning River, with a view of downtown Youngstown to the east.
The importance of the railroad in the city's history is underscored by the fact that, in 1925, Youngstown was the only city between New York and Chicago where all four major trunk lines met: the Erie, Pennsylvania & Ohio, Baltimore & Ohio, and New York Central. Remarkably, passenger stations serving three of the four lines remain standing in the downtown area of Youngstown. In addition to the B & O, these include the 1923 Erie Terminal office building on Commerce Street and the modern, c. 1940s Pennsylvania Terminal on West Federal Street (since converted to a Greyhound Bus Station). The B & O Terminal is the earliest and most architecturally significant of the three, and the only remaining station from the first quarter of the 20th century which was built strictly as a passenger depot.
The B & O Railroad line through Youngstown had its beginning in 1882 with the formation of the Pittsburgh, Cleveland & Toledo Railroad Company. Under the leadership of Chauncey H. Andrews, this company completed a line through the city in 1884. This line was leased to the Pittsburgh and Western Railroad Company and in 1891-92, the B & O Railroad purchased a controlling interest in the line. With this, the Baltimore & Ohio, the nation's first railroad, gained entrance to the Mahoning Valley and its extensive manufacturing facilities, providing Youngstown passengers and freight with direct service from Washington to Chicago. Youngstown was an important stop for the rail companies as it had developed by the beginning of the 20th century as a major railroad shipping center.
To accommodate the hundreds of Youngstown area passengers traveling between Baltimore-Washington and Chicago, the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company elected to build a new passenger terminal in 1905. The same year, the company eliminated its grade crossings throughout the City of Youngstown, making passage much safer and more convenient. The B & O Station, built for $70,000, was declared one of Ohio's finest railroad stations at the time of its construction. It featured the latest conveniences for both passengers (such as an underground tunnel to the eastbound track) and baggage handlers (including a water-powered elevator that lifted bags from the lower level entrance to the higher level tracks). The station served many of the most elegant high-speed trains bound east and west, including the "Capitol Limited," whose passengers often included major names in politics and business, such as Herbert Hoover and Andrew Carnegie.
The terminal probably had its greatest use during World War II, when rail passenger service boomed in Youngstown as elsewhere. With the growth of airline and automobile traffic, the demise of the rail lines began during the 1950s. The terminal was used as a passenger station until the mid-1970s, when the Baltimore & Ohio (then a subsidiary of the Chessie System) abandoned its mainline passenger service through Youngstown with the advent of Amtrak service. For several years, the station continued to house freight staff and a maintenance-of-way office, until vacated about 1981.
Building Description
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Terminal is a two-and-one-half-story structure with a gable-roofed five-bay central section flanked by two-bay, hip-roofed wings to either side. Rendered in buff-colored brick, the three sections of the building are unified by a simple building cornice and a sill and belt course of darker sandstone between the first and second floors. The main facade of the building faces the access drive leading from Mahoning Avenue and features a central gabled entry pavilion and porte cochere as its dominant features. A secondary facade is built into the railroad embankment on the track side of the building and repeats the main facade treatment.
Built in 1905, the B & O Terminal exhibits an eclectic Georgian Revival style. The style is well-stated in the gable roof with end chimneys, the central gabled pavilion on both the front and rear facades, the classically inspired entrance, and the presence of brick window surrounds which are designed to resemble quoins in a classical motif. Round-headed or segmentally-arched bays are found in the second floor of the central block and the first floor of the wings, while square-headed windows are found elsewhere. While many are boarded up, the original windows appear to be intact. The arched bay in the central pavilion features a decorative pediment in the blind arch.
The crenelated porte cochere is a dominant feature of the main facade, and its segmentally-arched openings reflect those elsewhere in the building. The original building entrance is shielded by the porte cochere and features a pair of paneled entry doors with three-quarter sidelights and full transom in a classical manner. Additional paneled doors are located in several of the arched openings on the ground floor of the terminal to provide access for the transfer of passenger baggage from the ground floor of the station up to the tracks at the rear.
The interior of the B & O Terminal is significant as well, as most of its original features are intact. The central entry leads to the station waiting room, a two-story space with ceramic tile floor and decorative pressed metal ceiling, currently obscured by a drop acoustical ceiling. At either end of the waiting area are balconies with wrought iron railings overlooking the space from the second-floor office and baggage areas. Elevator, restroom, and ticket counter facilities also remain intact.
The station's setting is distinctive, as it was built on a curve of the railroad line overlooking the Mahoning River with a view of downtown Youngstown to the east. The tracks are built on an embankment so that the rear of the station is only one and one-half stories at track level.