The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1888-09-16
AN EVIDENCE OF PROGRESS
The First Union Depot in the World
Built Here Thirty-ive Years Ago.
Development Of Trade and Travel Left 1t Far
Behind. bat Its Place Has Been Taken by
Much More Imposing Structure.

TO be, without exception. the most elegant and
comnodious union station IN this country. But
few people arc avsrs CT the fact that toe
first usion Depot IN the world was buils at Indi-
annapolis, and IN this connection . brisf sketch
of the origin OF The enterprise and the men who
have sines controlled the property will be of in
tersss The first meeting to consider the mat
ter was held In the T. T. & l. Office Ia the pres
emit Vsndsia freight depot There were
present Chsuncsy Rose, John Brough and
o. Il Smith. Preliminary steps wsrs
then taken, but The work was not begun
until September, 1852 The ground on wtich
the depot stood was purchased of James Blake,
gust, 1852 the contract 10 erect the building
was awarded to Edwsrds & Copeland. the COM
psny agreeing to pay ihsm s3l, 600 on compile
ston OF the work, they TO have year in which
to doik They carried out the contract to the
letter, and September, 1853. the FIRST train was
run into the building which was recently torn
down 20 make room for the present grand
structure. There wsrs then four roads running
Into Indianapolis-the Madison C Indianapolis,
the Tsrrs Hauts & Indianapolis. the Decline
and the Indianapolis, Psru& Chicago now the
Lake Erie q Western The hrst president Of the
company was Chauncsy Rose. He held be DO
sitiou but short time, when Samuel Crawford
WI elected his successor, and he was president
until hs died E. ]. Peek was next elected, and
was ut the head of the company's affairs for sew
eral years billiard Ricketts, came next, and
then Horace Scott, upon whose retirement ID.
w. Caldwell vas elected, and on bis resignation,
be sevsring his connection with the Pennsyl
wanna lines. VIM h Mckeen was made presi-
dent
When the proposition to build anew had been
decided upon Mr.. McKsen resigned and James
MeCrsa the present incumbent, was elected The
old Union Depot. which, in its early days, was
much admired and talked about all over the
country a. being an immense building, wss 420
fees long By leo wide. In 1853 William Jackson
was elected secretary treasurer and general
ticket agent Of the company and the two first
named positions be has held up to the present
time. he has sean all those who were with him
ing the first year the depot was opened for busi-
ness averased 81. 500 per month IL now reaches
nearly go. 900 . month The building of the
new depot was arst seriously thought OK seven
years aeo, but no definite action was taken until
two years later when the fifteenth &c "A, the L.,
n A 81 C., asked for accommodation on the
union tracks and in the Union Depot Action
then became imperative, and IN Dec 1absr, 1854,
the diresso1 Of the company met and
passed . resolution to the effect that
undertaken, and V. 7. Mslott, yice-presidert
and general manager, Was instructed to get
through the Legislature such legislation as was
needed in the way Of vacating streets and pro-
viding for other necessariesL In the meantime
architects were asked te prepare plans and speei-
tcations foe the proposed building. At the
same meeting j. n Mccullough. VIM K Nc
Keen. NJ E. Ingalls, and " T. Malott were sp
pointed the committee on finance; Gaylord
Beach, VIM R. MeKeen and V. 7. Mslott, COM
mittee on real estate, and James McCrea, NJ. E.
ingalls,. Gaylord Beach and V. T. Mslott, build
Ing committee. After the Legislature passed
ihln peal stAte committee Sc
cured options BnUS Psral pieces OF property
which the company needed to~earry ont its
plans, and in the months Of May and June, 1856,
the company paid out $685., 900 for real estate
During the few mouths that this business
was going on legislation Was being pushed
through the City Council and Board Of
o. Aldermen, this work being rather tedious.
Ia October, 1856, the general contract for put
ting up the main building was awarded to Jos.
Downey, OF Chicago, and IN November excava-
tlon was commenced for the foundations. Aft
er teat G. j. Shultz, Of Pittsbur9, was awarded
the contracts for erecting the sheds.
The station proper is loo feet square, three
stories high. with basemeps and attic rooms
The tower 10 1S5 feet high, and besides this
structure there are two baezsge-rooms. one at
the west aud the other 81 the east end OF the
train -sheds. The baegsge-rooms are each l50 feet
Lr8lU-sleQS
feet long By 200 feet wide, constructed of iron
with TIN roof. The station proper rests on Q
granite foundation, the stone coming from Iron
Mountain. Missouri The walls above are con-
structsd of pressed brick, with provisions
trimmings, which were shipped from Pennsyl-
vsuiA Tao tower 10 ornamented by . clock,
rhs dals Of which are feet in diameter On
der cover OF the sheds ten long tracks. TAI
feet long. and two short tracks. The whole
span OF sheds and main building are lighted
-irn electricity, the Indianapolis Jennsy Elec-
trio Light Company putting in the plant There
are 30 arc and ], l50 incandescent lights. In the
oasement there are four stationary engines,
supplying four hundred horsepower. The main
building is heated by indirect radiation, the hot
air being forced through the building by . fan
IL feet IN diameter Fuel for boilers is obtained
from natural gas. Entering the building from
the north one passes through a vestibuls on thu
left Of which 10 Frank Bird's transfer Office,
which IL convenient and roony. On the west
side the room Is still unassigned After one
passes through the vestibuls one comes 10 the
esntlenenc- waItng-room, IA feet long by so
circle and 60 feet high On the west side il, irst
the packageroom, then the Union news room,
nexs the BARRIERS shop, and in the center one
of the most elegant and eomplste ticket
joining the tickst-ofics Is the ladies'
sitting and elegant private rooms. The ladies
room ID seventy feet lone by forty feet wide and
1sfnisaed IN an attractive manner, one feature
<St1k . mugs AIo place cOu4SECcIc1 Ok Teu eanu
stone shipped from Wisconsin Crossing to the
east side Of the main wsising-room comes the
dining room which n sixty feet long by forty
feat vida Next to that IL the sleeping-car Of
Zee, which faces the general ticket Office, the
serving room for the dining-rooms being in the
rear. Adjoining this in the lunch counter. All
TIE rooms In the first story are twenty-five feet
high and are deliberately finished in native oak
woods brass work being used for ratings and
other light fiuisb. The second story 10 reached
,oirhsr by An elevator or bv sfairvav At eithsr
end Of the main waiting room. Here are eight
large rooms each sixty feet long by forty wide,
and four each thirty feet long by twenty wide
These rooms are duplicated In the third story
Those in the second and third stories are to be
~seupied by the Western upi1n Telegraph Com
pan3 and for arpcfintendsats' Offices of the diff
fsrent fozts Cathedral and plate glass are in
windows throughout the entire building, aud a
large part Of the floors are constructed OF tile
tsstily arranged
The Union Rziiwsy Company has thus far ex-
pended 81, 15s 100. part Of which was for the
Poguss run improvement, the tunnel OF South
Illinois street, the asphalt and concrete pave
ments about the building and the streets around
the building. There ia sill considerable to da
In the way Of putting on the finishing touches
which win inereass the coet of the Improvement
20 -. zoe, ooo- The architect and civil engineer
was Thomas Rodd Of Pitfsbure; p. c. Doran. OF
Richmond, Ind. being his assistant V. T. Ma
lott las looked after the enterprise, which is o
great credit to the city and 70 the Union Rail
way Company we'll But for the energy and
tnnueuce OF Mr. Malott and an occasional scoring
which the Journal gave the Union Railway
Company for fta lack OF acccmmod acioos II