Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-08-10
GL0R|ES WILL PASS
Two Old Railroad Stations
Must Soon Go.
GIVEN FEW MONTHS GRACE
They Have Been Here Pretty Long,
Anyhow.
ONE HAS HAD OTHER TROUBLE
Doughty Gov. Shepherd Would Have
Buried the B. and o. Terminal,
But Was Fooled.
ONE HAS HAD OTHER TROUBLE

and Ohio station at New Jersey avenue and
street northwest. have already begun to
think seriously OF moving
1t will not be long now before these two
old landmarks will lose their present I'M
portance and see their glories transferred
to the new union station that is rapidly
nearing completion. The railroad officials
have recently said something about occu-
plying a portion of the new station oy Oc-
tober Is. but II Is more likely that there
may be something doing" in this respect
about the first Of the new year, II all goes
we'll.
1t has been many a year since the Balti-
more and Ohio railroad first erected a sta
ton in this city and a reasonably long
time since the present station was built
some sixty years or more. The station that
is used by the Pennsylvania and Its SOUTH
ern connections mas also been in existence
long enough to be relegated from the front
rank of up-to-date railroad terminals to q
position where its style or architecture Is
referred to as ecclesiastical" by railroad
men.
In other words, both station have been
here sufficiently long to become the centers
of a good deal Of historic interest and their
| disappearance, or abandonment by the rail-
roads, will mean not only a good many
| changes In the business aspect OF the city.
but also in the old habits of residents and
| in the lectures" Of professional guides
and rubberneck wagon megaphoners.
| Ttrnn hos ,cffR aA
| Shepherd, who in the seventies was deter
mined to fill in the hole in which the Bal
timOre and Ohio depot stands and was only
prevented from doing so by the strenuous
work of the railroad officials, who hauled
| the dirt away as fast as the doughty gov
ernors minions threw 1t in. The new grade
| which the governor wanted has been
| tablished, or, In fact a better one, as
part of the union station plan, and it will
not be long before the old level of the city
at this point Will be buried many feet under
ground. There are not many Washing
| tonians today who remember that the origi-
| nal grade Of New Jersey avenue was down
| where the lower floor Of the depot now is.
First B. and o. Station.
| Originally the Baltimore and Ohio had its
| station where the census Office stands. he
tracks ran across the block occupied by
| Thomas w Smiths lumber yard and then
skirted the bank of Tiber creek 1t was
some time in the early fifties-nobody seems
to know just when-that the terminal
showed further up the line and the tracks
were Topped off at New Jersey avenue and
| c street
The following account of how the Penn
| sylvania station came to be erected Is
| given by William Bender Wilson, a railroad
| historian, now deceased:
! ION March g. 1871. Congress granted au-
Virginia avenue between 9th and 7th
| streets, Washington, to which the mayor
and boards of aldermen and common coun-
! Gil assented March 8, 1871. The site not
| being sufficient, a new site at 9Th and B
| streets was selected. the agreement to its
| location being secured from the municipal
authorities May %, 1871, and confirmed by
! Congress May p, 1872 Thus provisions
| were made for a line extending from the
Northern Central railway under Baltimore
and through Washington to the south bank
| of the Potomac.
while this legislation was being Sc
| cured the public mind was being directed
| toward the enterprise. Desperate activity
was displayed by its opponents. but its
| friends met and vanquished them at all
points The battle won, construction pro-
| crossed so rapidly through 1870 that at its
| close the road between Baltimore and
Washington was nearly ready for the
rails
New Road Opened.
| 1t was on July 2, 1872, that the new road
was opened for business. The first station
| at Washington was a very uninviting struc-
| ture of wood, with a platform covered by
| pine shed roof. 1t stood just outside tho
present station. 1t was not until the fol-
| lowing spring that the new stone station
| was completed and ready for occupancy.
| The location of the present building is d.
| rectly in the bed of the old James Creek
| canal and to secure a foundation IT was
necessary to resort to the slow and LABOR.
| iouS process OF sinking pies 10 oep'h VI
! tnlrty-five feet.
J In the early years OF the Baltimore ana
| Potomac's existence 1t had stormy hghI
| for patronage with the old. established
| baltimore and Ohio. Posters got out by the
latter company dubbed the new road the
| "Sewer Route" The public expected as
| good and quick service as was being given
| by the Baltimore and Ohio, but this was
| impossible for several years, owing TO the
| newness of the roadbed
| The Pennsylvania stations chief claim to
| fame is that President Garfield was shot
| in its waiting room. For many years after
| this sad event in 1881 there was star In
where he fell and an explanatory tablet
| on the wall. So many people stopped to
look at the spot, however, that traflc was
blocked and the railroad company was
finally forced to remove the star and tab
let.
May Be Remodeled.
While it seems likely that the Baltimore
and Ohio station will be torn down after
the occupancy of the new station and the
earth will know it more, the chances
are that the building at 9th and streets
| will be remodeled and used for some other
| purpose unless, indeed, 1t cannot be made
| to fall in with the plans of the park COM
| mission for the Improvement OF the Mail
| Ever since Ii was rumored that there
| would be new union station a scheme has
| been in the air to remodel the building for
use as a District National Guard armory.
| There is bill pending in Congress for the
appropriation OF money to put commission
| to work on plans for such an armory. but
nothing has been done regarding site. The
CRYING need of home for the local guard
will doubtless be recognized by Congress In
| the near future and ii is believed TO be
| likely that the Pennsylvania station may
| be utilized. This, however, is mere con-
lecture.
! Seven persons were poisoned by drink
| ing buttermilk at Suffolk Va Three