Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-11-24
new UNION STATION
PalatiaI Portal Now Entrance
to Washington.
ALL ROADS ARE USING 1T
Cost Of Whole Improvement Put at
$20,O00,0oo.
LARGEST CoNC0URsE IN WORLD
Pennsylvania Line Moved in Just
Week Ago-Arrangements
for Visitors.
LARGEST C0NCOURSE IN WORLD

Visitors to WASHINGTON can now enter
the city through a portal worthy of the
capital Of the nation. the great Union
station. into which the Pennsylvania rail-
way and allied roads moved last Sunday
November II. and which the Baltimore
and Ohio road has been occupying since
October %
The building of this great terminal was
made possible by the cooperation of the
government with the railways, with the
intention of substituting for the two old
stations which had long been inadequate
In every way a structure commensurate
with the dignity of the city.
The total cost of the structure and ap-
proaches is estimated at 100000 OO The
roads entering II are the Pennsylvania,
the Baltimore and Ohio. the Philadelphia,
Washington and Baltimore, the Southern,
the Chesapeake and Ohio. the Atlantic
Coast Line. the Seaboard Air Line and the
Richmond. Fredericksburg and Potomac.
Stations Dimensions.
Situated at an elevation of about sixty
feet above tide and with a gently-sloping
plaza and approaches to insure perfect
directly facing the Capitol and the new
Senate office building and is within a
few minutes walk of either. The station
site before the work of construction was
commenced was low and fill of about
SsO.o cubic yards was necessary in start
ing the Improvement.
The station building proper. which Is
built Of white granite from Vermont is
$50 feet 10 inches in length and 21O feet
inches in width. and the general height
OF the building varies from % feet, in the
east and west wings, to 120 feet in the
main waiting room The main entrance,
leading into the general waiting room, is
through three gracefully designed arches,
90 feet in height. The general waiting
room Is one OF the finest and most COM
modious in the country and is 900 feet
long by 100 feet wide. The height of
the roof is about 40 feet and is beauti-
fully decorated with sunken panels or
Golfers. Plenty of light will be supplied
in this room through circular window
at each end. 75 feet in diameter, and five
semi-circular windows on each end. 80
feet in diameter. The waiting room is
also equipped with telephone and tele-
graph booths.
Main Dining Hall.
To the east of this general waiting room
Is located the main dining room, contain
ing 6.456 square feet of space. This din
Ing room Is very spacious in appearance,
beautifully decorated with marble columns
and mural decorations. This dining room
will make the finest and most elaborate
banquet room in Washington, and it is
calculated that more than 1000 people can
be accommodated in 1t at one time.
thoroughly modern and well-adapted
lunchroom will be operated in connection
with the dining room
To the east of the dining room, lunch
room and women's waiting rooms and in
the east wing of the building is the state
reception suite and Presidents room, with
a private carriageway leading to it. The
state suite. which is for the use of the
President of the United States. foreign
diplomats or official parties departing
from or arriving at the station, is new
departure in station building. The main
reception room of this suite contains
total area of 2.13O square feet, and the
general layout of this suite is such that
trains may be reached without coming in
contact with the public.
Driveway at West End.
At the extreme west end of the station
Is located carriage driveway for use of
the general public and from which en-
trance is directly into the ticket corridor.
In this ticket corridor, which is 101 feet
long by 81 feet wide. will be located seven
ticket booths and the baggage-checking
counters, with the smoking room and
package room adjacent.
The terminal offices will be located on
the second floor of the building and on the
third floor are the trainmen's clubrooms,
library dornitories, etc. and branch of
the Railroad Y. NJ c. A.
All the woodwork of the station, includ-
ing the suites of offices for use of the
terminal officers. ETC.. is very artistic and
is solid mahogany. All booths counters.
seats, etc, will be of this material and
the woodwork throughout will be Of the
best.
Largest Concourse.
The passenger concourse, which extends
the entire length Of the station on the
north side. and which is longer than the
Capitol building, is by far the largest of
its kind ever built. 1t is, in fact, the
largest room under a single roof in the
world. The concourse contains 1880
square feet, as against 1890 feet in the
Grand Central station. New York, and
5S,52S feet in the concourse of the Penn
sylvania terminal under construction in
New York. An idea of the accommoda-
tons afforded in this concourse will be
had when it is known that practically the
entire United States Army could wait in
this station at one time.
Leading off from this concourse are the
entrances to the thfrty-three passenger
tracks. These tracks are In the neighbor-
hood of 200 feet In length and 1t is esti-
mated that on special occasions, such as
handling Inauguration crowds, etc, two
trains could be run in on each Of them,
or a total Of about sixty-six trains.
The ornamental ironwork. both inside
and outside Of the new station. is of the
finest and best workmanship. Instead of
being nodded in sand, as is customary in
the manufacture of this material. all the
ironwork used In decorating the station
was nodded in plaster. with the result
that 1t has much smoother surface and
the detail work of the decorative IRON
work is much better brought out.
In the station is also located a mortuary
chapel for use of funeral parties waiting
for trains, access to which can easily be
had from the chapel without contact with
other passengers.
branch police station will also be es-
tablished in the station and have ample
detention facilities.
Thirty-Three Passenger Tracks.
Another departure from the general GUS
tom In station building was made in erect.