Eastern Stations

he Pennsylvania Railroad completed this Queen Anne-style train station in 1887. Now known as the Harrisburg Transportation Center (HTC), Amtrak uses part of the main floor for its passenger operations. The Harrisburg Redevelopment Authority leases the rest of the building from Amtrak. The station’s distinctive mansard roof was reconstructed in 1905 after a serious fire the previous year. In 1922, more than 100 trains arrived and departed here each day. This is one of the few railroad stations in the United States that still maintains a train shed above the track and retains a red brick exterior. The HTC is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is designated as a National Engineering Landmark. The current station is the third train station on the same site. The first was built in 1837, which gave way to the second in 1857. The facility is a three-level structure, with the lower level serving as a terminal for Greyhound and Trailways buses. Capitol Area Transit (CAT), the city’s local bus provider, also serves the facility at street level.

Great American Stations

lizabethtown is a station stop for the Keystone Service that connects Philadelphia and the state capital at Harrisburg, as well as for the Pennsylvanian that runs between New York City and Pittsburgh. Frequent service throughout the day on the Keystone Corridor makes Elizabethtown a popular boarding point for commuters headed to Harrisburg, which is only 20 minutes away by rail.

Closed in 1977, the station building sat abandoned for more than three decades as town officials labored to raise funds and plan for its rehabilitation. While the building was shuttered, Amtrak riders continued to use the platforms to access the trains; unfortunately, the original passenger shelters that were designed to complement the station fell into disrepair and had to be removed. Rehabilitation work was completed in early 2011, and on May 4th, a ribbon cutting ceremony was held to celebrate the station’s rebirth. A wide variety of town and regional transportation officials were in attendance. The Elizabethtown station now includes a waiting room and restrooms, as well as Quik-Trak machines from which customers may purchase tickets. The remainder of the station is occupied by the local Chamber of Commerce.

The improved transportation facility is envisioned as an anchor of a new mixed-use zoning district in the southern portion of the borough. The area’s master plan calls for a future network of pedestrian and bicycle pathways that will connect the station with downtown to the north. Sycamore Square, a real estate development project, has also been completed within walking distance of the train station on the campus of the Masonic Village, a retirement community located south of the tracks.

The Elizabethtown depot first opened to the public in 1915, and was built by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR). Strategically sited with entrances on the north and south sides of the embankment that supports the railroad right-of-way, the station easily served residents of the Masonic Homes and the town. Visually, the depot clearly references the architecture of the nearby Masonic Grand Lodge Hall which was designed in the Collegiate Gothic style by the well known Philadelphia-based firm of Zantzinger, Borie & Medary. The cornerstone of the Grand Lodge Hall was laid in 1911; two years later, the architects were hired by the PRR to draw up plans for an improved passenger station.

Great American Stations

he Lancaster station, built by the Pennsylvania Railroad, opened in 1929 in the northern section of the city, about a mile from downtown. Constructed of red brick, the classical revival building features a center block flanked by recessed wings. The center block includes the main entrance at the ground level, which is covered by a glass and metal marquee to protect passengers from inclement weather. On the second level, concrete columns frame three tall, rounded windows, while the parapet above showcases a clock.

Inside, the main waiting room features high ceilings, hanging Art Deco light fixtures and a skylight that allows natural light to flood the space. Antique wooden benches line the lobby, while a staircase leads passengers down to the platform level. In recognition of its contributions to the city’s development and its intact historic fabric, the station is listed as a contributing resource to the Lancaster City National Register Historic District.

Great American Stations

hiladelphia's famed 30th Street Station was built between 1929 and 1933 by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) to replace the Broad Street Station that had become much too congested to support the city's growth. Designed by Alfred Shaw of Graham, Anderson, Probst and White, the enormous, eight-story steel frame building has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1978. It is an example of some of the railroad industry's most monumental construction and is architecturally interesting for its use, adaptation and transformation of the Neoclassical style into a more modern, streamlined Art Deco style. The exterior of the building features typical neoclassical elements such as seventy-one-foot-high Corinthian columns forming impressive porticoes on the east and west facades, rendered in Alabama limestone.

The interior of the station, meanwhile, is notable and unique for both its stylistic and functional elements. The main concourse measures 290 by 135 feet with a 95-foot-high coffered ceiling and beautiful Art Deco chandeliers. It is lined by gilded and ornamented columns that contrast with the more austere, classical look of the façade as well as by five-story-high cathedral-like windows. The floor, made of Tennessee marble, completes the sense of opulence of this impressive room.

Great American Stations