Denver Union Station The original structure, erected in 1881 by financier Jay Gould to serve all of "his" railroads that served the Denver area, survives as the center section of the present structure. Though this 1881 structure was devastated by a fire in 1894, the rebuilt structure used the original walls in part, thus preserving the heritage of the station.
One of the unique aspects of this station was that for many years it regularly served not only "Standard Gauge" railroads (4' 8 1/2"), it also served the 36" gauge Colorado Southern Railroad. While this arrangement existed all the station's trackage had a third rail inside the outer two rails. The Colorado Southern is no more. It eventually became an all-standard gauge line that was affiliated with the Chicago Burlington and Quincy Railroad (The Burlington Route). However, some Colorado and Souther equipment can still be found at the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden CO.
Denver Union Station is still an active station today, serving Amtrak's California Zephyr. In addition, the Ski Train that operates from Denver to Winter Park also departs from here. Finally, if and when the route from El Paso to Denver by way of Albequerque NM ever takes shape, it too will call at DUT. Finally the station is also the end of the line for the "Light Rail" system in Denver. While these activities do not generate the constant flow of people traffic of previous years, nevertheless, at times, it is one busy place! And it appears slated to be even busier!
2 comments:
WOW. This looks really cool. I have never been to the Denver Union Station, but seeing how neat it looks, I want to go now!
I recommend you arrive by rail, on Amtrak's California Zephyr. IMHO the Zephyr is Amtrak's most scenic train, and I have been on most of them. Particularly the section west of Denver (and this station). Good luck and happy travels.
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