Buffalo Central Terminal
- CSX Buffalo Terminal Subdivision
- CSX Belt Subdivision
- CSX Erie Subdivision
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The New York Central Terminal, also called Buffalo Central Terminal ( German: Central Station Buffalo ) is a decommissioned passenger and freight station in the east of Buffalo in the State of New York. He served the eponymous New York Central Railroad as a central station for passenger and cargo traffic in the city and was in operation from 1929 to 1979.
After its closure the station changed hands several times its owners. Lack of successful use concepts he was doing but partially broken, exploited and finally abandoned for many years to decay. Since 2003, parts of the reception building to be used at the initiative of a non-profit organization again for cultural purposes.
The station building was built in 1927-1929 in Art Deco style and is one of the latest prestigious station buildings of a private railway company in the United States. Its architectural structure at that time was geared particularly dependent on the operations inside. The terminal was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.
- 4.1 The New York Central Railroad in Buffalo
- 4.2 new station building on the outskirts
- 4.3 decline
- 4.4 Backup and cultural use
- 5.1 Literature
- 5.2 External links
- 5.3 Notes and references
Location
The Central Terminal is located approximately 2.5 miles ( 4 km ) east of the city center (Town Hall ) and about halfway between two arterial roads to the east, Broadway Street to the north and the William Street to the south. North of the railway facilities there is a vast residential area with small-scale development, on the south side connects to a vast area with flat commercial and industrial wasteland. Apart from the railway facilities are available in a wide radius, no significant intra- urban highways or utilities.
The station is located at the intersection of so-called Empire Corridor, the rail link New York City - Albany - Buffalo, with the bypass path Buffalo, the CSX Belt Subdivision or Belt Line. The main strand of the tracks belongs to CSX Buffalo Terminal Subdivision and in this case runs as a part of the corridor in northeast-southwest direction. The railway facilities are dismantled into many parts; However, the site extends still almost beyond its original size of nearly two kilometers in length and about 290 meters in width.
The northeast exit of the station leads to Albany and New York City, the south-west towards the city center. The Belt Line branches off about the middle of the tracks on a track triangle to the north. Behind the southwestern exit branches off the CSX Erie Subdivision to Cleveland and Chicago in southern direction. On the south side of the railway facilities there is a train yard with container loading.
RF and power buildings are on the north side of the railway tracks. The station building ( Main Terminal Building ) is immediately to the west of the railway triangle south-west that follow one after the mail and baggage handling ( Baggage and Mail Building ), the railway post office (U.S. Terminal Railway Post Office Building ), and before that Eilguthalle ( Railway Express Building ). The persons platforms are somewhat settled before the reception building and are separated by the tracks of the Western connecting curve from him. The entrance to the station is done through the residential area on nondescript residential streets.
Architecture
The majority of the buildings were erected a steel skeleton in the Art Deco style with brown brick facades, granite pedestals and ornaments made of sandstone and concrete. The windows were arranged in vertical niches. Except for the Eilguthalle all the buildings date from 1927-30 and were designed by the architect Fellheimer and Wagner. The complex is situated up on parts of the reception building completely empty and is different serious disrepair.
Reception building
The architecturally significant building is the reception building with its octagonal office tower. It is considered the " most outstanding example of Art Deco architecture in its purest form " and is next to City Hall the second significant buildings of its kind in Buffalo.
External appearance
The building has an approximately rectangular in shape with a length of 300 feet ( 91.4 m) and a width of 225 feet ( 68.6 m). Along its longitudinal axis to a centrally located arched roof covers with two large arched windows on the front sides. The east wing has an equally wide arched roof; it crosses the longitudinal roof at right angles and ends with a corresponding arched windows on the north facade. The rest of the building is high on the north side of six, on the south side between two and six floors and has flat roofs. At the northwest corner of the building stands the 20-story, 271 feet ( 82.6 m) high, octagonal office tower up. Its facade tapers in the top half three times.
On the north side of the reception building closes at the level of the first floor of a 150- foot ( 45.7 m) wide and 600 feet ( 182.9 m) long terrace with balustrade. It surrounds the northern half of the building and served as a driveway for cars, taxis and buses; the inputs and outputs of the station are therefore in the first floor of the building. The space below the terrace served as a parking garage and was originally intended to accommodate a turning loop for the tram.
Affairs
The main hall is how the inputs and outputs on the first floor and takes 66 feet wide and 225 feet long, the entire space under the longitudinal barrel roof one. It has a Guastavino barrel vault, which is composed of yellow-brown terracotta tiles; the lower 12 feet ( 3.66 m ) wall height all around are covered with white marble. Inside are some pavilions for ticketing and baggage counter and various stalls, all of which have also white Marmorvertäfelungen and window frames with bronze plating. The floor is made of terrazzo and has four colored geometric patterns.
Extends south parallel to the main hall, the 108 to 59 feet ( 32.9 to 18.0 m) large waiting room. Just like in the main hall of the lower part of the walls is paneled in white marble also here; the end walls are decorated with stucco elements. The ceiling was originally covered in Spanish style and painted with blue and white clouds; it is, however, collapsed a few years ago and therefore no longer receive.
On the other side of the main hall, the 100 to 56 feet ( 30.5 m by 17.0 m) wide, three-part restaurant. Its walls were originally covered with black and gold marble; Moreover, the middle part had two large, u -shaped counters.
The interior of the reception building was kept down to details such as lamps, mailboxes or ventilation grilles consistently in the Art Deco style. Most items however, have been expanded in the aftermath of the set-aside payment of tax liabilities and sold or destroyed by vandalism.
Baggage handling and railway post office
Connects to the mail and baggage handling ( Baggage and Mail Building ) at the southwest corner of the reception building. The five-storey building is 60 feet ( 18.3 m) wide and extends over a length of 350 feet ( 106.7 m) parallel to the railway tracks. Apart from the actual postal and baggage handling on the ground floor above offices were housed in the upper floors. The building has a flat roof and on both sides loading ramps with canopy.
At the baggage check again a few meters back close to the railway post office (U.S. Terminal Railway Post Office Building ). The two-storey low-rise building is of approximately the same length as the baggage handling and possesses only on the side of the track a covered loading dock, but a good 50 meters to the west extends beyond the building and is designed for operation from two sides.
The facades of both low-rise buildings sit in color and design on to the reception building. Some of the window alcoves stand out by parapets, other frame or a higher roofline of the rest of the facade.
Eilguthalle
Southwest of the railway post office is the Eilguthalle ( Railway Express Building ). It extends parallel to the other buildings over 860 feet ( 262 m) in length and 60 feet ( 18.3 m) in width and is offset by about 50 meters to the tracks back. It once served the Railway Express Agency as a trading center. On the street side there is a two storey low rise with through truck loading ramp; on the side of the track is the Wagenhalle, it extends over four loading tracks, along with the associated goods platforms. In terms of platform length of 1,500 meters, it was the largest Güterhalle world. Unlike all the other buildings the Eilguthalle dated already in 1917 and is architecturally less demanding. It is located in a structurally very poor condition; most of the windows and parts of the roof missing, trees growing inside.
Platforms
The seven central platforms are the reception building and moved slightly in the direction of the track triangle. They are aligned with the main strand of the tracks and lie approximately in the middle. The funnel shape of the two curves connecting the platforms with increasing distance will be longer for the reception building.
The platforms were developed originally on a 380 feet ( 115.82 m) long, is housed pedestrian overpass (Train Concourse ). This is aligned with the eastern transverse arch of the reception building, 55 feet ( 16.76 m ) wide and leads across all platforms of time. The section above the connecting curve was removed in the spring of 1982, to expand the loading gauge for double-decker container trains. Since then, platforms and station building are separated.
The platforms in turn extend from the entry in about a 1:2 ratio in western and eastern direction. They are connected with the transfer by registered housed stairs and ramps. They have almost the entire length canopies with rounded ends.
Other buildings
There were originally a number of other, scattered over the railway land premises. These exist today (2008) for the most part no more. These include two signal boxes, a cold store, the Pullman depot, lounges for the train drivers and the heating plant.
The heating plant was about 300 feet (90 m) east of the station building, in the middle of the track triangle. It housed a transformer station and the boiler for steam heating. These were first with coal fired later with oil and had 1,380 kW installed capacity. The building had a square plan on having a side length of about 40 meters. Right in the middle stood a tall chimney up out of the roof. The large, round oil tank next to it is obtained ( 2008) today.
Driveway
The station has two different access routes. The access to the terrace takes place from the west over the extended residential street Paderewski Drive, the Memorial Drive crosses about 200 meters from the train station at a roundabout. The space below the terrace and the outbuildings on the north side of the railway facilities are, however, opened up by the Curtiss Street. This also branches off from Memorial Drive, runs along the back of the outbuildings along, under the main hall, and finally through further along the Belt Line north to the Broadway Street. The space between the roundabout and the reception building is open meadow.
Special
The station had a number then novel features which play a role in later works of Fellheimer and Wagner. These included in particular the separation of traffic by mode of transport and directions as well as the orientation of the premises of the station 's operating processes in the interior. Thus, the clearance should be accelerated and the capacity can be increased.
So the reception building had separated inputs and outputs; the ticket counter and baggage claim were located directly behind the entrance. The output was - relative to the direction of travel of the turning loop on the terrace - behind half of the input, so that taxis and buses could leave before taking up new passengers brought travelers to get off first. Even the waiting room for travelers faced the platforms, while the restaurant was for correspondingly longer waiting times in the back of the building. In addition, travelers had to overcome no stairs from the entrance to the platforms.
For the transport of mail and baggage, there was a separate distribution level underneath the waiting room. She joined directly to the postal and baggage handling, in addition to building and was associated with the luggage counters in the counter area with slides and freight elevators. These resulted in a separate tunnel for luggage carts at the connecting curve and then east through the pedestrian overpass own ramps up on the platforms. Thus, there were separate traffic levels for travelers as well as for mail and baggage, so that their paths did not cross in the building.
Separated were also the access for travelers and suppliers. While the former came over the Paderewski Drive and the terrace into the station, the Curtiss Street was conceived as access for suppliers and staff. The main hall was formed at the same time the height free intersection between the traveler and the delivery traffic.
The station was completed by office space in the tower of the reception building, in order to offset the high operating costs of the facility through rental income may occur. The Buffalo Central Terminal is considered the first application of this so-called " formula " of fur Heimer and Wagner for a successful central station. This approach was taken, for example, when planning the Cincinnati Union Terminal and further refined.
History
The New York Central Railroad in Buffalo
During the 19th century, Buffalo was characterized by strong growth due to its strategic location at the eastern end of the Great Lakes. The construction of several rail lines to New York City, Chicago, Canada, and in the coal fields of the Appalachian Mountains, the City of growing into one of the most important ports, industrial sites and railway hub in the United States. In 1920 Buffalo 500,000 inhabitants and was served by 14 major rail companies, including the New York Central Railroad ( NYC).
The passenger traffic was handled by four large passenger stations in the city. The trains of the New York Central used while the Exchange Street station on the same street in the city center. This station was frequented most by far and over time become much too small. The plant originated in 1855 and was now neither timely nor representative. In particular, the competition possessed now over much more modern and architecturally demanding stations.
New railway station building on the outskirts
Corresponding plans for a new station building, there had been since the turn of the century; but these were initially rejected for economic reasons. Only in 1924, during the Roaring Twenties, the project was revived. The choice ultimately fell on an area east of the city, far from the city center. Because in the city center would not be enough space for the required magnification was available and come the land additionally required far too expensive. In addition, it appeared operationally advantageous, the central train station - as seen from New York - to build to Chicago before the junction of the railway line. This means that the trains would be able to save on the route New York - Chicago the previous time-consuming head making.
Furthermore, the idea may have played a role that the city would continue to grow unabated for decades. The expected number of passengers would have enough traction, so strong to influence the urban development that the new station would soon be surrounded by office buildings.
Although the location of the future station was far away from the downtown widely criticized, it was the lack of suitable alternatives ultimately in these considerations. The groundbreaking ceremony for the new terminal finally took place on March 29, 1926, was opened on 22 June 1929. The station was designed for 200 ( long-distance ) trains and 10,000 travelers daily. The cost was $ 15 million.
Decline
Shortly after the opening, there were increasing signs that the new station was built in the wrong place and much too large. The passenger numbers remained from the beginning up to expectations. In addition, the Great Depression had sales collapse in the autumn of 1929. Also, the Central Terminal of the population has never been accepted as a central station. So it was, for example, no longer connected to the tram network. And from 1952 had Exchange Street on political pressure again be operated over long distances.
On top of that the importance of the railway for passenger resistant declined as a result of growing competition from the car and the airplane since the 1930s. Only the Second World War left the terminal for a few years reach its capacity limits, handle as many troop transports were and gasoline was rationed.
In addition, Buffalo lost with the opening of the Saint Lawrence Seaway in 1959 much of its importance as a trading center. Population, economic strength and volume of traffic fell, which meant further loss of revenue to the railway companies. The train ran for the New York Central increasingly becoming a financial burden.
Once in the 1950s, attempts to sell the terminal, had failed, the handling facilities have been greatly reduced in August 1959 and announced the excess space for rent. As well as this project fizzled, 1966 heating plant, cold store and the depot were canceled to at least save some estate tax.
With the merger of the New York Central with the Pennsylvania Railroad to Penn Central in 1968, the property was transferred to the new company. After its bankruptcy in 1971 took over the newly created Amtrak passenger services in Buffalo and also the ownership of the terminal. In the offices of the Regional Administration of the Conrail pulled a. The passenger service was limited to one or two pairs of trains now daily to Chicago, Detroit, New York and later Niagara Falls.
Because the terminal for the remaining passenger numbers continue was obviously too big and too expensive, Amtrak sought soon to cheaper substitutes. From 1978 the trains stopped to Niagara Falls only to the Exchange Street, and to connect New York - Chicago was founded in the same year, less than 9 km east of the terminal station of the Buffalo - Depew. On October 28, 1979, the last train stopped at the terminal. After that, the platform tracks were dismantled and sold the station still for $ 75,000 to an investor.
However, this had major problems with the rental of office space, for the East Buffalo was now discredited by poverty, migration and high crime and was intentionally avoided. After the Conrail had vacated their offices, he finally gave up in 1986. The building fell into disrepair, were misused as wild dump and populated by homeless people. Furnishings were looted or destroyed. On the platforms, a construction company set up a temporary storage bin.
Backup and cultural use
In 1997, the reception building and postal and baggage handling, finally, for $ 1 at the Central Terminal Restoration Corporation. The non-profit organization admitted to 2003 the wreckage, secured the area with a fence, wrote in the reception building from the roof, and shut the window openings with Plexiglas and plywood. The former waiting room is now partially restored and is used for various cultural events. Guided tours are offered. So far, more than a million dollars has been invested in the building. The cost for the complete renovation would be estimated to amount to 56 million dollars.