First Sketch of New Wabash Depot To Be Erected Here in the Spring
The depot as seen from the tracks
In less than six weeks the Wabash will begin to make arrangements for building its new station in this city, and the present occupants of the site will move to other quarters. This is the first picture of the building published in Fort Wayne, and is made from the architect's drawings in the offices of the chief engineer. This is a copy of the general plans of half a dozen depots to be put up by Wabash in the coming year, and minor changes will be made to comply with local conditions. The sketch represents the north side of the building, and gives an idea of how it will look from the tracks. The construction will be of steel, bricks and stone, and the roof designs are elaborate. The depot will extend from Calhoun to Harrison street, and the main entrance will be at the middle block, on Grand street.
GRADING OF GRAND ST. INTERFERES WITH WORK ON NEW WABASH DEPOT
The men in charge of the work at the new Wabash passenger station on Grand street, very much dislike the present conditions of Grand street, and Superintendent P. W. Wooley, of the Continental Construction Co., stated yesterday, that if the street grading contractors continue to tear up that street much farther, work on the new depot will be temporarily abandoned, as it will be impossible to get the material on the ground.
The work of excavating the Harrison subway has been nearly completed and the Moellering Construction Co., which is doing the work, has started to grade Grand street, which will be graded down so as to form a perfectly level street, connecting Harrison and Calhoun streets, just south of the subways.
A petition of the Continental people for permission to place a temporary track from the Wabash freight yards to the new depot site to facilitate the handling of bullding material was recently turned down by the board of public works, and the local representatives of the company state that they are "certainly up against it." Ed Lennon, of the board of publio works, when asked about the situation yesterday evening stated that as long as the Wabash contractors have only a few men at work at the new depot the city could not afford to have their work interfere with the street grading work at that point as it is the intention of the board of works to have the Harrison subway opened for traffic as soon as possible. The work of grading at that point probably will be completed the latter part of this week, and the men and teams will then immediately be taken to the Broadway subway, to complete the excavation at that point.
Work of placing the concrete foundation for the pavement at the Fairfleld avenue subway of the Wabash, where that company is now engaged in completing the superstructure, will be started early this morning, and the subway will paved and open for traffic within a week or ten days. The last piece of concrete slabbing was placed yesterday afternoon and nearly all the piling has been removed.
Structure is a Great Advance on the Antiquated Depot Which Has Long Been in Use.
The biggest event in local railroad circles tomorrow will be the opening of the new Wabash depot to the public. The opening will occur at 7 a. m. and at that time the old depot will be closed, presumably never to be reopened for traffic. At least that is what the local traveling public hopes.
The new structure is a vast improvement over the old depot. It is mmodernly equipped throughout and has a bigger general waiting room and bigger rooms for the men and women. It has many of latest equipments found in the leading stations of the country. The plan of the new depot is similar to that of the old. The ticket office and dispatcher's office are located in the center of the second floor facing the tracks. The baggage room is at the west end and the general waiting room at the east end. Stairways at either end of the depot give access to the train levels.
With the opening of the Wabash depot it is expected that business on Grand street will show a big spurt. Already the street has been vastly improved by the construction of new fronts for the store buildings on that street.
Briefly shows the Fort Wayne Wabash depot at the beginning of this video with a roundhouse at the end.
We see some pretty old footage of the Wabash & The Erie Railroad in this clip from the Green Frog Productions show "Classic Steam of the 1920s through 1940s" https://rfd.video/Steam2040
We see some pretty old footage of the Wabash & The Erie Railroad in this clip from the Green Frog Productions show "Classic Steam of the 1920s through 1940s" Classic Steam of the 1920s through 1940s
Wabash steam locomotive no. 534/Lake Erie & Fort Wayne no. 1 October, 1956 finds LE&FW no. 1 switching the city steel...
Wabash steam locomotive no. 534/Lake Erie & Fort Wayne no. 1
October, 1956 finds LE&FW no. 1 switching the city steel plants at Taylor street. The One Spot was retired to Sweeney Park a year later and donated to the Society in 1984 for preservation.
Our Throwback Thursday post is courtesy of our friends over at the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society. Check out the Wabash Steam Locomotive No. 534/ Lake Erie & Fort Wayne No. 1 making her way up Washington St. during the 1950's where she was placed on display in Swinney Park, until being donated and lovingly restored by the local railroad historical society.
Gift Locomotive in the
Allen County Public Library Digital Collections at the
Allen County Public Library. Description: Gift locomotive arrives in Fort Wayne. The one time Wabash Engine was built by American Loco Company at Schenectady, NY in 1906 and used by Wabash Railroad till 1952, then it was transferred here for use by the Lake Erie & Ft. Wayne, a local switch line. Engine and tender on display in Swinney Park. Date: 5/8/1957. Over a dozen more Wabash Engine photos are in the library collection.
Following three years of meticulous restoration work by our volunteers, our century-old Wabash Railroad caboose has been completed! 90% of the caboose was replaced and the results are stunning. In Project Manager David DePanicis' own words, "rebuilding a caboose is a lot like building a house with your best friends" and we couldn't help but agree. Thanks to our dedicated members and supporters for bringing this historic piece of Fort Wayne railroading back to life.
Wabash Railroad. The Lake Erie, Wabash and St. Louis Railroad built this line from Toledo through Fort Wayne in the 1850's and it ran parallel to the Wabash & Erie Canal, passing through Woodburn and New Haven. For awhile, the Wabash used the Eel River Railroad between Logansport and Butler to get to Detroit. When the Wabash was no longer allowed to use the Eel River Railroad they built their own line between New Haven and Butler, completed in 1902. The Wabash depot in Fort Wayne was between Calhoun and Harrison St. on the south side of the tracks. It was torn down many years ago but one of the old stairways up to the platform still stands. The Wabash line today is Norfolk Southern's Huntington District and uses the "new" section between Butler and New Haven. The original Wabash line east of New Haven is the Norfolk Southern Woodburn Branch up to Woodburn. East of Woodburn it is operated by the Maumee & Western Railroad. Copied from Fort Wayne Historical Aspects on The Fort Wayne Railfan.
a brief notice in Dawson's Daily News of Fort Wayne noted his passing: "The Hon. Abe Lincoln and wife came from the west this morning at 1 o'clock, on the Toledo, Wabash and Western Railroad, and changing cars at this city, went east." Copied from 'Ole Abe' rides the rails under the title: Old train stations sadly reflect Fort Wayne's past By MICHAEL HAWFIELD from the archives of The News-SentinelCityscapes - People & Places series of articles from the archives of
The News-Sentinel newspaper. See our February 23, 1860 Timeline for more information.
Wabash Depot - Grand Street at Harrison and Calhoun Streets
Wabash: The Lake Erie, Wabash and St. Louis Railroad built a line from Toledo through Fort Wayne in the 1850's and it ran parallel to the Wabash & Erie Canal, passing through Woodburn and New Haven. For awhile, the Wabash used the Eel River Railroad between Logansport and Butler to get to Detroit. When the Wabash was no longer allowed to use the Eel River Railroad they built their own line between New Haven and Butler, completed in 1902. The Wabash depot in Fort Wayne on Grand Street between Calhoun and Harrison Streets, located on the south side of the tracks was torn down in the 1980s. One of the old stairways up to the platform still stands. The Wabash line today is Norfolk Southern's Huntington District and uses the "new" section between Butler and New Haven. The original Wabash line east of New Haven is the Norfolk Southern Woodburn Branch up to Woodburn. East of Woodburn it is operated by the Maumee & Western Railroad, a short-line carrier. It included A photo of the Wabash yard being built in Fort Wayne, Indiana in the early 1900s. The Round House is on the left. Copied from The History of Heartland Lodge 6760
One of the many new murals going up in Fort Wayne is this one by Jeremy Stroup at the corner of South Calhoun and Grand Streets. I’m digging the nature theme. Rachel Von Stroup
One of the many new murals going up in Fort Wayne is this one by Jeremy Stroup at the corner of South Calhoun and Grand Streets. I’m digging the nature theme. Rachel Von Stroup
ca. 1960 > 2024: Grand St., between Harrison & Calhoun Streets, where the Wabash Railway Depot (later known as the Norfolk & Western Station) once stood; and where scrub trees now grow between the Nickel Plate(?) Railroad Elevation and the brick-paved street. (vintage photo courtesy ACPL)
New Havenites, both young and old, took a step back in time Friday evening for a look into the city’s transportation history at the long awaited opening of the restored Wabash Railroad depot on State Street. ... Inside, the depot looks pretty much as it did when it was built in the 1880s. The freight area was left rough, while the waiting room and station master’s office have been painted a yellow similar to its original color. The main exception, of course, is that the depot now has insulation, ceiling fans, heating and air conditioning, a handicap-accessible ramp and guard rail. A unisex restroom has replaced the old “indoor outhouse.”
Designed to handle passengers and freight, the west end served passengers, the east was for freight with a station master’s office separating the two areas. The depot last served New Haven rail travelers going east to Toledo and west through Fort Wayne to St. Louis in 1964. It was shuttered and left to endure weather extremes, natural deterioration and vandalism until 1988 when NHAHA acquired the deed from Norfolk & Western Railroad, thus saving it from demolition.
Copied from Ribbon cut on refurbished 1880s Wabash Railroad depot in New Haven by Rod King of The News-Sentinel Saturday, December 8, 2012.
Discussed in Indiana Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology, “Wabash Railroad Depot,” Discover Indiana, accessed December 17, 2022, https://publichistory.iupui.edu/items/show/268.
