Saturday, March 10, 2018

Evansville, IN: C&EI/Evansville & Terre Haute Depot

(Satellite, back then 8th Street went through this area and Main Street also went through with a bend at 8th Street. Some of the parking lot to the northwest had the tracks that fed the depot, freight house, and team tracks.)

A remnant of the track that used to feed this station area still exists to provide newsprint to the Evansville Courier & Press. Judging by the rather recent refurbishing of some street crossings, this rail service may still be active.

The original Evansville & Terre Haute Depot was built by 1884. The replacement was built in 1907. It was abandoned in 1935 when L&N forced the C&EI to move to their station. The building was repurposed as a USO Club in 1943 and then a community center. It was torn down and the streets removed in 1965 to make room for the Civic Center.


Photo via info via map and photo gallery
Community Center 
Located at Eighth and Main Sts.; originally a railroad depot and later USO headquarters during World War II; photo dated July 1964

Chicago & Eastern Illinois Railroad Historical Society posted two photos with the comment:
This is a photo of the Evansville C&EI depot at the height of the Ohio River flood in January, 1937. The station was built by the Evansville & Terre Haute Railroad in 1907 at the corner of 8th and Main streets in downtown Evansville. The station had been closed in July, 1935 when all trains began running through to the L&N station on the west side of town. The C&EI forwarded many trains to the L&N back then. When the river flooded the L&N station in 1937, the C&EI station was reopened briefly because C&EI trains were the only ones that could get into town. The C&EI freight station is visible farther down 8th St.
Chicago & Eastern Illinois Railroad Historical Society At its height the flood covered at least 500 city blocks with anywhere from a few inches to nearly eight feet of icy water. Backed up sewers and creeks contributed to a lot of the flooding.
Brian Vieck Copied from this site: http://www.celebrateevansville.com/four-freedoms/
The limestone columns, which were originally built in 1882 to adorn the entrance of the C&EI Railroad Depot in Evansville were salvaged in 1961 at the Depot's demolition and given a new purpose 15 years later.

David Cantrell Track Map from Illinois Central, 1944, https://www.mayberrytownship.net/.../evan.../evansville1.jpg (fixed URL)
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[Note that this means at least eight city blocks were under water in 1937!]

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C&EIRHS commented on its post
The depot was built in 1907 not 1882. The columns were salvaged in 1966 when the depot was demolished for construction of the City/County complex. Main Street was permanently closed at 7th Street for the new complex.

Chicago & Eastern Illinois Railroad Historical Society posted two photos with the comment:
This is the Evansville & Terre Haute passenger station at 8th and Main in downtown Evansville. It is shown on an 1884 Sanborn Map. It was replaced by a more impressive station in 1907 retaining the train shed over the tracks. The C&EI closed the station in July, 1935 when all passenger trains began using the L&N passenger station on Fulton Avenue.
George C. Brunner Columns are now the Four Freedoms Monument on the riverfront.
Dennis DeBruler https://www.google.com/.../data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4...
Art Wallis There is a good deal of circumstantial evidence to suggest that this decision was forced on them by the L&N.
Chicago & Eastern Illinois Railroad Historical Society It was
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1960s from Photo Gallery, Source: Willard Library - VC 34

1910 Sanborn Map from Photo Gallery

Some of the photos that were here have been moved to the Union Station notes.


2 comments:

  1. Interesting article, appreciate the content. The Evansville Willard Library has new aerial photos from the 1937 flood located at
    https://www.willard.lib.in.us/online_resources/photography_gallery_detail.php?ID=63.

    Downtown railroad buildings flooded in this photo:
    https://www.willard.lib.in.us/assets/photos/large/Misc842.jpg

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for the kind words and information.

      I found a photo of the L&N depot yesterday, so I revisited my Evansville notes. I discovered I had a serious error in these notes --- the Union Station photos were of the L&N station rather than this one. I have created some notes for that station and moved those photos to that post.
      https://towns-and-nature.blogspot.com/2018/03/evansville-il-l-depot.html

      That collection is a wealth of information. I have just poked around a little and I have already learned that International Harvester made their refrigerators in Evansville. The second URL produces a 404 response. But I have determined that it is currently the fifth photo in
      https://willard.lib.in.us/research/archives/historic-photo-collection/flood-1937-aerial-views-evansville?page=0

      Again, thanks for the information.

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