Towns and Nature: Chicago, IL Depot: Lost 59th/Wentworth "L" Station on the Green Line (BoB)

Tuesday, December 1, 2020

Chicago, IL Depot: Lost 59th/Wentworth "L" Station on the Green Line (BoB)

BoB = Bridge on Bridge so that later I can find these more easily.

I normally don't pay attention to "L" stations because there are so many of them in Chicago. But there is so much history in these photos, I had to dig deeper. Not only did the interstate highways kill most carload traffic for the railroads, the Dan Ryan accelerated the disinvestment of the south side. The housing projects that have since been torn down were apart of this "urban renewal" effort.

William Shapotkin posted three photos with the comment:

Before, During and After. We are on the platform of the (now closed) station at 59th/Wentworth on the ENGLEWOOD 'L' (now part of what CTA calls the "GREEN LINE") looking west. This is what the world looked like before, during and after construction of the Dan Ryan Expressway. Aside from the 'L' structure, the only other constant is the spire of (what is today known as) the Chicago Embassy Church -- located N/W corner of 59h and Princeton (at right).
All views look west off the west end of the N/B platform of the station and all taken by the late William C Hoffman.
[Photo specific comments have been moved to caption the appropriate photos.]

1
A /B trn of 4000-series cars approaching the station. At the time there was a neighborhood below the 'L," with the usual assortment of houses, garages and back yards. September 28, 1952. wch 623

2
"Urban Removal" has taken place and excavation for the expressway has begun. November 24, 1961. wch 626
Richard L. White: This is one of the elevated trains that I operated in the 1979’s. That is the Dan Ryan expressway to the left below and Saint Martin Church to the right. I’m headed into 59th and Wentworth Station.
[St. Martin de Porres was the name for the Chicago Embassy Church when it was still owned by the Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago. But the Chicago Embassy Church has been foreclosed so the future of this historic building is now uncertain. [PreservationChicago]]

3
Although "not quite ready for prime time," construction of the expressway is well underway and the present-day supports for the 'L' structure over the expressway are in-place. September 14, 1962. By-the-way, construction of the DAN RYAN 'L' (today's "RED LINE"), located in median of the expressway, would not begin for a number of years yet. That line would not open for service for another seven years hence, on September 28, 1969. wch 627

Secret Chicago posted
Chicago sunsets

When I first looked at this view, it struck me that the brown bridge was a bridge to nowhere. Then I realized that it is a bridge holding a bridge. It is the green beams we see in the third photo. I can't believe how little traffic is on the interstate. When I used to drive this in the late 1960s, it was never this empty during daylight. I checked the date of capture. It was Jul 2019, so this traffic is not impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Street View

I fired up the time machine of old aerial photos to look for the station. I added a yellow rectangle to highlight what I believe was a waiting room for the inbound passengers. (Outbound passengers don't need a waiting room because they just leave to go home.)

1938 Aerial Photo from ILHAP (Click the photo for full resolution.)

1938 Aerial Photo from ILHAP plus paint

When I saw it was just west of Wentworth, I tried a street view from that street. That is when I noticed that the "foundation" for the waiting room is still attached to the original structure. I also noticed the strange construction of the piers for the new support structure. When I had another look at Photo 2, I realized these piers are pilings that were driven into the ground before the excavation was done. After the dirt was removed, they added diagonal members to the piles to turn them into piers. Photo 2 also gives perspective on how much dirt had to be excavated to build I-90+94. No doubt, the building of the interstates in the 1960s accelerated the development and/or growth of excavators, haul trucks, dozers, scrappers, ready-mix trucks, etc.