Towns and Nature: Philadelphia, PA: 1881,1893-1953 Pennsy Broad Street Station and Headquarters

Saturday, March 9, 2024

Philadelphia, PA: 1881,1893-1953 Pennsy Broad Street Station and Headquarters

(HAER; Satellite, the land has been repurposed)

This station replaced the 1876 32nd & Market Street Stations to be closer to downtown, and it was replaced by the West Philadelphia Station and then 30th Street Station for through trains and the Suburban Station for commuter trains. Because of the depression and WWII, this station was not removed until 1953.

While studying the Reading Station, I noticed on the topo map copied below that there was a station on the north half of the west side of the city square. This must be that one.

Remember When: Pennsylvania posted

Market Street’s role as a transportation artery was cemented by the construction of the massive Gothic Revival Broad Street Station in 1881.

(PhillyHistory.org)

Ed Johnson shared

The above photo was the original 1881 depot. The 1893 expanded version had even more gothic doodads on it.

HistoricalPix
"Broad Street Station in Philadelphia, originally designed by Wilson Brothers & Company in 1881, was a pioneering steel-framed building with masonry curtain walls. It underwent significant expansion by architect Frank Furness in 1892-93, including a new train shed with the world's largest single-span roof. The station served as the headquarters of the Pennsylvania Railroad until the 1930s when it was relocated. Unfortunately, the train shed was destroyed by fire in 1923, and the station was demolished in 1953."

Historic Philadelphia USA posted

Old Broad Street Railroad Station, Philadelphia, (1935)

In 1935, the Old Broad Street Railroad Station stands as a testament to Philadelphia’s rich railroading history. The station, with its grand arched windows and intricate architectural detailing, reflects the significance of rail travel in an era when trains were the primary mode of intercity transportation. By this time, the station has become a Philadelphia landmark, recognized for its role in connecting the city to other major urban centers along the East Coast. The platform areas are busy with travelers and railway workers, and the sound of arriving and departing trains fills the air. This building is more than just a station; it represents the golden age of rail travel and the movement of people, goods, and ideas across the country.

1949 Philadelphia Quad @ 24,000 via Dennis DeBruler

A different exposure and cropping of the above photo used by HistoricalPix.

LC-D4-500683 [P&P]

Ed Johnson posted
Pennsylvania Railroad, Philadelphia

Alex Mary posted
This is what the west side of Philadelphia looked like from the top of City Hall's tower in 1900.
Jim Kelling shared
Philadelphia Broad Street Station with Trainshed (right)

𝗥𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻: 𝗣𝗲𝗻𝗻𝘀𝘆𝗹𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗮 posted
Broad Street Station • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania RR • 1906!

Sam Wong: What street is that?

Richard Ginsberg: Sam Wong Pennsylvania Ave, which became JFK Blvd.

John L Garcia shared

explorepahistory, Courtesy of the Pennsylvania State Archives
"Constructed in 1881, Philadelphia's Broad Street Station was the Pennsylvania Railroad's corporate headquarters as well as its largest station."

Old Images of Philadelphia posted

Interior of Train Shed at Broad Street Station.

Halftone reproduction of photograph showing the interior of the train shed looking east toward the headhouse at Broad and Market Streets. The train shed was designed by Wilson Brothers Company, and constructed in 1892. It had the largest single span of any station roof in the world - 304 feet. It was 591 feet long and 112 feet high. On June 11th, 1923 the train shed was destroyed by fire, and again in 1943. The station and its long elevated stone track bed (the "Chinese Wall") remained until 1953. This photo was taken in 1903.

Ed Johnson shared

RealClearHistory
"One of the largest and busiest trains stations in the country, Broad Street Station was also headquarters of the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), which was one of the world's largest corporations, with more than 200,000 employees. In the 1870s, the PRR's primary depot in Philadelphia was at 32nd and Market Streets, but it wanted a venue closer to the center of the city....In 1910, there were 578 arrivals and departures daily, more than one-tenth of all the PRR's trains."
The expansion increased the station from four tracks to sixteen tracks and a train shed that was 306' (93m) wide, 591' (180m) long and up to 100' (30m) tall. The train shed of the nearby Reading Depot was 300' (91m) wide, thus the additional 6' (1.8m) to be larger.
[Actually, the expansion was from 8 to 16 tracks because there had been two 4-track train sheds. [HiddenCityPhila]]

This appears to be a collorization of the above photo.

ebay

And a different colorization.

ebay

Before expansion:

PhillyHistory, 1882

After expansion:

PhillyHistory, 1896

PhillyHistory via HiddenCityPhila
The elevated viaduct between the Schuylkill River and the station had just the arch openings needed for the numbered streets that went under it. This viaduct became known as the "Chinese Wall," and it was an impediment to the economic development of the west side of downtown Philadelphia.

Old Images of Philadelphia posted
16th and Market Streets - The Pennsylvania Railroad Viaduct (Chinese Wall). March 23rd, 1912. - Image source: Philadelphia City Archives.

"The PRR shed was destroyed in a fire in 1923; it was one of the biggest fires the city had seen, but no lives were lost and service was restored nine days later." [RealClearHistory]

Library Company of Philadelphia
"The Broad Street Station fire, started Monday, June 11, 1923 by a short circuited cable, was at the time considered one of the worst fires in the city's history with an estimated $1,500,000 worth of damage. By the second day, despite the fire continuing to burn in areas, 2000 laborers began to clear debris and set up umbrella shelters to prepare for the station's reopening at the end of that week."

Sissy Mcsis E. McCarthy posted
Location the Broad Street terminal (Pennsylvania railroad the demolition) 1952
John L Garcia shared
Jonathan Dandridge: 30th Street Station made a lot more sense for PRR as most trains were through trains and could pass right through 30 th St whereas Broad St. was a stub end terminal so trains continuing to Washington had to back out or change ends.