Atlanta Union Station (1930)

Union Station
Inter-city rail
Union Station in 1946.
History
Opened	1930
Closed	1971 (demolished 1972)
Services
Preceding station Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Following station Terminus AB&C Atlanta  – Waycross Ben Hill toward Waycross Preceding station Georgia Railroad Following station Terminus Main Line Decatur toward Augusta Preceding station Louisville and Nashville Railroad Following station Marietta toward Cincinnati Cincinnati – Atlanta Terminus Marietta toward Knoxville Knoxville – Atlanta Marietta toward Louisville Louisville – Atlanta Preceding station Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway Following station Bolton toward Memphis Main Line Terminus

The Union Station built in 1930 in Atlanta was the smaller of two principal train stations in downtown, Terminal Station being the other (the latter served Southern Railway, Seaboard Air Line, Central of Georgia (including the Nancy Hanks to Savannah), and the Atlanta and West Point). It was the third "union station" or "union depot" (usage varied in the 19th century), succeeding the 1853 station, burned in mid-November 1864 when Federal forces left Atlanta for the March to the Sea, and the 1871 station.

Overview

The station was located over the tracks between Forsyth and Spring Streets, three blocks west and one block south of the predecessor union stations. ^[1]

The site is the block immediately west of Five Points MARTA station.

Opening on April 18, 1930, the third Union Station served the Georgia Railroad, Atlantic Coast Line (previously the Atlanta, Birmingham and Coast Railroad), and Louisville and Nashville (previously the Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway). ^[1] It replaced earlier stations on the same site. ^[2]

Major trains and destinations:

• Atlantic Coast Line -in partnership with L&N:
  • The Dixie Flagler – Chicago, via Chattanooga, TN, Nashville, TN and Evansville, IN; continuing south to Jacksonville and Miami, FL
  • The Dixie Flyer – Chicago, via Chattanooga, TN, Nashville, TN and Evansville, IN; continuing south to Jacksonville and Tampa, FL; shortened in 1965 to an Atlanta to Jacksonville ACL route. ^[3]
• Georgia Railroad:
  • Trains to Augusta, GA for connecting trains to Atlantic Coast Line Railroad service (e.g., Palmetto ) and to Southern Railway service ( Aiken-Augusta Special )
• Louisville and Nashville: ^[4]
  • The Flamingo – Cincinnati, via Knoxville, TN; continuing south to Jacksonville, FL, via Albany
  • The Georgian – Chicago, via Nashville and Evansville
  • The Southland - Chicago, via Cincinnati, OH, Knoxville, TN; continuing south to Macon, then branching to various points in Florida. This train traveled to Terminal Station before going south to Trilby and Florida.

Additionally, the Georgia Railroad operated local service between Atlanta and Augusta.

After the tenant railroads of Union Station had discontinued all their passenger trains (the last such train operated on April 30, 1971, the day before Amtrak came into existence), ^[2] demolition started in August 1971, ^[4] and the station was razed in 1972. ^{[3] [5] [6]}

Remnants of the platform may be seen behind the Atlanta Journal-Constitution building although construction of Underground Atlanta and MARTA largely obliterated the site.

There have been plans to resurrect Union station with another intermodal facility, but they have not gotten past the proposal phase. ^[6] The Atlanta area is currently served by the Peachtree station by Amtrak. ^[3]

References

1. Prince, Richard E. (2001). Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis Railway: History and Steam Locomotives. Indiana University Press. p. 66. ISBN   9780253339270 . Retrieved August 10, 2025.
2. Holland, Kevin J. (2001). Classic American Railroad Terminals. MBI Pub. ISBN   9780760308325 . Retrieved August 10, 2025.
3. Niemeyer, Daniel Charles (2013). 1950s American Style: A Reference Guide. Lulu.com. p. 82. ISBN   9781304201652 . Retrieved August 11, 2025.
4. DeFeo, Todd (2019). Western & Atlantic Railroad. Arcadia. pp. 78, 83, 85, 86, 95. ISBN   9781467103398 . Retrieved August 11, 2025.
5. Kuhn, Clifford M.; Joye, Harlon E.; West, E. Bernard (2005). Living Atlanta: An Oral History of the City, 1914-1948. University of Georgia Press. pp. 67–68. ISBN   9780820316970 . Retrieved August 10, 2025.
6. Jones, Robert C. (2017). A History of Georgia Railroads. Arcadia. p. 135. ISBN   9781439660126 . Retrieved August 10, 2025.

• Storey, Steve. "Atlanta Depots". RailGa.com.

33°45′18″N84°23′33″W / 33.755°N 84.3925°W / 33.755; -84.3925