Freeport, IL | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Freeport station in 1981 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| General information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | 239 East Stephenson Street Freeport, Illinois | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 42°17′59″N89°36′54″W / 42.29970°N 89.61510°W | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Line(s) | Freeport Subdivision | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opened | 1853 (C&NW), 1855 (IC), February 13, 1974 (Amtrak) [1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Closed | 1949 (C&NW) April 30, 1971 (Illinois Central) [2] September 30, 1981 (Amtrak) [3] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Former services | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Freeport station is a former train station in Freeport, Illinois. It was in use from 1849 to 1971 and 1974 to 1981.
The Chicago and North Western Railway opened its Freeport Branch in 1849, followed by the Iowa Division of the Illinois Central Railroad in 1853. The two railroads eventually shared a station, while the Milwaukee Road used a separate station across the Pecatonica River. The station served Illinois Central's Hawkeye, Iowan, Land O'Corn , and Sinnissippi trains. Passenger service ceased upon the formation of Amtrak in 1971, but resumed between Chicago and Dubuque in 1974 under the name Black Hawk . [4] [5] Service ceased again on September 30, 1981. [3] The depot still stands as a business. Plans for the restoration of the Black Hawk occurred in the early 2010s, but they were postponed indefinitely in 2014.
The City of New Orleans is a long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak on an overnight schedule between Chicago and New Orleans. The train is a successor to the Illinois Central Railroad's Panama Limited.
The Texas Eagle is a long-distance passenger train operated daily by Amtrak on a 1,306-mile (2,102 km) route between Chicago, Illinois, and San Antonio, Texas, with major stops in St. Louis, Little Rock, Dallas, Fort Worth, and Austin. Three days per week, the train joins the Sunset Limited in San Antonio and continues to Los Angeles via El Paso and Tucson. The combined 2,728-mile (4,390 km) route is the longest in the United States and the second-longest in the Americas, after the Canadian.
The Illinois Central Railroad, sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, was a railroad in the Central United States, with its primary routes connecting Chicago, Illinois, with New Orleans, Louisiana, and Mobile, Alabama, and thus, the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico. A line also connected Chicago west to Sioux City, Iowa (1870). There was a significant branch to Omaha, Nebraska (1899), west of Fort Dodge, Iowa, and another branch reaching Sioux Falls, South Dakota (1877), starting from Cherokee, Iowa. The IC also serviced Miami, Florida, on trackage owned by other railroads
Michigan Services are three Amtrak passenger rail routes connecting Chicago, Illinois with the Michigan cities of Grand Rapids, Port Huron, and Detroit, and stations en route. The group falls under the Amtrak Midwest brand and is a component of the Midwest Regional Rail Initiative.
The Illini and Saluki are a pair of passenger trains operated by Amtrak along a 310-mile (500 km) route between Chicago and Carbondale, Illinois. They are part of Amtrak's Illinois Service and are primarily funded by the state of Illinois. The route is coextensive with the far northern leg of the long-distance City of New Orleans. The Illini has operated since 1973; a previous version operated in 1971–1972 between Chicago and Champaign. The Saluki debuted in 2006.
The Milwaukee District West Line (MD-W) is a Metra commuter rail line in Chicago, Illinois, and its western suburbs. Metra does not refer to any of its lines by a particular color, but the timetable accents for the Milwaukee District West line are dark "Arrow Yellow," honoring the Milwaukee Road's Arrow passenger train. Trains are dispatched from the Canadian Pacific Kansas City Railway's American headquarters in Minneapolis.
Central Station was an intercity passenger terminal in downtown Chicago, Illinois, at the southern end of Grant Park near Roosevelt Road and Michigan Avenue. Owned by the Illinois Central Railroad, it also served other companies via trackage rights. It opened in 1893, replacing Great Central Station, and closed in 1972 when Amtrak rerouted services to Union Station. The station building was demolished in 1974. It is now the site of a redevelopment called Central Station, Chicago.
The Floridian was a train operated by Amtrak from 1971 to 1979 that ran from Chicago and Florida, with two branches south of Jacksonville terminating at Miami and St. Petersburg. For its Nashville to Montgomery segment, its route followed that of several former Louisville & Nashville Railroad (L&N) passenger trains, including the Pan-American and the Humming Bird. Originating in Chicago, the train served Lafayette and Bloomington, Indiana; Louisville and Bowling Green, Kentucky; Nashville, Tennessee; Decatur, Birmingham, Montgomery and Dothan, Alabama; and Thomasville, Valdosta and Waycross, Georgia.
The Black Hawk was an Amtrak passenger train service that operated from 1974 to 1981 between Chicago, Illinois, and Dubuque, Iowa, via Rockford, Illinois. The original Black Hawk operated over the Illinois Central route, now the Canadian National's Chicago Central/Iowa Zone. From 2010 to 2014, plans called for the restored route to follow the same corridor; however, the state government could not come to an agreement with the railroad. Instead, the route would follow Metra's Milwaukee District / West Line from Union Station to Big Timber Road, then the Union Pacific Railroad to Rockford. Restored service to Rockford was planned to begin in 2015, but was put on hold by Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner. An extension to Dubuque was to open at a later date. The Rockford service was later funded in 2019 with the support of Governor J.B. Pritzker. In July 2023, Pritzker announced that two round trips a day between Chicago and Rockford would began by 2027, with the service operated by Metra as Rockford Intercity Passenger Rail rather than by Amtrak.
The Blue Water is a higher-speed passenger train service operated by Amtrak as part of its Michigan Services. The 319-mile (513 km) route runs from Chicago, Illinois, to Port Huron in Michigan's Blue Water Area, for which the train is named. Major stops are in Kalamazoo, Battle Creek, East Lansing, and Flint.
Galesburg is an Amtrak intercity train station in Galesburg, Illinois, United States. The station was originally built in 1984, after the razing of the large depot just south of the current site. It is located north of the large BNSF Classification yard. Just south the Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg diverge via the Quincy main line which bypasses the yard on the east side. The California Zephyr and the Southwest Chief continue to the southwest side of Galesburg near Knox College.
The James Whitcomb Riley was a passenger train that operated between Chicago, Illinois, and Cincinnati, Ohio, via Indianapolis, Indiana. Originally operated by the New York Central Railroad, it was taken over by Amtrak in 1971. Under Amtrak, it merged with the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway's George Washington to become a Chicago-Washington/Newport News train. In 1977, it was renamed the Cardinal, which remains in operation.
The Land O'Corn was a streamlined passenger train operated by the Illinois Central Railroad between Chicago, Illinois, and Waterloo, Iowa, from 1941 until 1967. Its inception was due in no small part to John W. Rath of Ackley, IA and part owner of the Rath Packing Co. of Waterloo, Iowa as well as a member of the Illinois Central's board of directors. It featured a wide range of equipment over its existence, including self-propelled Motorailers and steam locomotives, before finally adopting conventional diesel locomotives and lightweight cars. The Illinois Central discontinued the Land O'Corn in 1967; Amtrak later operated the Black Hawk over part of its route.
The Galena station of Galena, Illinois was built in 1857 and originally served the Illinois Central Railroad. The two story Italianate structure is included in the Galena Historic District. Over the years, the station hosted the Illinois Central's Hawkeye, Iowan, Land O'Corn, and Sinnissippi trains. These trains connected Galena residents as far as Chicago in the east and as far west as Sioux City, Iowa. Passenger service ceased upon the formation of Amtrak in 1971, but resumed between Chicago and Dubuque in 1974 under the name Black Hawk. Service ceased again in September 30, 1981. Today, the old depot hosts the Galena Visitors Bureau. Restoration of the Black Hawk was planned in the early 2010s, but the portion west of Rockford was indefinitely postponed in 2014.
The Decatur station, also known as the Wabash Railroad Station and Railway Express Agency, is a historic railway station located at 780 East Cerro Gordo Street in Decatur, Illinois. Built in 1901, the station served trains on the Wabash Railroad, the most economically significant railroad through Decatur. Architect Theodore Link designed the Classical Revival building. Service to the station ended in the 1980s, and it has since been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Freeport Subdivision is a railroad line in Illinois which runs from 16th Street in downtown Chicago to Freeport, Illinois. It is owned and operated by the Canadian National Railway (CN). As of 2016 the line is almost exclusively freight-only, with only a small segment within Chicago, between 21st Street in Chinatown and Ashland Avenue in Bridgeport, hosting Amtrak and Metra passenger trains.
Dubuque station was a train station in Dubuque, Iowa. It originally served the Illinois Central Railroad. In 1917, the site was considered for creating a Union station in Dubuque. However, no such plan transpired and each railroad continued to use separate depots. Over the years, the station hosted the Illinois Central's Hawkeye, Iowan, and Land O'Corn trains. Passenger service ceased upon the formation of Amtrak in 1971, but resumed between Chicago and Dubuque in 1974 under the name Black Hawk. Service ceased on September 30, 1981. A proposed revival of the service, since cancelled, was to use the Dubuque Intermodal Transportation Center as its terminal.
The East Dubuque station of East Dubuque, Illinois originally served the Illinois Central Railroad and Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad. Passenger service ceased upon the formation of Amtrak in 1971, but resumed between Chicago and Dubuque in 1974 under the name Black Hawk. Service ceased on September 30, 1981. The depot no longer exists.
Warren is a former Amtrak railroad station in the city of Warren, Jo Daviess County, Illinois, United States. Located at the intersection of Railroad Street and Burnett Avenue in Warren, the station served the Black Hawk from February 13, 1974, to September 30, 1981. The station consisted of one side platform with a depot, which has since been demolished. Prior to Amtrak, the station served trains operated by the Illinois Central Railroad, which began service on January 9, 1854, when service was extended 25 miles (40 km) northwest from Freeport. Service continued until April 30, 1971, when the Hawkeye (Waterloo–Chicago) was discontinued on the day before Amtrak began passenger service.
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