Staunton station

Staunton is an Amtrak train station in Staunton, Virginia, located in the downtown Wharf Area Historic District of the city.[2] It is served by Amtrak's Cardinal, which runs between New York and Chicago.

Staunton, VA
Location1 Middlebrook Avenue, Staunton, Virginia
Coordinates38°8′51″N 79°4′19.2″W
Line(s)CSX North Mountain Subdivision
Platforms1 side platform
Tracks1
ConnectionsStaunton Trolley (Green Line)
Other information
Station codeSTA
Passengers
20176,487 annually[1]  3.79% (Amtrak)
Services
Preceding station Amtrak Following station
Clifton Forge
toward Chicago
 Cardinal Charlottesville
toward New York

The station has restrooms and benches, but no ticket office. With no intercity bus service in Staunton – the closest bus station is 30 miles away – the train station serves a large area of the Shenandoah Valley.[3]

Next to the station are restaurants and art studios, as well as other points of interest. For pedestrians, the historic Sears Hill Bridge and paved trail lead to the Sears Hill neighborhood and the Sears House in Woodrow Wilson Park. In 2010, the city closed the steel truss pedestrian bridge and approved its temporary removal for restoration.[4][5] Next to the station is a Chessie System caboose.[6][7]

The site of the station has been a railroad depot since 1854:

The present railroad station is the third one on this site. The first station was destroyed by [Union] General Hunter's troops in June of 1864. A runaway train at the turn-of-the-century [in 1890[8]] destroyed the second station.

— Staunton in the Civil War[9]

The third and existing station building was designed by Staunton architect Thomas Jasper Collins and built by the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway in 1902.[10]

The current station facility is the former telegraph tower from when the Staunton station functioned as a full passenger and freight railroad depot. While the platform still functions as the railroad platform for loading and unloading passengers, the former station passenger and freight buildings are now occupied by restaurants.

See also

References
  1. "Amtrak Fact Sheet, FY2017, Commonwealth of Virginia" (PDF). Amtrak Government Affairs. November 2017. Retrieved 24 December 2017.
  2. http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/VAmainstreet/wha.htm
  3. "Public Transportation in City of Staunton". City of Staunton. Retrieved 2017-12-12.
  4. http://www.readthehook.com/blog/index.php/2010/07/29/landmark-saved-bridge-owner-staunton-partner-on-ped-bridge-fix/
  5. http://www.newsleader.com/article/20100728/NEWS01/7280330/Staunton-to-acquire-Sears-Hill-bridge
  6. "Caboose, Index W". Central California Rails. Retrieved 2008-06-12. See also linked photograph.
  7. Turner, Jack M. "Florida to Indianapolis and Return by Rail". TrainWeb. Retrieved 2008-06-12.
  8. "Wharf Area Historic District". National Park Service. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  9. "Staunton in the Civil War". Archived from the original on 2007-02-13. Retrieved 2008-04-13.
  10. "The Canvas of T.J. Collins". porterbriggs.com. Retrieved 2017-03-16.
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