Chicago, Milwaukee and Saint Paul Railway Passenger Depot
About this property
La Crosse station is an Amtrak intercity train station in La Crosse, Wisconsin, served by the daily Borealis and Empire Builder. The station was built in 1926–27 by the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, and Pacific Railroad (Milwaukee Road), replacing an older station that burned in 1916. The station was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway Depot and was renovated in 2001. The La Crosse and Milwaukee Railroad opened between its namesake cities in 1858, followed by the St. Paul and Milwaukee in 1867. Through mergers, both became part of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, and Pacific Railroad (Milwaukee Road) by 1874. The 1858-built station was replaced by in 1878 by the Cameron House, a combined depot and hotel located near downtown La Crosse. By 1910, La Crosse was served by six daily round trips on the Chicago–Milwaukee–Minneapolis corridor (including Chicago–Tacoma and Chicago–Miles City, Montana round trips), two La Crosse–Savanna, Illinois round trips, one La Crosse–Wessington Springs, South Dakota round trip, and one La Crosse–Madison, South Dakota round trip. North La Crosse station, located at the junction of the mainline and the spur to downtown La Crosse, was served by some trips. The Cameron House station was gutted by fire on December 24, 1916; a temporary station was constructed nearby. A decade of public debate followed about a potential union station to serve all five railroads in La Crosse. The powerful Milwaukee Road insisted on a station in North La Crosse, away from the downtown area, to avoid the time-consuming backup move that crossed busy city streets. In 1925, the Milwaukee Road was given permission to construct its new station in North La Crosse, slightly east of the old North La Crosse station. Construction began in 1926 and lasted about six months. The station cost $300,000 (equivalent to $4.3 million in 2024), plus $60,000 (equivalent to (equal to $0.9 million) for the acquisition of sixteen lots to make room for the structure. It opened on January 31, 1927. The location on the mainline saved 24 minutes for through trains compared to the downtown location. The Milwaukee Road authorized a taxi company to carry passengers between downtown La Crosse and the station for a flat fee. A downtown freight house remained in use until 1955. By 1955, the station was served by one daily Chicago–Tacoma round trip (Olympian Hiawatha), three daily Chicago–Minneapolis round trips (Morning Hiawatha, Afternoon Hiawatha, Pioneer Limited, Fast Mail), one daily La Crosse–Austin round trip, and a Minneapolis-to-Chicago local. Over the years, service gradually decreased as subsidies for automobile and air travel cut into the profitability of passenger rail. Service to Austin was eliminated in 1960, and post office mail contracts were cut in 1967. By October 1970, only the daily Morning Hiawatha round trip plus the Minneapolis-to-Chicago Fast Mail served La Crosse.
Location
Categories
Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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Questions about this property
When was Chicago, Milwaukee and Saint Paul Railway Passenger Depot listed on the National Register?
Chicago, Milwaukee and Saint Paul Railway Passenger Depot was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 1, 1997.
What type of historic resource is Chicago, Milwaukee and Saint Paul Railway Passenger Depot?
Chicago, Milwaukee and Saint Paul Railway Passenger Depot is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Chicago, Milwaukee and Saint Paul Railway Passenger Depot?
The period of significance for Chicago, Milwaukee and Saint Paul Railway Passenger Depot is recorded as the industrial era.
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