he Amtrak station in Alexandria opened on September 15, 1905. The train station is directly adjacent to the King Street Metro station and faces the George Washington Masonic National Memorial.

Though not as grandiose as its nearby Washington, D.C. counterpart, this “other Union Station” has a unique style of its own. The station is a one-story brick building consisting of the original main passenger depot and baggage building separated by a 20-foot wide open gateway passage and covered by a covered terrace. The designer used the Federal Revival Style: a 20th century mixture of Neoclassical architecture borrowed from buildings constructed just after the American Revolution, fitting for its location. Both original buildings are still in use. Though many minor renovations have taken place, including the slightly more extensive renovations that occurred in 1982 and the mid-1990s, the original buildings remain essentially unchanged. The limestone and granite Veterans of Foreign Wars memorial was constructed at the station in 1942.

In the late 1840s, the city of Alexandria invested in five major railroad projects to better compete with Baltimore as a regional industrial and trade center, but ended up in a confusion of mergers and failures. In 1901, the railroads serving the region built Potomac Yard, a consolidated rail yard. In 1905, the city of Alexandria commissioned the Washington Southern Railway Company (later part of the Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac, now CSX) to build the Alexandria Union Station at a cost of $62,020.55. The station also served the Chesapeake & Ohio and Southern Railway trains.

Great American Stations

fter the Civil War, the first depot on the present site was a long frame building constructed in the 1880s following the typical depot designs of the Richmond and Danville Railroad Company, which purchased controlling interest in the Orange & Alexandria in 1886. This frame depot was dismantled in 1904 and replaced by a brick passenger depot. On June 25, 1914 a fire broke out in the baggage room and the depot burned, leaving only the foundation and walls.

Work on the third and present depot was completed in October 1914, in a red-brick Victorian style with a ceramic tile-covered hipped roof. The structure partially incorporated the walls of the burned depot, which measured about 20 feet by 77 feet, and had four new rooms; an office, a ladies’ waiting room, men’s waiting room and a baggage and express room. The “new” structure is about 32 feet longer than the earlier one permitting a modified room arrangement and included the addition of an umbrella shed on the front and east side, the installation of electric lights, and an attractive tile roof.

In the 1990s, the city of Manassas acquired the depot from Norfolk Southern Railway and restored the structure under the direction of The Manassas Museum System. Renovation was completed in 1997 after two and a half years of work by the city of Manassas Department of Historic Resources. The redesign was done by Dalgleish, Eichman, Gilpin, & Paxton; construction by Mass Contracting; and exhibits by PRD Group, Ltd.

Rehabilitation included returning the building as closely as possible to its 1914 look while accommodating modern uses. Restored features include paint colors, repointed brick, new plaster, overhaul of all mechanical systems, addition of fire and security systems, wood moldings, reproductions of original doors and light fixtures and return of the distinctive clay tile roof, made by the same company that did the 1914 roof.

Great American Stations

he first Culpeper station was constructed in 1852 by the Orange and Alexandria Railroad. It built two depots, one on the east side for freight and one on the west side for passengers. Though the buildings survived the Civil War, the fighting took its toll, and in 1874, a new Culpeper train depot was erected. However, it burned down in 1903 and was replaced a year later with the current one story building.

A period of decline prompted Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) to request permission to demolish a portion of the depot in 1985. A citizens’ committee formed to save the building; subsequently, the Town of Culpeper and Culpeper Renaissance, Inc. (CRI), a certified Virginia Main Street organization, began restoration work. In 1995, CRI and the town successfully prepared a $700,000 renovation grant under the Virginia Department of Transportation Enhancement Program.

Three years later, NS officially transferred the building deed to the town, and in 2000 the renovated depot opened to the public. Additional work to the freight section was completed in 2003. Today, the station is occupied by the Culpeper Visitors Center, chamber of commerce, Culpeper Department of Tourism and the Museum of Culpeper History. The former freight section serves as conference space that can be rented for meetings and social events. The depot is truly a downtown anchor, playing host to a wide array of outdoor events, such as a vibrant weekly Farmers’ Market held from May through November.

Great American Stations

he Amtrak station in Fredericksburg consists of a platform and shelter adjacent to the 1910 brick depot, which is located one block from the Rappahannock River waterfront. Today, the building is occupied by a restaurant. The platforms and shelters run over Sophia, Caroline, Princess Anne and Charles streets in the historic downtown, and an elaborate system of stairs and ramps is used to reach the platforms from street level. The station is also served by Virginia Railway Express (VRE) commuter trains that link the area with the nation’s capital, as well as by local buses.

Great American Stations

ail has been important in Fredericksburg since the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad was chartered in 1834 to run a line through from Richmond up to the Potomac River at Aquia Creek. Controlling the railroad through Fredericksburg was at issue during the American Civil War. After the war, by 1872, connections went through to Washington, D.C., giving this portion of Virginia an all-rail route from Richmond and across the Potomac to Washington.

Great American Stations

he Amtrak station in Ashland consists of platforms with shelters. Amtrak trains provide a picturesque view for passengers riding through or stopping at this small Richmond suburb and college town. The rails run in a median between the two central streets, which are lined with beautiful shade trees and a variety of Colonial Revival and Queen Anne homes, college and commercial buildings.

The current Colonial Revival depot replaced an older structure built in 1890. Designed by W.P. Lee and completed in 1923 by Aubrey Hunt of Ashland, the brick depot stands 1.5 stories high under a gabled slate roof. A trackside porch supported by four over-sized whitewashed columns provides a pleasant waiting area for Amtrak customers and train enthusiasts who enjoy photographing trains as they pass through town. Benches offer a place to rest, while mature trees close to the building provide cooling shade in the hot Virginia summers. Inside, the Ashland Visitors Center maintains a small museum in one of the former waiting rooms. While the historic building is not listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it is part of Ashland’s 159-acre historic district, which received its listing in 1983.

Great American Stations

ichmond has been served by multiple railroads since the 1830's. The five lines fanning out from the city in 1861 were a major reason for choosing Richmond as the capital of the Confederacy. With rail consolidation after the war, the names changed but for much of the 20th. century the city still hosted six major lines. The corporate headquarters of the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac (RF&P) Railroad, and CSX were located in the city.

Richmond Railroad Museum

he Petersburg rail station, a one-story brick building, was constructed in 1955 by the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad and is located near the Appomattox River. CSX leases the southern portion of the station to Amtrak and the northern area is unoccupied. In the late 1980s, the depot saw a few minor renovations, including an expanded waiting room, new floors and furniture and the removal of an interior wall. The city of Petersburg’s roots are embedded in its routes. Originally a Powhattan settlement, people came over from England and settled at Fort Henry. Petersburg grew out of the expansion of Fort Henry. The Port of Petersburg drew many merchants, as it was a major hub for commercial transportation and processing of goods.

Great American Stations