20 SEPT 2006 The Charleston Union Station (CUS) has always been a good subject to talk about. I had been in this station, been near it and passed by it a number of times during WW II. When the station burned in 1947, the shed, tracks, platforms and gates stayed in place for many years. ACL even had a coach under the shed - using it for a n office until much later. Any one else out there - still living - that was ever in the CUS, perhaps even arrived or departed from the CUS. Any one who wants to contribute information - have at it. I'm sure if the CUS was still standing today, iit would not be used as a train station. However knowing Charleston for what is done for old buildings, it would be perserved. Larry @ SCRS
Images Anyone have images they can share about this station prior to or after the 1947 date listed in Larry's post?
CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA UNION STATION PICTURES 01 OCT 2006 Here ia a link to S.C. railroad stations. http://tsalmon.topcities.com/ A list of cities is on the left. Click on, then pictures will come up. Charleston is on the list. THe Greenville Southern Railway station was still in use until the AMTRAK station was to be built. It was torn down and the AMTRAK station was built in its place. I never did see the tower - shown on the depot as it was removed before I moved to Mauldin (Greenville County). Larry @ SCRS.
If I'm not mistaken,on my last trip to Charleston when I was driving a tour bus,this terminal was connverted into a welcome center for buses.Its very nice.
Secret Weapon - I believe that the Welcome Center is the site of the former shops and old freight station of the Southern Railway. This is the original line of the South Carolina Rwy. dating from the original "Best Friend" days of the 1830's. This line terminated at the old Southern roundhouse which is now occupied by the Meeting Street Piggly Wiggly. I remember (I think), being 5 y.o. at the time, my parents talking about the fire and a large photo on the front of the local newspaper. Charleston, until the late 60's/early 70's, was a maze of tracks especially on the east (Cooper River) side, four railroads having tracks in the area. The standard ACL/SAL/SOU, as well as trackage of the Ports Authority Railroad. Quite a bit of this trackage was street running, especially on North Market St. with some real sharp radius curves.
Dave, You might be right.Its been 7-8 yrs since I've been there.Its set up like a pass. station.The buses pull down a long,opensided platform.Lots of buses fit,too.
16 OCT 2006 Good afternoon all. Just returning from a two week vacation - multi miles with some rail faning on the side. 1- Charleston Union Station info: Secret Weapon. As Dave answered, what you saw was in the area of the old Southern Railway Roundhouse. The Union Station was on the corner of East Bay and Columbus Streets. It did burn in January 1947. Some time over the years the site area was sold to the South Carolina Ports Authority and is now covered with shipping containers. 2- On other notes: Somewhere in these ACL and SAL threads was a question about the old ACL and SAL rails into Bradington and Sarasota, Fl. Rails are still very active in the Bradington area serving Tropicanna. The yard had many Tropicanna cars in it, the rails were shiney from recent traffic. As the railline entered Sarasota, less traffic and by Bee Ridge Street the rails were still in place, howerer heavy with under growth. 3- Just a quick note on Huntsville, Al. Should anyone get to go and visit there, take time (about 2 + hours) to visit the Huntsville Depot and grounds. Also take a drive out to Chase and visit the NHRS site. Lots of static equipment, passenger train rides and the smallest Union Station in the US. Also a very active Norfolk Southern main line next to the site (this same main line also goes next to Huntsvilel Depot Shed). Larry @ SCRS
Hi Larry - welcome back. Glad to hear that you got some railfanning in during your trip. Did MTH ever put out those CofG E-8's? The manufacturers in HO are keeping me more povery stricken than usual, and that even before the forthcoming offerings from InterMountain and Athearn.
Harold - Subject to correction, I believe that the Visitor's Center used as much of the existing railroad building(s) as possible. I've only seen the Center one time (I don't go to peninsular Charleston anymore), it looked brand new to me also.
21 Oct 2006 Dave. The CofG E-8's were not issued and were not listed in the new MTH 2907 V1 catalog. However, in this MTH 2007 V1 catalog are Atlantic Coast Line and Southern Railway streamline passenger cars - eleven (11) cars for each road. Eleven(11) passenger cars, plus three E-8's up front will make a long passenger train - near twenty (20) feet long. My current union station will be hard pressed to handle this trains. I have to cut the present trains into two sections to fully get them into the station. Larry @ SCRS.
Larry - Sorry to hear that the CofG E-8's aren't available as of yet. Where they going to be the old blue and gray or the "collard" green colors? Yep, 20 ft. of train is a lot, short side dimensions on my layout is 10', so I can envision it, but just barely. I have added some ACL and SOU passenger power over the summer, so am tentatively thinking about some passenger service on the branchline. But they'll definitely have to be short and back into the station area from staging.
31 OCT 2006 Dave. A branch line passenger train - from Johns Island station even with two cars would look good crossing Folly Road and then pulling up next to Ashley River, across from Charleston. Perhaps you could start at Johns Island station, cross the Ashley, take the right leg of the wye at Rivers Avenue / Meeting Stree Road and use the line into Charleston as a Branch line. You could turn the train at the Charleston Union Station wye. My problem would be that I would have more than two cars. Those branch lines would have heavy traffic. Larry
Larry - I was thinking along the lines of Seaboard's Nos. 3/4 - heavy with express traffic, a coach or two. My attempted recreation of the Croghan's branch is going to be a very much abbreviated version, and unfortunately with the need for a run-around track, is apparently going to be double tracked for more than I would like, but, that's one of those compromises. Also, again - more urban and industrial than I would like, but need to generate those car loadings.
SAL CROSSING ACL LINE INTO UNION STATION 10 NOV 2006 Dave (and all). The picture of the tower in the "Charleston stations' listings is the Town Creek tower that controlled the Seaboard crossing of the Atlantic Coast line tracks leading to Cooper Yard and the Charleston Union Station. http://tsalmon.topcities.com/ The Southern had trackage rights over the ACL tracks from Magnolia Crossing for accessing the Union Station. In the background, you can see the Grace Memorial Bridge and the smoke stack for the City of Charleston's trash incinerator. The single SAL track (to the right) crossed over Meeting Street at the S.E and G. trolley barn. Larry @ SCRS
Didn't get to Town Creek tower that often. The Seaboard made a nice loop through the Cooper River marshes to get headed south toward Savannah. The area where Baywide Manor is now, was a good location to see just about all of a Seaboard freight. My favorite spot on the peninsula was the Grove Street station, especially between 9 - 11 p.m. The city of Charleston had an ordinance limiting Seaboard trains to 10 m.p.h. over Rutledge, King and Meeting streets. So when 4 or 5 trains rolled through both ways between 9-11, you could get a real eyeful of the whole train. Ofr course the fact that right cater-cornered (?) from the station was the Ark Lounge with a full view of the train at slow speed and some very good beer was another enticement. The Ark Lounge during the 1940's was called the "Boll Weevil" - something I didn't find out 'til about 1963 or so. Another favorite watering hole was Jimmy Dengate's, just one block south of the SAL's crossing of Rutledge, an easy eye-view of any Seaboard action. I sure do miss the Seaboard and a lot (all) of the bars that used to dot old Charleston.
You know, I have lived in Charleston all my life and have seen many of these structures downtown, even been in a good many of them. The railroad history fascinates me and I didn't even realize that Charleston had such a big railroad history. My dad remembers leaving Union Station in Charleston to go to Laurens with his mother during the 40s. He would have been about 8 years old. That's the only trip he made from that station. Thanks for posting the link with the images. Fantastic! Dean
Boy. Old thread.....but: I watched all sorts of rail activity in and around CharleyTown, it's been a long time....don't recall talk of a station downtown, but must have been one. The only station I recall was the small one up around North Charleston. Just north of the Rivers Road overpass, south of Montague. I recall lots of street trackage in the downtown area, especially Spruill to Meeting to Morrison to Bay, the way we always used to do it. Remember the GE siderod diseasemals in the Navy Base, too, and the coupler extenders for running cars in alongside the drydocks on those sharp curves. That was fun to watch them do. Where was the Charleston Station? Dave
