Day 101: The Cubs Train

     So far we have mostly been looking at Stations in or near The Loop.  Today sees us going for something slightly different, as we look to the North Side and another station next to a ballpark.  When the first rapid transit lines were built north of downtown, the build was started by the Northwestern Elevated Railroad in 1896.  However, Financial difficulties hampered this process, and the construction was still not done by the time the original deadline of December 31, 1899 came around.  An extension was obtained, and the station at Addison opened for the first time on June 6, 1900.  The original station house that was built with the station was similar to the ones at other stations on the north side, all built by the Northwestern RR.  The house was built out of brick and terra-cotta, in a style that might be regarded today as Classical Revival.  When the Northwestern was building the line, they put in four tracks on the North Side to allow for both local and express service.

     This increase in efficiency proved useful and fortuitous in 1914, when the Federal League was started, and along with it a Chicago franchise playing at a home field less than a block away from the Addison station.  The addition of this traffic produced a dramatic spike in the traffic going through the station.  When it was first constructed the Northwestern RR had labeled Addison as a local station, and even though the station had been built with four tracks, the addition of an entire ballpark next door meant that the station could no longer handle the crowds that were streaming through. In the period of private ownership of rapid transit, the companies did what they could to fix up the facilities, but even though they made an attempt, their efforts proved fruitless. The problem wasn't fully resolved until the CTA took over operations of all the city's various rail lines. Speaking of new station houses, the Addison station was finally rebuilt in 1994,with a complete redo of the head house, platform, and tracks. This renovation was done in the same line of thought as the construction of the Orange Line the year before(the head house has the same kind of elongated lobby as Midway Station).

     There are two things about this station that make it VERY distinctive to its location.  First off, it is just frankly outstanding to be able to stand on the platform at Addison and being able to see the game going on.(or standing on the back of a rooftop and seeing the train go by right in front of you.) Secondly, if you go down into the station house, you'll see that there are various murals and paintings on the Wall, all associated with the Cubs.  These are all done by local artist Steve Musgrave, who has also released the drawings for the themed Transit Cards each year for the Crosstown Classic.  All in all, the Addison station is a fitting tribute to its location next to Chicago's oldest ballpark.