You are here

New London Union Station

-A A +A
1885–1887, H. H. Richardson and Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge; 1975–1976 restored, Anderson, Notter, Finegold; 2002–2003 restored, Barun Basu. 27 Water St.
  • (Photograph by Michael J. Waters)
  • (Photograph by Michael J. Waters)
  • (Photograph by Michael J. Waters)
  • (Photograph by Michael J. Waters)
  • (Photograph by Michael J. Waters)
  • (Photograph by Michael J. Waters)
  • (Photograph by Michael J. Waters)
  • (Photograph by Michael J. Waters)
  • (HABS)
  • (HABS)

Located in the heart of New London facing the Parade, a large plaza at the end of State Street, Union Station remains one the most prominent civic buildings in the city and an important late work by Henry Hobson Richardson. The station was commissioned in 1885 by the Central Vermont Railroad to replace a small depot that had recently burned. Richardson had previously built a number of smaller stations, mostly for the Boston & Albany Railroad in Massachusetts. Located in suburban and rural settings, these structures were almost exclusively low-rise, rusticated stone buildings. In contrast, the New London station, which served several railroad lines that operated along the northeast corridor, is located in downtown New London surrounded by large commercial structures. In response to this urban setting, as well as possibly cost constraints, Richardson conceived of the station as a broad, symmetrical, classically proportioned brick structure, much like his earlier Georgian-inspired Sever Hall at Harvard University. In doing so, he made the station the focal point of State Street and emphasized its civic importance.

The station, which was built under the direction of Richardson’s successor firm of Shepley, Rutan, and Coolidge beginning in September 1886, is a two-story rectangular building with a broad hipped roof and hipped dormer windows. Its principle street facade consists of a central round-arched entryway flanked by banks of windows with double transoms. The second story, which projects slightly outward, is crowned at the center with a large gable adorned with Romanesque foliate sculpture at each end. The rear of the station, which faces the train tracks, features many of the same elements as the main facade as well as a projecting semicircular agent’s window set with bull’s-eye glass panes. Originally an attached canopy covered the adjacent platform. When first finished, the interior featured a central waiting room with adjacent dining room, baggage room, and telegraph office, while the second floor contained offices. The structure was built almost entirely of plain red brick with molded brick used around the doors and windows. Two patterns of basket-weave decorative brickwork also adorn the large central gables. These features, along with its large planar surfaces and minimalist detailing, are especially reminiscent of Richardson’s roughly contemporary Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Pittsburgh.

Slated for demolition in the early 1970s, the building was saved and restored in 1976 thanks to the efforts of preservationists, including George Notter, who also served as the architect on the project. In 2002, the station underwent another restoration, which brought the waiting room, with its wooden wainscoting and beam ceiling, back to its original arrangement. Today the structure forms the centerpiece of a regional intermodal transportation center that includes, train, bus, taxi and ferry services.

References

Fleming, Malcolm M. “The Saving of Henry Hobson Richardson’s Union Station.” American Art Review 2 (July-August 1975): 29–40.

Hitchcock, Henry-Russell. The Architecture of H.H. Richardson and His Times. Hamden, CT: Archon Books, 1961.

Ochsner, Jeffrey Karl. H. H. Richardson, Complete Architectural Works. Cambridge: MIT Press, 1982.

Writing Credits

Author: 
Michael J. Waters
Coordinator: 
Emily Chace Morash
×

Data

Timeline

  • 1885

    Built
  • 1975

    Restored
  • 2002

    Restored

What's Nearby

Citation

Michael J. Waters, "New London Union Station", [New London, Connecticut], SAH Archipedia, eds. Gabrielle Esperdy and Karen Kingsley, Charlottesville: UVaP, 2012—, http://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/CT-01-011-0050.

If SAH Archipedia has been useful to you, please consider supporting it.

SAH Archipedia tells the story of the United States through its buildings, landscapes, and cities. This freely available resource empowers the public with authoritative knowledge that deepens their understanding and appreciation of the built environment. But the Society of Architectural Historians, which created SAH Archipedia with University of Virginia Press, needs your support to maintain the high-caliber research, writing, photography, cartography, editing, design, and programming that make SAH Archipedia a trusted online resource available to all who value the history of place, heritage tourism, and learning.

,