Omaha station (Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Omaha
Former Burlington Route passenger station
The Chicago and Great Western's Nebraska Limited pulling into the station on August 8, 1962
Location	1001 South 10th Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68108
History
Opened	1871
Closed	1974
Services
Preceding station Burlington Route Following station South Omaha toward Denver Main Line Council Bluffs Transfer toward Chicago Terminus Omaha – Kansas City Council Bluffs Transfer toward Kansas City
The Burlington Station
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Entrance to Burlington Station in 2005, pre-dating KETV renovations.
Location in Nebraska Show map of Nebraska Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Location	Omaha, Nebraska
Built	1898
Architect	Kimball, Thomas R.; Graham, Anderson, Probst & White
Architectural style	Classical Revival
NRHP reference No.	74001110
Added to NRHP	August 7, 1974

The Omaha Station is a famous old building in downtown Omaha, Nebraska. It's a very important historical and cultural place. Today, it's the home of KETV (Channel 7), which is Omaha's ABC television station.

The building first opened in 1898. It was designed by Thomas Rogers Kimball in the Italianate style. Back then, newspapers all over the world praised its amazing look and features. The station is also part of the Omaha Rail and Commerce Historic District. You can find it southeast of the Old Market and just north of Little Italy.

The Station's Early Days

The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad started in 1850. It first came to downtown Omaha in 1870. This railroad helped move farm products from Nebraska to other parts of the country. It also handled mail from 1884 to 1972.

The railroad was very important for the growth of Omaha and Nebraska. The Omaha Burlington Station served both passengers and cargo for a long time. A temporary building was put up in 1890. This was because a new, grander station was planned. The Union Depot Company, a team-up between the Union Pacific and Burlington Railroads, was supposed to build it.

Later that year, construction stopped because Union Pacific had money problems. In 1897, the Burlington Railroad decided to build a new station on its own. A famous Omaha architect named Thomas Rogers Kimball designed the building.

Opening and Grand Features (1898-1928)

Former front entrance of the station from a 1910 postcard.

The new Burlington station opened on July 4, 1898. It was ready just in time for the Trans-Mississippi International Exposition. This was a huge international event that brought visitors to Omaha from all over the world.

The main lobby of the station had a grand circular staircase. This staircase led passengers downstairs to where the trains were. A large canopy covered two tracks. This was new for an Omaha train station and kept passengers dry. The lobby was very spacious and had new features like:

• Separate waiting rooms for men and women.
• A special smoking room for gentlemen.
• A sit-down lunch counter.

The inside of the station was beautiful. It had Sienna marble columns and mosaic floors. The staircase was decorated with bronze carvings of Rocky Mountain Sheep heads. The station cost $408,000.00 to build, which was a lot of money back then!

Worldwide Praise for its Design

The building was admired for its beauty. Everyone loved it. A German group even said it was America's best railroad station. In 1908, the Chicago Record newspaper wrote, "The handsomest railway station ever seen is the Burlington Station at Omaha. It is an artistic gem and looks like a Grecian Temple."

Even though the station looked like a classic temple, it was also very practical. The two-story station was built next to the 10th Street viaduct. This meant the main entrance was from the viaduct to the second floor. This entrance had twenty-eight huge columns made of Colorado granite. The walls were built with light gray brick and buff Indiana limestone. The roof was covered in red glazed tiles.

Changes and Updates (1929-1953)

The station was updated a lot from 1929 to 1930. This was done to compete with a new Union Station (now the Durham Museum) that was opening in 1931. The updates were finished on September 4, 1930. A big public party was held to celebrate. One of the new things was a restaurant that stayed open for the next thirty years.

The 1930 updates changed the building's style. It became more like Neo-Classical Revival. This meant the outside looked simpler. The granite columns and many other outside details were removed. Twenty-four of the original columns were moved to Lincoln. Today, they stand between Memorial Stadium and the Coliseum there. The updates also raised the roof over the main waiting room. The walls were decorated with new designs, including gold medallions. Four huge lanterns were put in, each weighing more than a ton. The central spiral staircase was completely removed.

Later Years and Closure (1954-2013)

The north face of Omaha's Burlington Station

The station was updated again in 1954. A large parking area was added with lights and a canopy. There was also a circular drive so people could easily drop off passengers. In the late 1960s, fewer people traveled by train. Because of this, some parts of the station started to fall apart.

Finally, in 1971, passenger train service was taken over by Amtrak. Amtrak used the Burlington Station until February 1, 1974. After that, they moved to a simpler station about 220 feet (67 meters) to the east in 1983. In 1974, the station was added to the National Register of Historic Places as The Burlington Station.

After it closed, people tried to use the station for other things, like business offices or a warehouse. But these plans didn't work out. In 1985, an architectural salvager removed and sold almost everything from the inside. The four huge chandeliers were taken down. One of them broke and was sold in pieces.

In 2004, two investors bought the building. They planned to turn it into private homes called "The Burlington." But when the economy got bad in 2008, not enough condos were sold. So, the project stopped, and the building remained empty for a while.

The Station Today: KETV's Studio

On June 5, 2013, Hearst Television announced they bought the Burlington Station. Now, it's the broadcast home for Omaha's ABC television station, KETV (Channel 7). The building was completely updated to be a modern TV and web media center.

The renovation took over two years. KETV moved from their old building to the station in late October 2015. The company Leo A Daly designed the building's new look. KETV aired their first broadcast from 7 Burlington Station at 5 PM on Wednesday, October 28, 2015.