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MEMPHIS UNION STATION (Reprinted from the April 12, 1912. RAILWAY AGE GAZETTE. Vol. 52, No. 15.) The new union station at Memphis, Tenn., was occupied by the St. Louis, Iron Mountain & Southern, the St. Louis Southwestern, the Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis, the Southern and the Louisville & Nashville on April 1. The building is located near the business district of the city and within easy reach of the other railway terminals. The ground consists of four city blocks, comprising an area of about 25 acres, bounded by Calhoun and Railroad avenues, Rayburn boulevard and South Second street. When this tract was purchased several years ago it was partially covered with rubbish, partly built over with straggling, tumbledown tenements, and was crossed by the Bayou Gayoso, a stream averaging about 16 ft. deep and 25 ft. wide. It involved considerable work to prepare this site be-
fore any work could be done on the structure proper. A fill of 150,000 yds. was made, the dirt being hauled in by trains from outside the city. This work alone required four months. The stream was taken care of by building a reinforced concrete storm sewer S ft. X 14 ft., in section and more than 2,000 ft. long, which cost about $90,000 and required eight months to build. The street traffic formerly crossing the site was cared for by building subways at Carolina avenue and Rayburn boulevard. Actual construction work on the building was begun about April 1, 1910. The plant consists of the station building proper, 84 ft. X 285 ft., three stories high ; the train concourse, 241 It. X 95 ft. ; the express building annex, 40 ft. x 275 ft. ; the power house, interlocking tower and roundhouse. In the design, future developments have been carefully considered and facilities provided which should be adequate for at least 25 years. The entire plant is fireproof and has been constructed with an eye to climatic conditions, giv-