Most folks go through Union Station en route to somewhere else, but it’s the destination for the Chicago History Museum’s walking tour.
The tour materialized after the museum opened its “Railroaders” exhibit (running through Aug. 10, 2015), which displays photos by Jack Delano, commissioned in 1942 by the Office of War Information to document the place of railroads in American life.
“There are a lot of images of Union Station in the exhibit, and we wanted to make them come alive,” says public programs coordinator Ani Schmidt, who helped develop the tour.
Docents who conduct the tours focus in part on the architecture of the building, designed by Daniel Burnham and finished after his death in 1925.
“The Beaux Arts-style Great Hall was very modern for the time period, with 18 Corinthian columns, pink marble floors and a five-story-high atrium with sun coming in from the skylight,” Schmidt says. “We like to tell visitors to stand still in the center of the space because it creates such a sense of awe.”
The building also includes its share of bittersweet history.
“Union Station was the last place back then where people got to see their loved ones before putting them on a train to go to war,” Schmidt says. “During the tour we like to tell the hidden secrets and the personal stories of Union Station.”
The tour meets at Union Station, 500 W. Jackson Blvd. at 1 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 9 (also Nov. 23, Dec. 14 and 21, Jan. 25, Feb. 22). $25; $20 for History Museum members. Reservations: 312-642-4600 or chicagohistory.org.