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 A three-car North Shore Electric Line train assigned to the Shore Line route passes the Larrabee & Ogden station. The "Ogden" name board separate and above the one that says "Larrabee and North Ave." indicates that the station's name changed after it opened. The change came between 1926 and 1930. The station was closed in the CTA service revision of 1949. Today, nothing of the station in this picture but the tracks remains. (Photo from Fielding Kunecke) |
Larrabee
(1600N/600W)
Larrabee Street, Ogden
Avenue and North Avenue, Cabrini-Green (Near North
Side)
Service Notes:
North Side Division, Main Line
Quick Facts:
Address: TBD
Established: June 1, 1900
Original Line: Northwestern Elevated Railroad
Other Names: Larrabee & North Ave, Larrabee & Ogden
Skip-Stop Type: n/a
Rebuilt: n/a
Status: Demolished
History:
Larrabee Street station was built as part of the original main line of the Northwestern Elevated in 1900. The only line in Chicago to do so, the Northwestern "L" built four tracks north of Chicago Avenue to allow for both local and express service. Some stations, like Larrabee, were built with platforms on the outside tracks (for locals only), but some had two island platforms to facilitate both express and local trains.
The headhouse was one of several stations built from a design by William Gibb on what is now the Brown Line. Constructed entirely of brick with terra-cotta trim, the Classical Revival design was inspired by the work of the great 16th century Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio. The bold modeling of the details, especially the columns and segmented arched windows, is characteristic of Italianate work of the late 19th century. The interior featured plaster walls with extensive wood detailings in the door and window frames, ceiling moldings, and tongue-in groove chair rail paneling. The brick station house was similar to those still at Chicago, Sedgwick, Armitage and Fullerton.
The dual side platforms at Larrabee were covered in the center by two peaked-roof canopies of steel supports with gently-curved brackets and intricate latticework, covered by a corrugated metal roofing. Originally, these covered about half the platform length, but the platforms were subsequently lengthened to allow longer trains to berth. The railings consisted of tubular frames and posts with panels of decorative, vaguely diamond shaped metalwork inside.
Although maps bore only the name Larrabee, the station's platform signage referred to the stop as "Larrabee and North Ave." Later, after the street was completed, the name was changed to Larrabee & Ogden and a sign saying only "Ogden" was placed above all the others denoted the changed name. This occurred some time between 1926 and 1930.
Larrabee briefly survived the CTA's® 1947 takeover, but was one of 23 stations closed in their North-South Route service revision August 1, 1949, which included the closing of several other stops on this line including Oak, Schiller, Halsted, Webster, Wrightwood and more. The concept of "local" stations, of which Larrabee's low usage was only suited, was not a part of the A/B skip stop concept and the station was closed. Today, the entire station is gone and nothing of it remains.
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