Loomis (6300S/1400W)
Loomis Street and 63rd Street, Englewood

Service Notes:

North-South Route, Englewood branch

Quick Facts:

Address: 6317 S. Loomis Street
Established: July 13, 1907
Original Line: South Side Elevated Railroad, Englewood branch
Previous Names: none

Skip-Stop Type:

Station

Rebuilt: n/a
Status: Demolished

History: The Loomis Terminal island platform, looking east on April 12, 1965. The narrow confines of the platform -- problematic for both operations and passenger safety and comfort -- were one of the many reasons the station was replaced four years later with a larger, modern terminal at Ashland. For a larger view, click here. (Photo from the Chicago Transit Authority Collection) The Englewood Branch of the South Side Rapid Transit began construction in 1903. It opened in segments, beginning November 3, 1905 with a shuttle from the main line at 58th Street to State Street. By December 10 it was extended to Wentworth and Princeton (actually 61st Street) on January 11, 1906. The next segment to Harvard Street opened November 3 (the victim of a 226-day iron workers' strike). Parnell and Halsted to the west opened just in time for last minute Christmas shopping on December 24. By July 13, 1907, the rest of the line was opened to its terminal at Loomis Blvd. The original facility at Loomis consisted of a grade-level station house on the east side of the street with a rear exit up to an island platform. The station house seems to have been of a unique design, not matching the Greek Revival stations at Racine and Halsted to the east. (Or, if it originally did, it was severly modified in later years.) By 1964, it seems to have been a one-story white or tan building with green doors and window trim and some sort of cornice along the top of the building. After the CTA took over, the Loomis station underwent a series of upgrades and renovations. In 1956, a "speed ramp" was installed at Loomis. Supplementing the original stairs, this ramp was a diagonal, sloping, enclosed beltway connecting the station house with the island platform. The direction of the ramp could be reversed for each rush hour and was capable of accommodating 7,200 passengers an hour. If successful, more were to be installed around the system. None were. In 1960 at a cost of $560,000, the north track and segment of the island platform was extended across Loomis Boulevard so that both tracks could berth an eight-car train (albeit barely). The next year, work progressed on a $600,000 project to enlarge the terminal, expand the passenger control facilities, and increase the car storage capacity of the yard at Loomis/63rd. Actually, the Loomis Yard stretched the entire quarter mile from Loomis to the Racine station to the east. A $204,980 contract was awarded in August 1961 for construction of two new storage tracks in the yard to hold an additional 40 cars. Engineering work to enlarge the platforms and fare control facility began in 1961, with work started started in mid-1962 at a cost of $250,000. In 1968, work on a new shop for the Loomis Yard at Racine/63 began, replacing the inspection shop that front Loomis to the south of the station platform. In spite of all these improvements, the Loomis Terminal would be replaced only a few years later. The extension to Ashland opened in 1969, thus closing the Loomis Terminal.

cta4288.jpg (50k) Chicago Transit Authority car 4288 stands at the Englewood branch's Loomis Terminal on an Illini Railroad Club fan trip. The car poses with a Howard destination board, a "Baseball Today" sign (indicating a Sox game near the Tech-35th station) and Amber marker lights (used by Howard - Englewood trains) in May 1966. (Photo by Jerry Appleman)