Other old San Diego County train stations

This information came from Journal of San Diego History and San Diego Travel Tips CARLSBAD station now houses the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce and is still located in the original location. This station was built in 1887 and was originally called "Carl" to avoid confusion with Carlsbad, New Mexico. The station was used by Santa Fe until 1960 at which time it was acquired by the City of Carlsbad, CA.

DEL MAR station was built in 1910 and is all brick. The original station was located along Camno del Mar at 9th Street. It was moved to its current location at Coast Blvd. between 15th and 17th Street. The station sits on 2.8 acres and served Del Mar from 1910 to 1995. In 1995, Amtrak stopped serving Del Mar. Currently the station is owned by Catellus Development Company of Newport Beach, CA

ENCINITAS station with its gingerbread-Victorian style architecture was built in 1887. The building served passengers into the 1950's and finally closed in January, 1969. It was relocated to Leucadia in 1972. The Encinitas station was picked up for $1 from the Santa Fe Railway in the 1970's to become a center for arts and crafts shop. In 1980 Pannikin Coffee and Tea took over the spot and restore it to its original beauty.

ESCONDIDO station was built in 1887 and served the city from 1888 to 1945 with passenger service and until 1981 with freight operations. City preservationists rallied enough support to purchase and move the building to Grape Day Park in 1985.

FALLBROOK and OCEANSIDE are no longer in existence. Fallbrook was torn down in the 1970's. The old Oceanside station was torn down in the 1940's and the newer depot was dedicated in 1946, but does not appear to be there any longer. VISTA station was constructed in 1913 and used for passenger service until the early 1940's. The station was moved to its present location in 1981.

Union Station in San Diego-southern end of Pacific Surfliner

The Union Station in San Diego is also known as the Santa Fe Depot and was built by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway to replace the small Victorian style structure that was built in 1887 for The California Southern Railroad.

Union Station in San Diego

HISTORY

 The Spanish colonial revival style stated is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Santa Fe Depot officially opened on March 8, 1915 to accommodate visitors to the Panama-California exposition. The depot was completed during a particularly optimistic period in the city's development and represents the battle waged by the City of San Diego to become the West Coast terminus of the Santa Fe Railway systems transcontinental railroad. In its heyday, the facility handled Santa Fe traffic and San Diego and Arizona Railway and San Diego Electric Railway. The designation was officially changed to San Diego Union Station in response to the San Diego and Arizona's completion of its own transcontinental line in December, 1919. The Santa Fe resumed solo operation of the station in January, 1951, when the San Diego and Arizona Railway discontinued passenger service.  The magnificent complex was designed by San Francisco architects Bakewell and Brown as a "monumental reminder" of California Spanish heritage. The mission revival styling reflects the Colonial Spanish history of the state and was intended to harmonize with the Spanish Colonial Revival Style buildings of the Panama-California Exposition.

Front of San Diego Union Station

 The size and grandeur far surpassed anything the Santa Fe had ever built in the west. The new edifice featured a covered concourse that was 650 feet long by 106 feet wide with a main waiting room measuring 170 feet by 55 feet. A 27 feet by 650 foot long arcade connected the passenger terminal with the baggage and express rooms.

San Diego Union Station

 An enlarged bus depot was installed in the southeast portico in 1942. The massive arch of the front entrance is flanked by twin campaniles each topped by a colorful tile-covered dome and displaying Santa Fe's blue cross emblem on all four sides. The structure draws much more influence from the mission located in Oceanside than the mission located the closest in San Diego.

 The grand interior space has natural redwood beam ceiling and walls covered with brightly colored ceramic tiles.

Inside San Diego Union Station