The End of an Era

I just found out that the historic pedestrian tunnel underneath Union Station in downtown Denver is closing for good on February 1st.  I made a last trip down there this morning to take some photographs and was a little disappointed to find that construction workers were already readying the place for destruction.

Union Station was originally built in 1870 for half a million dollars.  It survived a fire and 3 major reconstructions during its first few decades and the structure that we have now was finished in 1914.  It's a really neat building with all the old gates for the trains tucked down in what is now a pedestrian walkway that takes you from downtown to the lightrail station just on the other side of Union.  When you walk through the tunnel lined with these old gates, original white wall tiles and wooden benches with backs that are about 5 feet high, you really get a sense for what it was like years ago when the place was in full swing.  It's sad to see the tunnel go, but at least they're keeping the rest of the building.

These are few photos from what was probably my last trip through the tunnel this morning (unless I can squeeze in one more tomorrow....).

These next few photos are taken in the main hall which will remain. I was reading today that there are over 2300 columbines (the state flower) carved into the plaster. This is a beautiful three-story light filled room, which I'm afraid my photos don't do justice to.