In General
Getting Here
Map
Pictures
Sights
USGS Maps

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In General


Location / Name:
Valparaiso IN, Porter County (county seat)

What's Here:
Norfolk Southern
Canadian National
Chicago, Fort Wayne and Eastern RR
Two Diamonds

Data:
GPS Coordinates: as needed
Phone A/C: 219
ZIP: 46383

Access by train/transit:
None

Geography:
Pretty much flat

The Scoop:

I needed a place to put one of the pictures below, so I created this page just for it. :-)

Three railroads pass through the city: -- The Norfolk Southern Railway operates on the tracks that were previously the Nickel Plate Road, -- The Canadian National is the former Grand Trunk Western Railroad, and -- The Chicago, Fort Wayne and Eastern Railroad operates on the tracks that were previously used by the Pennsylvania Railroad.

The city also has a long history of being a travel hub for the region. In 1858 the Pittsburgh, Ft. Wayne, and Chicago Railroad reached Valparaiso and connected the city directly to Chicago. By 1910 an interurban railway had connected the city to Gary IN. Today, while thecity no longer has a passenger train station, it is still very much a part of the "Crossroads of America" due to its proximity to I-94, I-80, I-90, and I-65.

Until 1991 Valparaiso was the terminal of Amtrak's Calumet commuter service.  The links will take you to Wikipedia pages on those railroads.

The Amtrak station in town is no longer in use - The closest station looks to be in Michigan City.

Over on the west side of town, you have a couple of diamonds (green arrows), and a crossover (blue arrow).

If I ever get any additional information, maybe the page will develop into a real guide.

Acknowledgements:
Google Maps
Bing Maps
Wikipedia

Websites and other additional information sources of interest for the area:
More into on Valparaiso is here
http://www.trainweb.org/usarail/valparaiso.htm Info and Pictures of the Amtrak station are from this page


Getting Here



Valparaiso is about 20 miles southeast of Gary, and about 50 miles from Chicago.  There are no major hiways leading into town.

I-94 and I-80/90 are to the north, although I-80/90, the Indiana Tollway, does not have a convenient exit for Valparaiso.  I-94 to the north does, it's exit 26, which you then take IN 49 south into town.

From I-80/90 to the west of town, take exit 23 in Portage, and then go south on Willowcreek Road till you hit US 6 - take a left.  Go a little over a mile and take a right onto Wolf Rd/N county road 450 W.  When you get to IN 130, hang a left and follow the tracks into town.

From I80/90 on the east side, get off at exit 39, which is US421, and head south.  In about a mile and a half in Westville, bear to the right onto IN 2, and take that into Valparaiso.  It turns in LaPorte Ave in town.


Maps







Pictures


Photos courtesy Tim Vermande








Sights


ex GTW Depot

As of late 2012, the city was trying to figure out what to do with the old GTW depot off of Calumet Ave, as CN has obtained a demolition permit to tear it down.  The full article from the blurb below is here.  In October 2013, Google Streetview car cameras caught the depot, however, when they rolled through in June 2019, it was no longer with us..... :-(

Passengers have long since stopped getting off at the train depot next to the Canadian National tracks on North Calumet Avenue, but preservationists are hoping to save the century-old station from the wrecking ball.  The city's Historic Preservation Commission is meeting today in hopes of finding someone interested in acquiring the building and moving it. The railroad no longer needs the building and obtained a demolition permit to remove it.  Those interested in saving the station have called for the preservation commission's help.  The city's preservation ordinance can delay demolition up to 45 days to seek ways of saving any structure of historical significance. A 1991 survey of county buildings by the Indiana Historic Landmarks Foundation and the state Historic Preservation Office classified the depot as "notable."  Tiffany Tolbert, a consultant to the foundation from the city commission, said the railroad line was one of the earliest in the city. Research by Larry Clark, of the Valparaiso Public Library's genealogy department, showed the depot was built around 1904 after a fire that destroyed the second depot at that location.  It was considered as the possible site of a depot for a proposed extension of a South Shore commuter rail line to Valparaiso before city officials settled on the former Amtrak station location. The railroad used the depot for storage for many years, but now wants to tear it down before it falls into disrepair.  "We've been in talks with the city since the issue of demolition came up, and we're trying to come up with a plan to find someone to buy it and move it," Tolbert said. "The railroad has agreed to delay demolition to at least the end of November. It's in pretty good condition, but the railroad is not using it and they would like to clear the site."  A spokesman for Canadian National declined comment.  Clark said the depot originally served the Peninsular Railroad in the 1870s before it was bought by the Chicago and Port Huron Railroad. A link ran past the former Valparaiso Technical Institute to the Baum's Hotel on the site of what is now the Franklin House.










Location of the former Amtrak Station

GPS Coordinates: 41.46721, -87.06684 (GPS coordinates on the Trainweb page are incorrect)
Foot of Lincoln Way West, Valparaiso, IN 46383

Amtrak's Calumet, which stopped in Valparaiso, was discontinued on May 4, 1991.

The Broadway Limited and the Capitol Limited both used to come thru Valparaiso, but were rerouted thru Waterloo IN in November 1990.

According to the Wikipedia page, the old structure burnt down, date unknown - HOWEVER, paying attention to the early 80's pictures below (and my standard Wikipedia disclaimer), the shelter is shown in those early pictures of the old station structure, so I'm not buying what Wikipedia is selling :-).  Wikipedia is claiming the burnt down station was replaced by the bus style shelter.  While there is nothing here anymore, it looks like a nice spot to take pictures from - and you can grab something to eat too!

There are no picture credits mentioned on the Trainweb page these pictures were found on.

2013

2024

1981

1982

1983

1988


Two Diamonds and a Crossover

For a little more substance in your pictures, you might want to check out these locations on the northwest side of town.  They are all signaled to some degree.








Historical USGS Maps


Courtesy USGS, click here for their index page.



Walkerson, Plymouth, LaCrosse, Union Mills, and N Judson look like they would have been terrific railfan spots back in the time, with three roads hitting each town at the same spot!




Disclaimers:

New format 10/26/23: Please check out my disclaimer page for my standard dribble and contact info here

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NEW 02/08/2013, DEC29/31/2024
Last Modified 31-Dec-2024