Sebring, FL (SBG)

601 East Center Street
Sebring, FL 33870

Station Ownership

Facility:
Amtrak

Parking:
CSX

Platform(s):
CSX

Track(s):
CSX

Amtrak Contact

Todd Stennis

Routes Served:

• Silver Meteor
• Silver Star

History

This former Seaboard Air Line Railway (SAL) station at Sebring was added to the National Register of Historic Places on March 16, 1990. Although efforts were begun in the early 1980s to put the station on the register and get funding for restoration, funding was not found until 1994. The station, once considered the worst in Florida, was restored and reopened on April 24, 1998, at a cost of $800,000 from federal ISTEA funds, via the Florida Department of Transportation. The vernacular masonry building appears to be one of the Seaboard Air Line’s Mission revival style Harvey and Clarke buildings, surfaced in pink stucco with a barrel-tile roof.

The Atlantic Coast Line railroad (ACL) came to Sebring in June of 1912 on the branch reaching southward from Haines City. The coming of the railroad opened this otherwise virgin territory to development in lumber, mining, citrus, and tourism. The railroad also provided the main route in for new residents, as an unpaved sand trail was the only other means of access at first.

By 1917, the original wooden ACL station was replaced by a larger combined passenger and freight station built in stuccoed brick. The Seaboard Air Line, however, came in 1924-25 with heavier rail and famous-name passenger trains. The ACL station saw its last passengers in 1955. When ACL and SAL merged in 1967, the older ACL station became redundant and was torn down in 2000.

Sebring was founded in 1912 and named after its founder, George Sebring, a pottery manufacturer from Ohio, who developed the city after visiting on a fishing trip to Lake Jackson and purchasing the property in 1911. Sebring was chartered soon after, in 1913, by the Florida legislature. The city is known as the “City on the Circle” because George Sebring laid out the plan to have the spokes of the roads emanate from a central hub, supposedly taken from the design of Heliopolis in Egypt. Downtown Sebring has been designated a 1920s Historic District, and over $16 million invested in restoration for that park-like central circle.

Sebring is perhaps best known for being the home of the Sebring International Raceway, which was created on a former airbase and first used in 1950. The raceway is currently the host of the 12 Hours of Sebring, an annual American Le Mans series race. Recently, Sebring became the winter home of Indy Car Racing, with one of the most active test facilities in North America.

Amtrak provides both baggage and ticketing services at this facility.

Sebring is served by four daily trains.

ADA Compliance

Federal law requires compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by 2010. The following is a list of items typically required for transportation and public facilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Please check the regulations for guidance or contact us for more information.