Carlinville, IL (CRV)

128 Alton Road
Carlinville, IL 62626-1625

Station Hours

Annual Ticket Revenue (FY 2023): $264,247
Annual Station Ridership (FY 2023): 8,332

• Ownerships
• Routes Served
• Contact
• Local Community Links

• Facility Ownership: City of Carlinville
• Parking Lot Ownership: City of Carlinville
• Platform Ownership: City of Carlinville
• Track Ownership: Union Pacific Railroad

• Lincoln Service
• Texas Eagle

Derrick James
Regional Contact
governmentaffairschi@amtrak.com
For information about Amtrak fares and schedules, please visit Amtrak.com or call 1-800-USA-RAIL (1-800-872-7245).

• City of Carlinville
• Amtrak Texas Eagle
• Illinois High-Speed Rail
• Illinois Route 66 Scenic Byway

A new depot opened in Carlinville in November 2017, and it was officially dedicated a month later. Located about five blocks west of the elegant Public Square on the edge of downtown, it replaced a small, enclosed shelter. The 1,200-square foot depot, built of cast stone and topped with a gabled, seamed-metal roof, was designed by the Chicago-based firm of Muller+Muller.

Walls of glass that stretch almost floor to ceiling offer views out to the railroad and allow abundant natural light to fill the waiting room. The building also includes restrooms, vending machines and space for local and regional tourism information – visually, this section of the depot is distinguished by oversize, dark brown brick on the exterior. Flanking the north and south ends of the waiting room are covered porches where customers can wait during pleasant weather. A clock in one of the gables harkens back to depot designs of a century ago.

An exterior wall features an 8’ x 17’ mural commissioned by the city and completed by Carlinville native David Bellm. It depicts Abraham Lincoln – who occasionally came to town while a lawyer and later campaigned there for the U.S. Senate – tipping his hat to modern-day visitors from the back of a train. The overall station project also included installation of a new concrete platform with tactile edging, exterior lighting, parking areas, bike racks and landscaping.

Under the Federal Railroad Administration’s High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail (HSIPR) program, the state of Illinois received $1.2 billion to improve the vital Chicago-St. Louis rail corridor so that passenger trains could attain regular speeds of 110 mph, reducing overall travel times and presenting an even stronger transportation alternative for drivers along the congested Interstate 55 corridor. As part of the rail upgrades, $3.76 million was put toward the new Carlinville station, with the city contributing about $70,000.

Carlinville is the seat of Macoupin County, and its signature landmark is the historic Macoupin County Courthouse whose soaring silver dome dominates the skyline. The courthouse – often referred to as the “Million Dollar Courthouse” – cost a staggering $1,342,226.31 by the time it was completed in 1870. It possesses elements of different architectural styles, but can be classified as Century Victorian Classic Revival.

At the time of its construction, the building was the largest county courthouse in the United States, and larger than the Illinois Statehouse. The construction made Carlinville a candidate for state capital. Today, the courthouse still serves as the seat of county government, and it has become a tourist attraction, drawing crowds from around the world. The nearby Gothic Revival-style county jail was built in 1869 by E. E. Myers, the same architect who designed the courthouse. It is often described as a fortress; the walls are lined with cannonballs to prevent jail-breaks.

Of architectural interest as well is the large number of homes that were bought from the Sears, Roebuck & Co. mail order catalog. Carlinville has the largest number of Sears catalog homes in the country. In 1918, Standard Oil of Indiana funded the construction of the homes for its mineworkers, at a cost of $1,000,000. All but four of the 156 homes still exist today.

Many presidential candidates visited Carlinville in the days when politicians traveled by rail making campaign stops. Abraham Lincoln was known to have visited the original Carlinville courthouse. From 1926 to 1930, famed Route 66 ran through the heart of town. Today, visitors can retrace the original route by following historic markers. Carlinville is also home to Blackburn College, a small Presbyterian school.

The Lincoln Service is financed primarily through funds made available by the Illinois Department of Transportation.

Station Building (with waiting room)