Burlington, IA (BRL)

300 South Main Street
Burlington, IA 52601

Station Hours

Annual Ticket Revenue (FY 2023): $529,963
Annual Station Ridership (FY 2023): 6,015

• Ownerships
• Routes Served
• Contact
• Local Community Links

• Facility Ownership: City of Burlington
• Parking Lot Ownership: City of Burlington
• Platform Ownership: BNSF Railway
• Track Ownership: BNSF Railway

• California Zephyr

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 Burlington
• Burlington Urban Services
• Burlington Iowa Friends of the Depot

Standing just a few hundred feet from the eastern shore of the Mississippi River, the Burlington depot was erected in 1944 by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad (CB&Q). It replaced an earlier station that was destroyed by fire in January 1943. In addition to serving Amtrak passengers, the depot is the hub for Burlington Urban Services, the local bus system.

Designed by the well-known Chicago-based architectural firm of Holabird and Root, the depot exemplifies the streamlined mid-century modern aesthetic that came into vogue in the 1930s. With its sleek styling and trendy, contemporary finishes, the $300,000 building represented a new era for the CB&Q. Like many American railroads, it had experienced tremendous passenger growth during World War II that it hoped to retain in the post-war years. The dedication ceremony held on March 28, 1944 was attended by architects John Holabird and John W. Root, Iowa Governor Bourke Hickenlooper, CB&Q President Ralph Budd, Burlington Mayor Max Conrad and other local officials as well as townspeople.

Meant to be functional, streamlined buildings were characterized by clean lines and simple surfaces in which the materials themselves—textured stone, shiny aluminum, glossy glass block—were the main decorative elements. The two-story depot, constructed of reinforced concrete, is faced in buff-colored Wisconsin Lannon stone, a type of limestone, laid in a random ashlar pattern.

As a combination depot, the building included passenger and freight functions under one roof; from the exterior, the window configurations indicate how space was arranged. At the north end of the depot, the waiting room – known as the Great Room – is denoted by a full height corner window wall that allows ample natural light to flood the space. On the northeast corner, a one-story rounded pavilion projects out from the building, sharply contrasting with the otherwise crisp, rectilinear lines. The pavilion, with windows all around, originally housed an outpost of the famous Grier’s restaurant chain; patrons had sweeping views of the busy tracks and the bridge over the river.

Moving south, the bands of windows along the principal elevations further reinforce the horizontal orientation of the structure and point to the location of more utilitarian spaces such as a baggage room, restrooms and locker area. The upper floor was devoted to railroad operations and included offices for the general superintendent, freight agent, division engineer and telephone and telegraph operators. There was also space for trainmen to sleep and relax between shifts.

Interestingly, the depot was built to accommodate both rail and bus passengers in a time when intermodal facilities were rare. Cantilevered canopies around much of the building protected passengers from inclement weather while they waited outside for the arrival of the train or bus. Inside, the Great Room was used by all passengers. The two story space features walls clad in a buff Montana travertine; durable terrazzo floors; and black marble accents and trim. Streamlined furniture constructed of rich walnut had green and grey upholstery that was set off by the room’s vibrant yellow window treatments. On one wall of the waiting room, the CB&Q inscribed many of the major achievements that it had accomplished in its namesake city, such as the testing of inventor George Westinghouse’s air brakes in 1887.

In the summer of 1993, the Burlington depot was inundated by 20 inches of water during widespread Mississippi River flooding. The next year, the city purchased the building from the Burlington Northern Railroad and undertook a series of renovations including roof repairs and the installation of new windows. A “Friends of the Depot” group also formed to help the city maintain the structure and encourage ideas for its adaptive reuse. In 2001, the depot was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in acknowledgement of its daring modern design and physical integrity.

A 2008 flood undid much of the previous decade’s renovation work. The next year, the city updated an earlier feasibility study detailing the restoration and reuse potential of the depot; it included the idea of erecting a floodwall to protect the building. Meanwhile, the city granted permission to the revived Friends group to renovate and spruce up the depot.

Using more than $1,000 donated by Amtrak, the Friends organized work days in 2011 and 2012 during which volunteers painted the depot’s exterior trim and caulked windows. Local businesses either donated supplies or offered deep discounts to support the renovation effort. Through monies that Amtrak received under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the depot also received a new wheelchair lift and enclosure in 2010; platform signage was updated the following year.

In 2014, the city secured a $480,000 Iowa DOT Public Transportation Infrastructure grant to rehabilitate the structure. This amount was matched with $120,000 from the city and nearly $140,000 raised by the Friends. The renovation work, largely completed by summer 2017, included installation of a new heating and air conditioning system, sprinkler system and roof. In the Great Room, crews installed new windows, a ceiling and lighting. Private donations were allocated for restoration of the original clock and the phone booths. Other projects, such as new drapery and additional furniture for the Great Hall, will be completed as funds become available. At a future date, the city and Friends also hope to lease out the former restaurant area for a modern food service operation.

New Englanders settled in what is now the Burlington area in the 1830s and named the settlement for their hometown of Burlington, Vt. The arrival of the steamboats, the railroad and a plank toll road in the 1850s established Burlington as a transportation gateway to Iowa. The railroad mainline running through the southern tier of the state was conceptualized and built by the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad.

Incorporated at Burlington in 1852, the owners hoped to build a line westward from the city to Council Bluffs, Iowa and then onto Omaha, Neb., where the railroad was headquartered. The southern route was desirable due to the area’s potential for agricultural production, timber harvesting and finishing and coal mining—all activities that would bring business to the railroad. In colorful posters aimed at settlers throughout the Midwest and on the East Coast, the railroad advertised the sale of the millions of acres it had received in federal land grants.

Commencing surveying in 1853, the 75 mile line from Burlington to Ottumwa was completed by 1859. After a delay due to the Civil War, construction started once again in 1865 and reached the Missouri River by 1869. In 1868, Burlington gained national fame as the site of one of the initial railroad bridges to cross the Mississippi. The first 496 mile, 22 hour journey from Chicago to Council Bluffs was made in January 1870, and regular rail service began soon thereafter. Two years later, the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad was subsumed into the CB&Q.

In the mid-1930s, the CB&Q began running its famous Zephyrs, articulated stainless steel, streamlined passenger trains that came to epitomize a new era of glamour for the railroads. The famed California Zephyr running between Chicago and San Francisco included a vista-dome car with glorious all-around views of the countryside, cities and towns through which the train sped.

Today, Burlington’s economy is based on healthcare, education and industry, and the city also serves as a shopping and entertainment destination for surrounding communities. Readers of Ripley’s Believe It Or Not might know Burlington as the location of Snake Alley, considered the “Crookest Street in the World.” Envisioned, planned and built by three German immigrants in the 1890s, it is located in the Heritage Hill neighborhood and includes five half-curves and two quarter-curves spanning a rise of more than 58 feet in over one city block. For lovers of classic television, Burlington is famous as the birthplace of actor William Frawley, who gained his greatest fame as character Fred Mertz on I Love Lucy. Aldo Leopold, one of the founders of the wildlife management and conservation movement, also hailed from Burlington.

Station Building (with waiting room)