.gif)
Waterbury (Metro-North station)
Encyclopedia
The former Waterbury Union Station building is located on Meadow Street in Waterbury
, Connecticut, United States. It is a brick building dating to the first decade of the 20th century. Its tall clock tower
, built by the Seth Thomas Company
, is the city's most prominent landmark.
Designed by the New York City architectural firm of McKim, Mead and White for the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad
, it handled 66 passenger trains a day at its peak. Later in the 20th century, when the city's rail service had declined to its current level of one commuter route, the building's interior was closed. Today it is in use again as the offices of the Republican-American, Waterbury's daily newspaper.
, where Meadow and Grand streets intersect. To its north and south are other industrial buildings; southwest is the current platform station
used by Metro-North
and its parking facilities. On the west are 12 tracks, most of which are rarely used; beyond them are industrial buildings, the Naugatuck River
and the Connecticut Route 8 freeway. A short distance down Meadow Street are the on-ramps to the Interstate 84
viaduct
carrying it over the river, tracks and Route 8.
with the clock tower rising from the southeast corner. Two wings with a tiled hip roof project from either side of the main block. All are of brick laid in common bond on a granite
foundation
; at the roofline is a roll molding
of terra cotta
.
On the east (front) facade
of the main block are three two-story round-arched window openings, filled in near the top where a new floor was later added. They are outlined in terra cotta in a stylized vine pattern, bordered by pearl, egg-and-dart and anthemion molding. Spacing them are four round medallions made of two rings of raised radial brick and a raised ring of fasces
molding. Above is a course
of terra cotta round-arched corbel
table topped by egg-and-dart, a frieze
with cherub
s and projecting leaf molding. The level above has a series of small rectangular windows, three above each arch and one above each medallion. At the roofline is a cornice similar to the one below but more intricate, with carved modillions, a fluted
frieze and wide carved cyma
molding. The west facade is similar, although smaller windows and awnings have been added.
The lower two stages of the square tower have one narrow opening and the same cornices as the rest of the main block. Above its roofline the tower is plain for most of its 240 feet (73.2 m) height, except for some rows of small openings. The clock faces on each side, marked in Roman numerals, are three-quarters of the way to the top. They and the clock hands are in cast aluminum. Above long tapered corbels support a balcony
with heraldric
shields on its stone rail. Gargoyle
s project from each corner. The last stage, the belfry
, has tall round-arched windows, another set of gargoyles and a tiled hip roof.
Both wings are similar. They are narrower than the main building, with east and west facades decorated with an arcade
of seven rounded arches. Each is slightly recessed, with a rectangular window. On the north wing's east facade, windows have been added to the previously blind arch portion to provide illumination for the second story. A simpler version of the main block cornice, with dentils and cyma molding at the arches' springline, give a capital
-like appearance to the piers between the arches.
A printing press was added to the north wing to support the newspaper. It is small and architecturally sympathetic, lessening the impact of its disruption of the building's overall symmetry. On the west of the south wing is a gable
d remnant of the original platform shelter, supported by iron truss
es on center posts and cables from the building. A shed roof on large iron brackets
at the south end, formerly the baggage handling area, is now a default waiting area for Metro-North passengers in inclement weather.
to accommodate its purposes. Most prominently, the main block and north wing have had a second story added. In the offices on the new second floor some of the original vaulted ceiling, with large light-colored tiles in a herringbone pattern
. The window surrounds have similarly lavish decorations as the exterior, with two bands of terra cotta separated by dentils done in leaves and pearl molding. The buff brick walls likewise has a dentilled cornice
with an engaged baluster
-and-ring turning and a wide cyma
molding done in a stylized floral pattern.
The south wing's interior, originally a restaurant, remained in use as a waiting room. Inside it has some original decor suggesting that purpose. They include brass ticket windows, a long Mission style
wooden bench, iron radiator grill and marble baseboard
s and sills. Its vaulted ceiling and walls are done in plaster.
and other railroads serving it on an urban renewal
program to clear the way for a newer, larger station they all needed. Streets were straightened and buildings demolished in the neighborhood to the east. A small park replaced some of them.
McKim, Mead & White's design, extravagant in size and decoration
, was meant to symbolize the city's prosperity and the railroads' importance to it. As many as 66 passenger trains served Waterbury at the peak of its traffic. The firm's design is different from its typically academic style in its efforts to unite the interior and exterior through similar materials and decorative themes, as well as the vaulted ceiling echoing the arches of the windows. The light reflecting off the warm interior colors through the large arched windows of the main facade made the building particularly welcoming at night.
A year after construction began, the president of one of the railroads asked for a clock tower, given Waterbury's proximity to the Seth Thomas
plant. McKim obliged with one based on the 14th-century Torre del Mangia
in Siena
, Italy. Architectural historian Carroll Meeks, in The Railroad Station: An Architectural History, believes that model was chosen as a deliberate rebuke to architectural amateurs such as the rail executive. The clock tower dominated the city's skyline then
and continues to do so today, when most travelers arrive in the city via interstate highway instead of the train.
In summer 1909, the completed station was opened. As intended, it catalyzed development in the neighborhood. A few years later, the American Brass Company
, representing another industry identified with the city and region, built new headquarters across Meadow Street from the station. Its architecture closely harmonized in size and material with the station.
The station continued to be used as intercity rail service to the city declined and then stopped in the later decades of the 20th century. In the 1970s one of the two newspapers that later became the Republican-American moved into the building, modifying it on the inside and out for that purpose. At that time the south wing was still being used by Metro-North
commuter rail passengers as a waiting area; since then that portion of the interior has been closed off and a new platform built.
Waterbury, Connecticut
Waterbury is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, on the Naugatuck River, 33 miles southwest of Hartford and 77 miles northeast of New York City...
, Connecticut, United States. It is a brick building dating to the first decade of the 20th century. Its tall clock tower
Clock tower
A clock tower is a tower specifically built with one or more clock faces. Clock towers can be either freestanding or part of a church or municipal building such as a town hall. Some clock towers are not true clock towers having had their clock faces added to an already existing building...
, built by the Seth Thomas Company
Seth Thomas (clockmaker)
Seth Thomas was an American clock maker and a pioneer of mass production at his Seth Thomas Clock Company.-Biography:Thomas was born in Wolcott, Connecticut, in 1785. He started in the clock business in 1807, working for clockmaker Eli Terry...
, is the city's most prominent landmark.
Designed by the New York City architectural firm of McKim, Mead and White for the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad
New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad
The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad , was a railroad that operated in the northeast United States from 1872 to 1968 which served the states of Connecticut, New York, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts...
, it handled 66 passenger trains a day at its peak. Later in the 20th century, when the city's rail service had declined to its current level of one commuter route, the building's interior was closed. Today it is in use again as the offices of the Republican-American, Waterbury's daily newspaper.
Building
The station building is located just west of downtown WaterburyDowntown Waterbury Historic District
The Downtown Waterbury Historic District is the core of the city of Waterbury, Connecticut, United States. It is a roughly rectangular area centered around West Main Street and Waterbury Green, the remnant of the original town commons, which has been called "one of the most attractive downtown...
, where Meadow and Grand streets intersect. To its north and south are other industrial buildings; southwest is the current platform station
Waterbury (Metro-North station)
The former Waterbury Union Station building is located on Meadow Street in Waterbury, Connecticut, United States. It is a brick building dating to the first decade of the 20th century...
used by Metro-North
Metro-North Railroad
The Metro-North Commuter Railroad , trading as MTA Metro-North Railroad, or, more commonly, Metro-North, is a suburban commuter rail service that is run and managed by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority , an authority of New York State. It is the busiest commuter railroad in the United...
and its parking facilities. On the west are 12 tracks, most of which are rarely used; beyond them are industrial buildings, the Naugatuck River
Naugatuck River
The Naugatuck River is a river in the US state of Connecticut. It carves out the Naugatuck River Valley. The river flows from northwest Connecticut southward into the Housatonic River in Derby, Connecticut. One of the river's main uses is hydropower, which is used to power industrial plants...
and the Connecticut Route 8 freeway. A short distance down Meadow Street are the on-ramps to the Interstate 84
Interstate 84 in Connecticut
Interstate 84 is an East–West Interstate highway across the state of Connecticut into Danbury, Waterbury, Hartford and Union.-Route description:...
viaduct
Viaduct
A viaduct is a bridge composed of several small spans. The term viaduct is derived from the Latin via for road and ducere to lead something. However, the Ancient Romans did not use that term per se; it is a modern derivation from an analogy with aqueduct. Like the Roman aqueducts, many early...
carrying it over the river, tracks and Route 8.
Exterior
There are four sections to the building, counting the clock tower. The two-story main block has a low hip roofHip roof
A hip roof, or hipped roof, is a type of roof where all sides slope downwards to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope. Thus it is a house with no gables or other vertical sides to the roof. A square hip roof is shaped like a pyramid. Hip roofs on the houses could have two triangular side...
with the clock tower rising from the southeast corner. Two wings with a tiled hip roof project from either side of the main block. All are of brick laid in common bond on a granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
foundation
Foundation (architecture)
A foundation is the lowest and supporting layer of a structure. Foundations are generally divided into two categories: shallow foundations and deep foundations.-Shallow foundations:...
; at the roofline is a roll molding
Molding (decorative)
Molding or moulding is a strip of material with various profiles used to cover transitions between surfaces or for decoration. It is traditionally made from solid milled wood or plaster but may be made from plastic or reformed wood...
of terra cotta
Architectural terracotta
Terracotta, in its unglazed form, became fashionable as an architectural ceramic construction material in England in the 1860s, and in the United States in the 1870s. It was generally used to supplement brick and tiles of similar colour in late Victorian buildings.It had been used before this in...
.
On the east (front) facade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
of the main block are three two-story round-arched window openings, filled in near the top where a new floor was later added. They are outlined in terra cotta in a stylized vine pattern, bordered by pearl, egg-and-dart and anthemion molding. Spacing them are four round medallions made of two rings of raised radial brick and a raised ring of fasces
Fasces
Fasces are a bundle of wooden sticks with an axe blade emerging from the center, which is an image that traditionally symbolizes summary power and jurisdiction, and/or "strength through unity"...
molding. Above is a course
Course (architecture)
A course is a continuous horizontal layer of similarly-sized building material one unit high, usually in a wall. The term is almost always used in conjunction with unit masonry such as brick, cut stone, or concrete masonry units .-Styles:...
of terra cotta round-arched corbel
Corbel
In architecture a corbel is a piece of stone jutting out of a wall to carry any superincumbent weight. A piece of timber projecting in the same way was called a "tassel" or a "bragger". The technique of corbelling, where rows of corbels deeply keyed inside a wall support a projecting wall or...
table topped by egg-and-dart, a frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
with cherub
Cherub
A cherub is a type of spiritual being mentioned in the Hebrew Bible and cited later on in the Christian biblical canons, usually associated with the presence of God...
s and projecting leaf molding. The level above has a series of small rectangular windows, three above each arch and one above each medallion. At the roofline is a cornice similar to the one below but more intricate, with carved modillions, a fluted
Fluting (architecture)
Fluting in architecture refers to the shallow grooves running vertically along a surface.It typically refers to the grooves running on a column shaft or a pilaster, but need not necessarily be restricted to those two applications...
frieze and wide carved cyma
Cyma
Cyma may refer to either:* A style of molding* Cyma Zarghami, the president of Nickelodeon and MTV Networks' Kids & Family Group* CYMA – Canadian Youth Mission to Armenia, a Canadian-run humanitarian program...
molding. The west facade is similar, although smaller windows and awnings have been added.
The lower two stages of the square tower have one narrow opening and the same cornices as the rest of the main block. Above its roofline the tower is plain for most of its 240 feet (73.2 m) height, except for some rows of small openings. The clock faces on each side, marked in Roman numerals, are three-quarters of the way to the top. They and the clock hands are in cast aluminum. Above long tapered corbels support a balcony
Balcony
Balcony , a platform projecting from the wall of a building, supported by columns or console brackets, and enclosed with a balustrade.-Types:The traditional Maltese balcony is a wooden closed balcony projecting from a...
with heraldric
Heraldry
Heraldry is the profession, study, or art of creating, granting, and blazoning arms and ruling on questions of rank or protocol, as exercised by an officer of arms. Heraldry comes from Anglo-Norman herald, from the Germanic compound harja-waldaz, "army commander"...
shields on its stone rail. Gargoyle
Gargoyle
In architecture, a gargoyle is a carved stone grotesque, usually made of granite, with a spout designed to convey water from a roof and away from the side of a building thereby preventing rainwater from running down masonry walls and eroding the mortar between...
s project from each corner. The last stage, the belfry
Belfry
The term belfry has a variety of uses:*Bell tower, an architectural term*Belfry, a type of medieval siege tower*Belfry, Montana, a town in the United States*The Belfry, an English golf club...
, has tall round-arched windows, another set of gargoyles and a tiled hip roof.
Both wings are similar. They are narrower than the main building, with east and west facades decorated with an arcade
Arcade (architecture)
An arcade is a succession of arches, each counterthrusting the next, supported by columns or piers or a covered walk enclosed by a line of such arches on one or both sides. In warmer or wet climates, exterior arcades provide shelter for pedestrians....
of seven rounded arches. Each is slightly recessed, with a rectangular window. On the north wing's east facade, windows have been added to the previously blind arch portion to provide illumination for the second story. A simpler version of the main block cornice, with dentils and cyma molding at the arches' springline, give a capital
Capital (architecture)
In architecture the capital forms the topmost member of a column . It mediates between the column and the load thrusting down upon it, broadening the area of the column's supporting surface...
-like appearance to the piers between the arches.
A printing press was added to the north wing to support the newspaper. It is small and architecturally sympathetic, lessening the impact of its disruption of the building's overall symmetry. On the west of the south wing is a gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
d remnant of the original platform shelter, supported by iron truss
Truss
In architecture and structural engineering, a truss is a structure comprising one or more triangular units constructed with straight members whose ends are connected at joints referred to as nodes. External forces and reactions to those forces are considered to act only at the nodes and result in...
es on center posts and cables from the building. A shed roof on large iron brackets
Bracket (architecture)
A bracket is an architectural member made of wood, stone, or metal that overhangs a wall to support or carry weight. It may also support a statue, the spring of an arch, a beam, or a shelf. Brackets are often in the form of scrolls, and can be carved, cast, or molded. They can be entirely...
at the south end, formerly the baggage handling area, is now a default waiting area for Metro-North passengers in inclement weather.
Interior
Inside, the Republican-American has made changesAdaptive reuse
Adaptive reuse refers to the process of reusing an old site or building for a purpose other than which it was built or designed for. Along with brownfield reclamation, adaptive reuse is seen by many as a key factor in land conservation and the reduction of urban sprawl...
to accommodate its purposes. Most prominently, the main block and north wing have had a second story added. In the offices on the new second floor some of the original vaulted ceiling, with large light-colored tiles in a herringbone pattern
Herringbone pattern
The herringbone pattern is an arrangement of rectangles used for floor tilings and road pavement.The blocks can be rectangles or parallelograms...
. The window surrounds have similarly lavish decorations as the exterior, with two bands of terra cotta separated by dentils done in leaves and pearl molding. The buff brick walls likewise has a dentilled cornice
Cornice
Cornice molding is generally any horizontal decorative molding that crowns any building or furniture element: the cornice over a door or window, for instance, or the cornice around the edge of a pedestal. A simple cornice may be formed just with a crown molding.The function of the projecting...
with an engaged baluster
Baluster
A baluster is a moulded shaft, square or of lathe-turned form, one of various forms of spindle in woodwork, made of stone or wood and sometimes of metal, standing on a unifying footing, and supporting the coping of a parapet or the handrail of a staircase. Multiplied in this way, they form a...
-and-ring turning and a wide cyma
Cyma
Cyma may refer to either:* A style of molding* Cyma Zarghami, the president of Nickelodeon and MTV Networks' Kids & Family Group* CYMA – Canadian Youth Mission to Armenia, a Canadian-run humanitarian program...
molding done in a stylized floral pattern.
The south wing's interior, originally a restaurant, remained in use as a waiting room. Inside it has some original decor suggesting that purpose. They include brass ticket windows, a long Mission style
Mission style
Mission style may refer to the following:*Mission Style Furniture*Mission Revival Style architecture*American Craftsman, an architectural and design movement*Mission School, an art movement of the late 20th century...
wooden bench, iron radiator grill and marble baseboard
Baseboard
In architecture, a baseboard is a board covering the lowest part of an interior wall...
s and sills. Its vaulted ceiling and walls are done in plaster.
History
In the early years of the 20th century, the city of Waterbury, then prosperous and growing, began working with the New HavenNew York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad
The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad , was a railroad that operated in the northeast United States from 1872 to 1968 which served the states of Connecticut, New York, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts...
and other railroads serving it on an urban renewal
Urban renewal
Urban renewal is a program of land redevelopment in areas of moderate to high density urban land use. Renewal has had both successes and failures. Its modern incarnation began in the late 19th century in developed nations and experienced an intense phase in the late 1940s – under the rubric of...
program to clear the way for a newer, larger station they all needed. Streets were straightened and buildings demolished in the neighborhood to the east. A small park replaced some of them.
McKim, Mead & White's design, extravagant in size and decoration
Ornament (architecture)
In architecture and decorative art, ornament is a decoration used to embellish parts of a building or object. Large figurative elements such as monumental sculpture and their equivalents in decorative art are excluded from the term; most ornament does not include human figures, and if present they...
, was meant to symbolize the city's prosperity and the railroads' importance to it. As many as 66 passenger trains served Waterbury at the peak of its traffic. The firm's design is different from its typically academic style in its efforts to unite the interior and exterior through similar materials and decorative themes, as well as the vaulted ceiling echoing the arches of the windows. The light reflecting off the warm interior colors through the large arched windows of the main facade made the building particularly welcoming at night.
Seth Thomas (clockmaker)
Seth Thomas was an American clock maker and a pioneer of mass production at his Seth Thomas Clock Company.-Biography:Thomas was born in Wolcott, Connecticut, in 1785. He started in the clock business in 1807, working for clockmaker Eli Terry...
plant. McKim obliged with one based on the 14th-century Torre del Mangia
Torre del Mangia
The Torre del Mangia is a tower in Siena, in the Tuscany region of Italy. Built in 1338-1348, it is located in the Piazza del Campo, Siena's premier square, adjacent to the Palazzo Pubblico . When built it was one of the tallest secular towers in mediaeval Italy...
in Siena
Siena
Siena is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena.The historic centre of Siena has been declared by UNESCO a World Heritage Site. It is one of the nation's most visited tourist attractions, with over 163,000 international arrivals in 2008...
, Italy. Architectural historian Carroll Meeks, in The Railroad Station: An Architectural History, believes that model was chosen as a deliberate rebuke to architectural amateurs such as the rail executive. The clock tower dominated the city's skyline then
and continues to do so today, when most travelers arrive in the city via interstate highway instead of the train.
In summer 1909, the completed station was opened. As intended, it catalyzed development in the neighborhood. A few years later, the American Brass Company
American Brass Company
The American Brass Company was an American brass manufacturing company based in Connecticut and active from 1893 to 1960. The company's predecessors were the Wolcottville Brass Company and the Ansonia Brass and Battery Company. It was the first large brass manufacturing firm in the United States,...
, representing another industry identified with the city and region, built new headquarters across Meadow Street from the station. Its architecture closely harmonized in size and material with the station.
The station continued to be used as intercity rail service to the city declined and then stopped in the later decades of the 20th century. In the 1970s one of the two newspapers that later became the Republican-American moved into the building, modifying it on the inside and out for that purpose. At that time the south wing was still being used by Metro-North
Metro-North Railroad
The Metro-North Commuter Railroad , trading as MTA Metro-North Railroad, or, more commonly, Metro-North, is a suburban commuter rail service that is run and managed by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority , an authority of New York State. It is the busiest commuter railroad in the United...
commuter rail passengers as a waiting area; since then that portion of the interior has been closed off and a new platform built.