Official name: Union Station -- A Wyndham Historic Hotel Built: 1898-1900 Cost: $615,000 Designed by: Hugh Montford Renovated: 1998 Type: Hotel Maximum Height: 220 feet / 67 meters Location: 1001 Broadway, Nashville, United States
T he heyday of train travel in America has long past. Many cities are struggling to figure out what to do with the grand temples of transit that were erected in a time when the railroad was king. Some have become museums and meeting halls. More have been abandoned or demolished. In the case of this building, it has become a hotel. Because of the building's original use, the layout has to accommodate some architectural oddities. Some rooms have sloping ceilings, or bathrooms that appear to have been hallways in a previous life. One of these quirks, however, is the balcony that overlooks the grand entrance hall. It is a great asset to a room of such wonderful taste and historic design. It is capped with a 63 foot high Tiffany glass barrel vault. While you’re looking up, check out the angel figures. Each represents a different industry considered fundamental in the establishment of Tennessee. The building’s greatest asset is its clock tower, which looms tall in the night sky like a ghostly sentinel. Interestingly, the original clock in this tower was a digital clock. The numbers were on fabric panels which moved as the hours and minutes ticked past. It was about 70 years ahead of its time, but never really worked reliably. Eventually, the clock became so much trouble that it was replaced by big signs depicting the railroad company’s logo. Fortunately, the building has finally found its destiny and sports the proper analog clock it should have had all along. While much of this building has been preserved and restored, some of it has not. Even thought it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the train shed was demolished. At the time of its completion, it was the longest span in America, and when the demolition crews came, it didn’t go without a fight. The shed was designed to last 750 years, and the crews had a very hard time bringing it down.
The statue at the top of the clock tower is Mercury. It’s not a proper statue – just a flat piece of metal. The original statue was made of tin, but was destroyed in the 1930’s when it was blown off the roof and smashed.
