Argyle station (CTA)

Argyle
Location	1118 West Argyle Street Chicago, Illinois 60640
Coordinates	41°58′24″N 87°39′31″W / 41.973365°N 87.658561°W
Owned by	Chicago Transit Authority
Line(s)	Red Line
Platforms	1 Island platform
Tracks	4
Construction
Structure type	Embankment
History
Opened	Chicago & Evanston Railroad: May 21, 1885 Northwestern Elevated Railroad: May 16, 1908
Rebuilt	1921, 2012
Previous names	Argyle Park
Traffic
Passengers (2014)	1,079,365[1]  10.6% (CTA)
Rank	69 out of 143[lower-alpha 1]
Services
Preceding station   Chicago "L"   Following station Berwyn toward Howard Red Line Lawrence toward 95th/Dan Ryan
Route map Legend Purple Line Express north to Linden Red Line north to Howard Argyle St. Purple Line Express south to Loop Red Line south to 95th/Dan Ryan

Argyle is a station on the Chicago Transit Authority's 'L' system. It is situated between the Berwyn and Lawrence stations on the Red Line, which runs from Rogers Park at Chicago's northern city limits, through downtown Chicago, to Roseland. It is an elevated station with a single island platform located at 1118 West Argyle Street in the West Argyle Street Historic District of Chicago's Uptown community area.

Location

Argyle is situated on W. Argyle Street, close to the intersection with Broadway. The station is located in the West Argyle Street Historic District in the Uptown community area of Chicago; the area surrounding the station consists of a mixture commercial and residential areas,^[2] and is particularly noted for the high concentration of Vietnamese restaurants, bakeries and shops; as well as Chinese, Cambodian, Laotian and Thai businesses.^[3]

History

The new embankment at Argyle Station in 1916

The site of Argyle station was first used as depot called Argyle Park on the Chicago and Evanston branch of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad route, which opened on May 21, 1885.^[4] On opening, the station houses along the route were described as "attractive frame structures built in the Gothic and Queen Anne styles."^[4] In 1908 the Northwestern Elevated Railroad was extended north from Wilson, using the tracks of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad, and a new station was constructed on the site of the previous depot.^[5][6] The station was again rebuilt to a design by architect Charles P. Rawson when the tracks between Wilson and Howard were elevated onto an embankment between 1914 and 1922.^[7] In 1979 the station received a $250,000 facelift,^[8] and in 1991 a Chinese-style hipped-and-gabled roof was added to the platform canopy.^[9] The station was closed for renovation from August 24 to October 5, 2012.^[10]

Services

A northbound train at Argyle station

Argyle is part of CTA's Red Line, which runs from Howard to downtown Chicago and 95th Street. The station had an island platform on an embankment located between Broadway and Winthrop Avenue. It serves the Red Line's two tracks; the north-bound track serves trains to Howard, while the south-bound track serves trains to 95th Street. The station entrance is located on the north side of Argyle Street, built into the embankment. It is situated between the Berwyn and Lawrence stations. Red Line trains serve Argyle 24 hours a day every day; trains operate roughly every 3 to 9 minutes during rush hour and midday operation, with longer headways of up to 15 minutes at night.^[11][12] The station is also located ¹⁄₂ a block from the #36 Broadway bus.

Notes and references

Notes

1. Due to possible double-counting of physically-connected stations, the CTA's official 2014 tally of stations was 145, but for ridership purposes reported having only 143 stations.

References

1. "Monthly Ridership Report – December 2014" (PDF). Chicago Transit Authority Ridership Analysis and Reporting. March 5, 2015. Retrieved 25 April 2015.
2. City of Chicago Zoning Map (Map). Chicago Department of Zoning. 2010.
3. "Uptown's Argyle Street Named To Historic Register". CBS2 Chicago: Chicago Area Local News. CBS Broadcasting Inc. June 14, 2010. Archived from the original on June 21, 2010. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
4. "The Chicago & Evanston". Chicago Daily Tribune. May 22, 1885.
5. "Electrification of the Evanston Suburban Line of the Chicago Milwaukee & St. Paul". The Railway Age 44 (14): 467. October 4, 1907. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
6. Garfield, Graham. "Argyle". Chicago-"L".org. Graham Garfield. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
7. Borzo, Greg (2007). The Chicago "L". Chicago: Arcadia Publishing. p. 70. ISBN 978-0-7385-5100-5.
8. Lynch, Kevin; Janega, James (April 4, 2001). "Charlie Soo 1945-2001. - Argyle Street `Mayor,' Bold Promoter of Asian Shops". Chicago Tribune.
9. McCarron, John (February 6, 1991). "'Mayor' Brings New Life to Argyle Street". Chicago Tribune.
10. "Red Ahead: Argyle". Chicago Transit Authority. Retrieved December 3, 2012.
11. "Red Line Route Guide". Chicago Transit Authority. Archived from the original on 22 July 2010. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
12. "Argyle Station Timetable" (PDF). Chicago Transit Authority. Archived (PDF) from the original on 30 July 2010. Retrieved July 29, 2010.

External links

• Argyle Station Page CTA official site
• Argyle Street entrance from Google Maps Street View