From the late 1800s through the 1920s, many of the US’s railway barons built grand train stations. These palaces not only testify to the “golden age of American railroading”, but serve as a reminder of how the rapid growth of rail travel following the US Civil War helped settle the US West and transform the once-largely rural nation to a coast-to-coast collection of cities. As automobiles and, later, planes became more fashionable than trains, many of these railways consolidated or stopped running, leaving these once-bustling centrepieces of urban life empty.

Some stations burned down. Others were demolished. But over the past decade, cities have been finding creative ways to breathe new life into the historic structures, helping them regain their cultural cachet while offering travellers an intriguing glimpse into the past.

A second reason for the reuse boom: location, location, location.

“A lot of towns and cities were built up around their train stations,” said Glenn NP Nowak, associate professor of architecture at UNLV School of Architecture in Las Vegas, Nevada. As result, many of the structures are located in highly desirable areas. These stations were designed as a “gateway” to then-burgeoning locales, where travellers would disembark and get their first impressions of the city. As a result, many boast generously arched entryways or tall columns that strategically frame what are now historic downtowns or other attractions.

“You had a sense of arrival,” said Diana Melichar, president of Melichar Architects in Lake Forest, Illinois, and who has renovated several train stations in smaller communities. “They were the gateways to these 19th- and 20th-Century cities that were growing. Trains were the mode of transportation [and the message was], this is the grand entry to the town.”

Perhaps the most expansive example is the recent transformation of Denver’s Union Station into a massive hall encompassing a hotel (The Crawford), restaurants and retail spaces. While trains still whisk passengers from the airport to the hotel and the seasonal Winter Park Express train brings travellers and Denverites up to ski country, Union Station is no longer the robust train hub it was in its heyday.

It is, however, an awe-inspiring space. In addition to its enormous scale, it abounds with restored historic details – antique mirrors; subway tiles; the original ticketing office which has been transformed into a bar; and an old barber shop-turned local ice cream purveyor. Built in 1881 in the wake of the Colorado Gold Rush, the structure was remodelled twice; first by urban preservationist Dana Crawford who spearheaded a $38m revitalisation in 2014, followed by another elegant $11m makeover that was unveiled in July 2024.