Under the Loop
On Lake Street, looking east. Prior to construction of the Union Loop, Chicago's three elevated railway lines - the South Side Elevated Railroad, the Lake Street Elevated Railroad, and the Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad - each had their own terminal on the edges of downtown Chicago. Charles Tyson Yerkes masterminded the linking of these railroads: the Lake Street 'L' was extended along the north side in 1895; the Union Elevated Railroad opened the east side along Wabash Avenue in 1896 and the west side along Wells Street in 1897; and the Union Consolidated Elevated Railroad opened the south side along Van Buren Street in 1897.
Under the Loop
On Lake Street, looking east. Prior to construction of the Union Loop, Chicago's three elevated railway lines - the South Side Elevated Railroad, the Lake Street Elevated Railroad, and the Metropolitan West Side Elevated Railroad - each had their own terminal on the edges of downtown Chicago. Charles Tyson Yerkes masterminded the linking of these railroads: the Lake Street 'L' was extended along the north side in 1895; the Union Elevated Railroad opened the east side along Wabash Avenue in 1896 and the west side along Wells Street in 1897; and the Union Consolidated Elevated Railroad opened the south side along Van Buren Street in 1897.