In 1876, the railroad began construction on the shed, a large one-and-one-half-story brick and stone building in the Late Gothic Revival style. It measures 99 feet, 5 inches wide and 235 feet long. It has a long, sloping roof supported by a Fink truss system, with glazed monitors.[3]
The shed was used for passenger trains for four years, but was used solely for freight operations after January 1882.[2]
The passenger station, along Washington Avenue, was demolished by the federal government during World War II to make space to store Marine Corps munitions and vehicles awaiting transport.[2] By the late 1960s, the shed was sold for use as a warehouse. The head house and eight eastern bays were demolished a few years later.[2]
In 2016, developer Alterra Property Group began work on Lincoln Square, a $100 million mixed-use development on the site.[4] The shed was rehabilitated and an eastern entrance added to create a space for a Sprouts supermarket.[5] Designed by Philadelphia architectural firm Kelly Maiello,[5] the project received several awards for preservation and adaptive reuse.[6][7]
