Posted by Abigail Outterson, '16
Currently, the Saratoga Springs, New York bus and train station sits at 26 Station Lane on the West Side of town. A modern, beautiful building decorated in white and green, the station is actually the latest in a historical line of train stations on the West Side. Through an understanding of the history of train stations in Saratoga Springs’ West Side and the displays in the current train station, I have come to understand that this station is much more than just a public space dedicated to transportation. Rather, this space represents, displays and reinforces values of the Saratoga Springs community.
People come to the station by bus, train, car, bike, or on foot. The station on 26 Station Lane was rebuilt in 2003, after the previous building was demolished to make way for the current station. Art displays created by a group of artists, Group DDM, decorate the front entrance and the floor of the station in green and white colors, symbolizing key aspects of Saratoga Springs history and the Adirondacks such as horses, architecture, springs, and dancers.
The station is also a place where temporary displays connect the past to the present, the station to the community (see photos by author below). Local artists display photographs of the old train station or old trains. A piano that no one seems to play displays brochures for venues in town in the center of the station. During the Fall when I visited the station weekly, I watched the station transform more fully during some holiday seasons. Autumn’s paper owls and red and orange leaves around the ticket booths turned to winter’s white and blue banners, wreaths on every door, red bows on the barriers outside, strings of white lights, and Christmas-themed music greeting visitors from the speakers.
Through both the temporary and permanent displays in the train station, the space builds and represents Saratoga Springs “culture” to outsiders travelling to Saratoga Springs as well as to members of the community. This research on a local train station reveals three interrelated themes: permanent display objects express meaning, the significance of the move of the station out of the residential West Side has cultural significance, and the seasonal and other temporary displays at the station shape cultural experiences.
People come to the station by bus, train, car, bike, or on foot. The station on 26 Station Lane was rebuilt in 2003, after the previous building was demolished to make way for the current station. Art displays created by a group of artists, Group DDM, decorate the front entrance and the floor of the station in green and white colors, symbolizing key aspects of Saratoga Springs history and the Adirondacks such as horses, architecture, springs, and dancers.
The station is also a place where temporary displays connect the past to the present, the station to the community (see photos by author below). Local artists display photographs of the old train station or old trains. A piano that no one seems to play displays brochures for venues in town in the center of the station. During the Fall when I visited the station weekly, I watched the station transform more fully during some holiday seasons. Autumn’s paper owls and red and orange leaves around the ticket booths turned to winter’s white and blue banners, wreaths on every door, red bows on the barriers outside, strings of white lights, and Christmas-themed music greeting visitors from the speakers.
Through both the temporary and permanent displays in the train station, the space builds and represents Saratoga Springs “culture” to outsiders travelling to Saratoga Springs as well as to members of the community. This research on a local train station reveals three interrelated themes: permanent display objects express meaning, the significance of the move of the station out of the residential West Side has cultural significance, and the seasonal and other temporary displays at the station shape cultural experiences.
The Move of the Station from Downtown
According to transportation historian Gino Dicarlo, the springs drew people to Saratoga, and the trains accommodated everything that followed. The original station location was at Railroad Place, a couple blocks west of Broadway, where many members of the community who grew up on the West Side remember it fondly as an integral part of their childhood. In 1959, the train was moved out of town and a new station was built at 26 Station Lane, where today it serves as both train and bus station and serves local and distant communities. While this move out of town was motivated in part by several fatal accidents on the tracks in the city and is regarded as a necessary change by West Siders, it is also commonly regarded with a sense of wistfulness and nostalgia. The “Victorian” station at Railroad place is still used in postcards to represent Saratoga Springs’ history to newcomers, while memories of it represent the West Side to West Siders.