{"nrhp_refnum":"13000979","name":"Big Four Depot","other_names":["Middletown Train Station","Big Four Passenger Station"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"25 Charles St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Middletown","county":"Butler County","state":"OH","lat":39.513952096000025,"lon":-84.39218414699997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2013-12-24","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Transportation","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-and-a-half story railroad depot at the southeast corner of Church and Washington Streets in Galion, Crawford County, Ohio, dedicated in December 1900 as a division headquarters for the Big Four Railroad. The form is a 1975 nomination; the supplied listing metadata places the property in Middletown, Butler County, which conflicts with the document.","why_significant":"The depot served as division headquarters for the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad (the Big Four) and was a stop for all trains, including the New York to St. Louis service. Architecturally it is a hybrid of many styles, possibly best labeled Queen Anne, and is larger and more elaborate than most small-town stations. It also became a whistle stop for campaigning presidential candidates.","narrative":"Dedicated in December 1900, this depot in Galion, Ohio, served as division headquarters for the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad, known as the Big Four. The building housed engineers, the division superintendent, the trainmaster and clerical staff for the Galion, Springfield and Indianapolis divisions. Its first floor is rock-faced sandstone, while the second story is banded in bevel siding, shiplap and shingle beneath a bellcast hip roof with several dormers. The style is a hybrid, possibly best labeled Queen Anne, and the station was larger and more decorated than most small-town depots. All trains stopped in Galion to change crews, and passenger traffic probably peaked around World War I, when 32 trains a day called. Presidential candidates, including Al Smith, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Eisenhower and Nixon, spoke from its platforms. The New York Central acquired the Big Four in 1929, headquarters moved to Bellefontaine, and the depot was vacated in about 1969.","period_of_significance":"19th and 20th centuries; dedicated Dec. 1900","architect_builder":"Stonemasonry by Homer Longstreth","architectural_style":"Hybrid of many stylistic elements, possibly best labeled Queen Anne","criteria":[],"status_note":"Condition listed as fair and altered; the depot was vacated in about 1969 and is marked not in use.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:07.110274-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/75001350.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":null,"wikipedia":null,"wikidata":null},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/butler-county/big-four-depot-13000979/"}