{"nrhp_refnum":"78000970","name":"Central of Georgia Railroad: Savannah Shops and Terminal Facilities","other_names":["See Also:70000199","76000610"],"category":"district","location":{"address":"W. Broad St. and Railroad Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Savannah","county":"Chatham County","state":"GA","lat":32.07556199800007,"lon":-81.10356509799999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1978-06-02","is_nhl":true,"nhl_designated_date":"1978-06-02","areas_of_significance":["Industry","Engineering","Transportation","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A railroad terminal and shop complex district in Savannah, Chatham County, Georgia, centered on the Central of Georgia passenger depot headhouse and trainshed at West Broad Street and Liberty Street, built between 1860 and 1876.","why_significant":"The complex is described as one of the earliest attempts in the country to build a comprehensive railroad terminal and shop complex. Its trainshed is called the oldest remaining example of early iron roof construction, using rare tricomposite trusses of wood, wrought iron and cast iron. The depot's construction was also interrupted by the Civil War.","narrative":"Railroad facilities in Savannah, Georgia, include a brick passenger depot headhouse and a long timber-and-iron trainshed built for the Central of Georgia Railroad. The company, organized in 1833, outgrew its original facilities and planned an integrated complex of passenger and freight depots and shops for building and repairing locomotives and cars. Work on the two-story, nine-bay headhouse began in 1860, stalled during the Civil War, and resumed in 1874, with the building opening in 1876. The trainshed, finished in 1861, was designed by Augustus Schwaab, a German immigrant engineer. Its 26 trusses span 70 feet and combine wood, wrought iron and cast iron, joined by an unusual radial connection more typical of French and German practice. The complex is considered among the earliest comprehensive railroad terminal and shop campuses in the country, and the trainshed is the oldest surviving example of early iron roof construction. The depot was later renovated and houses a chamber of commerce.","period_of_significance":"1860-1876","architect_builder":"Augustus Schwaab","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Correspondence from 1977-78 states the depot was renovated by 1975 and now houses the Savannah Area Chamber of Commerce, and the trainshed was renovated in 1977 with a new roof. The classification section also marks the broader complex as abandoned but protected.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:41.40216-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_GA/78000970_NHL.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78000970/5e86d9bd91-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78000970/5e86d9bd91-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Jack Boucher","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Central_of_Georgia_Railway,_Passenger_Station_(Savannah,_Georgia).jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Jack Boucher</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Central_of_Georgia_Railway,_Passenger_Station_(Savannah,_Georgia).jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/93206742","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_of_Georgia_Railroad:_Savannah_Shops_and_Terminal_Facilities","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5062129"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/georgia/chatham-county/central-of-georgia-railroad-savannah-shops-and-terminal-facilities-78000970/"}