Michigan Central Station

Michigan Central Station
Exterior view in 2024
General information
Location	2405 West Vernor Highway Detroit, Michigan United States
Coordinates	42°19′43.69″N 083°04′39.83″W / 42.3288028°N 83.0777306°W / 42.3288028; -83.0777306
Owned by	Ford Motor Company
Platforms	10 island (historically)
Other information
Status	Open
Station code	Amtrak code: DET
History
Opened	January 4, 1914; 110 years ago (January 4, 1914)
Closed	January 6, 1988
Rebuilt	2024
Former services
Preceding station Amtrak Following station Dearborn toward Chicago Twilight Limited Terminus Wolverine Terminus Niagara Rainbow Windsor toward New York (Grand Central) Dearborn toward Chicago Lake Cities Toledo Terminus Dearborn toward Jackson Michigan Executive Terminus Preceding station Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Following station Monroe toward Cincinnati Toledo Division Terminus Preceding station Canadian Pacific Railway Following station Terminus Detroit – Montreal Windsor toward Montreal Windsor Preceding station Detroit, Toledo and Ironton Railroad Following station Terminus Main Line before 1920s Delray toward Ironton Preceding station New York Central Railroad Following station Dearborn toward Chicago Michigan Central Railroad Main Line Windsor toward Buffalo Wyandotte toward Toledo Detroit Branch Terminus Woodward Avenue toward Mackinaw City Mackinaw City – Detroit
Michigan Central Station
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Area	500,000 sq ft (46,000 m2)
Built	June 1912–December 1913
Architect	Reed and Stem, Warren and Wetmore
Architectural style	Beaux-Arts
Website	michigancentral.com
NRHP reference No.	75000969
Added to NRHP	April 16, 1975
Location Michigan Central Station Location within Michigan

Michigan Central Station (MCS, also known as Michigan Central Depot) is the historic former main intercity passenger rail station in Detroit, Michigan. Built for the Michigan Central Railroad, it replaced the original depot in downtown Detroit, which had been shuttered after a major fire on December 26, 1913, forcing the still unfinished station into early service. Formally dedicated on January 4, 1914, the station remained open for business until January 6, 1988, when Amtrak service was relocated. The station building consisted of a train depot and a 230-foot (70 m) office tower with thirteen stories above two mezzanine levels. The tallest rail station in the world at the time of its construction,^[1] the Beaux-Arts style architecture was designed by architects who had previously worked on Grand Central Terminal in New York City.^[2]

The building is in the Corktown district of Detroit near the Ambassador Bridge, approximately 3⁄4 mi (1.2 km) southwest of downtown Detroit. It is located behind Roosevelt Park, and the Roosevelt Warehouse is adjacent to the east, with a tunnel connection to the MCS. The city's Roosevelt Park serves as a grand entryway to the station. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.

Images of the building's deterioration remain a premier example of ruins photography.^[3] Its derelict state became symbolic of Detroit's decline from a once-prosperous city.^[4]

Various parties started negotiating renovation plans in 2011, and in May 2018, Ford Motor Company purchased the building for $90 million for redevelopment into a mixed use facility as cornerstone of the company's new Corktown campus.^[5][6] After years of extensive exterior and interior renovation, exceeding $740 million,^[7] the station reopened on June 6, 2024. The restored station was hailed by a rail industry publication as "...a stunning example of what can be accomplished with historical vision, ample financing, and advanced construction and restoration technology."^[8]