Left: Carpenters are putting the finishing touches on the Mannheim/22nd terminal in December 1930. (Photo from the Chicago Transit Authority Collection)

Right: By 1951, the station house and working lights were gone. Its low ridership is all too evident. For a larger view, click here. (Photo by B.L. Stone)

Mannheim/22nd (10400W/2200S)
Mannheim Road and 22nd Street, Village of Westchester

Service Notes:

Metropolitan Division, Westchester branch

Quick Facts:

Address: TDB
Established: December 1, 1930
Original Line: Metropolitan West Side Elevated, Westchester branch
Skip-Stop Type: n/a
Rebuilt: n/a
Status: Demolished

History:

Above: A close-up of the Mannheim/22nd station sign.
In 1926, "L" service was extended west of the Garfield Park line's Des Plaines terminal along the tracks of the Chicago, Aurora & Elgin interurban railroad and on a newly constructed spur that went south, leaving the CA&E at Bellwood. Most of these trains terminated at the Roosevelt Road station to the north. In 1930, a single-track extension was built to 22nd and Mannheim Road.

The terminal consisted of nothing more than a small wooden station house (later removed) and a small platform. It was served by a one-car shuttle that made connections with Loop-bound trains as Roosevelt. This was more than ample service for the undeveloped area. In 1933 the shuttle was replaced with a through car that was uncoupled from a train at Roosevelt.

There were no service changes until December 8, 1951 when the CTA discontinued service west of Des Plaines. No sooner had the tracks been removed than Westchester experienced an enormous post-war development boom, missing the line by mere months.

 

The village of Westchester was still largely countryside when shuttle car 2892 visited the 22nd/Mannheim terminal in this 1946 view. The Westchester branch was extended to 22nd Street in 1930 as a single-track line and never expanded, a good indictation of the line's expected patronage. By the time the CTA took over the next year, the branch's fate was clear... For a larger view, click here. (Photo from the Chicago Transit Authority Collection)

crt4324.jpg (79k)
The 4324 is shown at the 22nd/Mannheim terminal of the Westchester Line on January 15, 1939. The building to the right of the car is the contractor's/developer's office, which was built at the same time as the rapid transit station in 1930. The office was later removed, making this location appear even more desolate. (Photo from the Jeff Obarek collection)