Lawndale (3700W/2100S)
Lawndale Avenue and 21st Street, North Lawndale

Service Notes:

Douglas Line

Quick Facts:

Address: TBD
Established: March 10, 1902
Original Line: Metropolitan West Side Elevated, Douglas Park branch
Previous Names: None
Skip-Stop Type: n/a
Rebuilt: n/a
Status: Demolished

History:

The Lawndale station was one of the seven stations that made up the 1902 extension of the Douglas Park branch from Western to 40th Avenue. Lawndale station was briefly the terminal of the Douglas Park extension when it first opened on March 10, 1902, becoming a through-station when the final leg to 40th Avenue opened a few months later on June 16, 1902.

Lawndale's headhouse design was unusual and did not appear to resemble the architecture of most of the station houses on the Metropolitan Elevated's 1902 Douglas extension. The building, located at the northwest corner of Lawndale and Ogden, may have been a modification and reuse of an existing building.

The stations' dual side platforms had canopies and railings typical of all Met stations: Designed into the railings were larger cast iron square plates with a stylized diamond design. Each platform had a short canopy in the center of the platform, covering the stairs and a small waiting area. The canopy frame was iron, with arched latticed supports and bracketed rafters, and hipped roofs of corrugated tin.

In mid-1951, the CTA^® formulated plans to economize, streamline and speed up service on the Douglas branch. On December 9, 1951, the CTA^® revised Douglas service with the inauguration of A/B skip-stop service, the conversion of three stations to unmanned "partial service" stations, and the closure of five stations, including Lawndale. However, a new station was opened one block west at Central Park on the same date to take the place of Drake and, to an extent, Lawndale stations.