Union Station Trainshed, Main Street, Richmond, Independent City, Virginia

See also HABS VA-848, Union Station Trainshed, HABS VA,44-RIH,97- & especially HABS VA,44-RICH.97A-. Allen Coll.
Significance: The trainshed adjacent to Union Station in Richmond was one of the last gable type sheds to be built in America. Extending from the north side of the station, the trainshed measures 123 x 517 feet. Its gable roof is supported by a series of riveted steel trusses resting on riveted steel columns 18 feet on centers. Each truss is a modified Warren type with a 123 foot span. They are approximately 24 feet above the level of the platform and have a maximum depth of 14 feet at the peak. A central monitor running the length of the shed is supported by smaller Warren trusses on top of the principal ones. A second monitor, much smaller than the first, runs the length of the former. The shed covers six sets of stub end tracks and overhangs of 13 feet, 6 inches on each side. The Union Station trainshed is an early example of riveted steel in roof construction. This form of rigid roof construction marked the end of "American System" of pin connected construction in roof trusses and has become the standard in modern trussed structures of all types.
Survey number: HAER VA-4
Building/structure dates: 1900 Initial Construction