30th Street Station
Trip Ideas
2951 Market St., 215/386-6426
www.30thstreetstation.com
HOURS: Daily 24 hours a day
Locals may forget to stop and appreciate the beauty of Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station while they run for their trains, but it happens to be one of America’s finest transportation hubs and one of the few remaining grand railroad stations in the country.
The Pennsylvania Railroad needed a location between New York and Washington on what is now known as the Northeast Corridor, so the neoclassical structure was built in 1929–1934 by Graham, Anderson, Probst & White. It is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The 90-foot-high ceiling creates a majestic atmosphere, and it’s easy to imagine an early-20th-century bustle not all that different from today. Inside, you can see the sculpture by Walker Hancock created in 1950 to honor Pennsylvania Railroad employees killed during World War II; it includes an archangel Michael lifting the body of a dead soldier out of the flames of war.
The station was featured in the 1983 film Trading Places and M. Night Shyamalan’s Unbreakable (2000), but its most famous screen moments are from the now-classic scene in Witness (1985), in which a young Amish boy traveling through Philadelphia with his mom witnesses a murder in the bathroom of the station. Fortunately, it was just a movie and the station is a relatively safe place.
© Karrie Gavin from Moon Philadelphia, 1st Edition
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Moon Travel Guides make independent travel and outdoor exploration fun and accessible. With expert and adventurous travel writers delivering a mix of honest insight, first-rate strategic travel advice, insider travel tips and an essential dose of humor, Moon Travel Guides ensure that travelers have an uncommon and entirely satisfying experience. Each travel book is filled with unique trip ideas, easy-to-use maps, and detailed information on sights, restaurants, and accommodations. Moon Travel Guides not only point you in the right direction, they inspire new ideas and adventure. Whether you are seeking a relaxing beach trip to Hawaii, or an adventure travel trip to the rainforests of Costa Rica, Moon guidebooks—and Moon.com—are with you every step of the way. Founded in 1973, the Moon Travel Guides series includes Moon Handbooks, Moon Outdoors, Moon Metro, Moon Living Abroad and Moon Spotlight travel books. Moon is based in Berkeley, California and is a proud member of the Perseus Books Group.