News Coverage....1996 Fire Destroys Wilson Shops And Yard (VIDEO)

[chicagopcclcar]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LoJ3lSCg34&feature=youtu.be

The former CTA rapid transit shop near Wilson Ave. after the big fire in 1996. A fire in 1996 destroyed the elevated maintenance facility. Video shows the yards both before and after the fire. News coverage is included.

[TripleTransit1]

This happened on October 26, 1996. I was a year and (almost) 2 months old when this happened. Look at that damage! I didn't even know that was a yard until now.

[jajuan]

Hard to believe it's been almost 18 years already since the Wilson Yard was destroyed. It's also interesting seeing how much the surrounding area near the tracks has changed and how much is still the same since what appears to be the late 1960s/early 1970s judging from some of the rail cars seen in the video. I remember riding past there a lot to do a bit of bus watching at Howard Terminal in the years before they tore out the original bus terminal and replaced it with the current one that's there today. With FG and NP operating the bus shuttles after the fire, every CTA bus model in service at the time with the exception of the 6000s (since they hadn't yet been moved to FG from Kedzie) could be seen on the shuttle route that was in place,

[Guest]

• Julian Crews Channel 9, used to be one of my regular passengers on my #152 Addison bus from the lakefront to Campbell av. for him to go to WGN studios.

[Busjack]

It wasn't so much a fire in the yard, as a fire in the Wilson Shops building. That building was a total blight on the neighborhood, as it loomed over Broadway. It was amazing how the view, either from the street or the L was improved once it was gone.

The upcoming Wilson station project should at least straighten out the maze of tracks around there.

[jajuan]

It wasn't so much a fire in the yard, as a fire in the Wilson Shops building. That building was a total blight on the neighborhood, as it loomed over Broadway. It was amazing how the view, either from the street or the L was improved once it was gone.

The upcoming Wilson station project should at least straighten out the maze of tracks around there.

Yeah I misspoke there. And you're right the building was a blight. That much was a common theme in all the news clips. There's a bit of irony that the fire did what the CTA claimed it was going to do anyway but was dragging its feet on it from what folks who lived in the neighborhood were shown saying about it at the time.

[Brandon93]

This happened on October 26, 1996. I was a year and (almost) 2 months old when this happened. Look at that damage! I didn't even know that was a yard until now.

I just turned 3 when that happened; I've been on the Red Line many times & I don't remember that building. Many familiar faces on the news Evelyn Holmes is now on Channel 7.

[MTRSP1900-CTA3200]

The only time I saw the shops was in a picture in a CTA book I have (CTA at 45) and on chicago-l.org. I'm also in the same boat as Brandon93. I was also 3. At that time the only thing I could think about the CTA was how scary the subway was.

[ctrabs74]

I'm just curious as to how Skokie service was affected when the affected area was on the mainline North-South L tracks. A couple reports indicated that Skokie Swift service was suspended while the Red was suspended between Wilson and Addison.

[strictures]

It wasn't so much a fire in the yard, as a fire in the Wilson Shops building. That building was a total blight on the neighborhood, as it loomed over Broadway. It was amazing how the view, either from the street or the L was improved once it was gone.

The upcoming Wilson station project should at least straighten out the maze of tracks around there.

The Wilson Shop Building was a luxurious masterpiece compared to the 61st St. Shop Building during its last few years. Now that was a blight on a blighted neighborhood.

I remember when on Track 4, you could look in through the dirty windows at Wilson & see lots of wheel sets along with L cars under repair.

[Busjack]

I'm just curious as to how Skokie service was affected when the affected area was on the mainline North-South L tracks. A couple reports indicated that Skokie Swift service was suspended while the Red was suspended between Wilson and Addison.

The question is what was the electrical substation block. I seem to recall something similar occurring recently. If the power is off at Howard, the train can't get into there.

[chicagopcclcar]

I'm just curious as to how Skokie service was affected when the affected area was on the mainline North-South L tracks. A couple reports indicated that Skokie Swift service was suspended while the Red was suspended between Wilson and Addison.

Of course I have the VHS recording. There was no affect to the Yellow service although the Yellow was listed on at least two maps along with the Red and Purple. This was just the news trying to cover the fact that all "L" riders had to get off the trains between Wilson and Addison. Yellow riders too. Yellow riders on the Red or Yellow riders on the Purple.

[jajuan]

I just turned 3 when that happened; I've been on the Red Line many times & I don't remember that building. Many familiar faces on the news Evelyn Holmes is now on Channel 7.

And Judy Garcia has since moved from Channel 7 to Channel 9/CLTV. I at first was thinking thing as ctrabs74 in regards to Yellow Line riders but immediately realized that was local media being collectively too lazy to spell out they were speaking of Yellow Line riders who transfer at Howard to the Red Line and Purple Line Express for service into downtown as chicagopcclcar points out and alludes to above.