Palo Alto Train Station- a Streamline Moderne Gem

Most passenger train stations in California were build in the Mission Revival Style, popular in the 1920's. The style was a romanticized version of the Spanish Colonial Missions that were linked by the El Camino Real, the Royal Road and built between 1769 in the south and 1823 in the north. The genre is characterized by thick stucco walls, red tile roofs and arches. Many trains stations were built in that style--Glendale and Burlingame Ca and Hollywood and Ft. Lauderdale, FL to name few.

However, Palo Alto station, built in 1939, is built in the Streamline Moderne architectural style, popular in the late 1930's, as a late form of the art-deco genre. It has an emphasis curving forms, long horizontal lines, and nautical elements. Think of it as a paired down, sparser version of art-deco architecture. It was used in industrial designs as a way of pointing to a modern future. The architecture of the 1939 Worlds Fair comes to mind, as to do toasters, vacuum cleaners, public buildings, steam engines of the era

source: NYPL.org

Why did Southern Pacific break with with their romantic tradition of Mission style stations? The answer was to promote their new streamlined passenger train, The Coast Daylight, which was outfitted with new equipment in 1937. The

Coast Daylight ran between San Francisco and Los Angeles. It was advertised as the 'most beautiful train in the world 'by the SP, with its logo matching the streamline lines of the Palo Alto Station.

By Southern Pacific Railroad Co., San Francisco, CA - Southern Pacific Railroad Time Tables A-75 (12-7-45) Standard Folder - Form A, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=66581499

If any of your relatives rode the Coast Daylight, feel free to comment. Also, if you have ridden Amtrak's present day successor along the route, The Coast Starlight, please comment also, Finally,

What is your favorite commuter rail station? Let's us know in the comments.