Saturday, March 12, 2011

Bad Photography Saturday

There's a short list of "signature" buildings in Scranton-- the federal building, the courthouse, Oppenheim's, city hall, the Scranton Electric building...

If I had to pick one, I'd say this is it-- the train station at the end of the Central Scranton Expressway, the gateway to the city.

The building was constructed in 1908, and it's now a Radisson hotel.
It is spectacular at night and during the day.  You can imagine what it was like when rail service was at its peak-- a bustling passenger station on the first floor, with offices above.  This building came very close to meeting the wrecking ball back in the 80's, and that would have been a tragedy.

Above is the stained glass ceiling over the lobby and restaurant.  I should have protographed the marble and tile on the walls, but I was actually working at the time, and I was in a hurry.

I'm sure the history of the building and more photos are available elsewhere on the internet.  It's worth looking up.