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UNION STATION -
OUR PREVISITS
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| It is important when conducting an investigation at a large complex location, to
have a pre-investigation visit. This allows you to meet and speak with the responsible parties, examine the location
for yourself, and create maps and plans that will help the investigation go more smoothly. |
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Due to the sheer size of Union Station, we ended up having to make two pre-investigation
visits. Both previsits were conducted by Trish and I. The photos taken during this first previsit were taken by
Trish.
This photo is of the eastern-most entrance on the south side of the station. It is outside this entrance that the
Union Station massacre took place, and the legend says the bullet holes can still be seen in the side of the building.
See the History section of this report for details. |
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Some of the original plans for Union Station had a large arched structure extending
off this south-face of the station. The design was simplified, and the south-face of the building was flattened,
with the three large window arches we see today.
Walking up to this building, knowing that we were going to get the chance to investigate it, was an amazing feeling.
You can just feel all the history that took place within this building.... |
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| This photo was taken from inside Festival Hall, facing south. The Grand Hall can
be seen beyond the large archway between he two halls. And above this archway, the large clock that has meant so
much to Union Station. When rail-travel was our primary form of transportation, Festival Hall was lined with wooden
waiting benches. Travelers would sit here and wait for their trains. When it was time to load, they would go through
one of the doorways that line this hall, and descend stairs to their train on the tracks below. |
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Early on in the station's history, a tradition began of marking the New Year "Under
the Clock." The face of this clock is 6 feet in diameter, and it can been seen from almost most locations
within the Grand Hall and Festival Hall.
The tradition of marking the new year "Under the Clock" continues today. For a reasonable price, couples
or families can celebrate the new year with live music and dancing, a chocolate fountain, sweets and treats, stilt
walkers, balloon artists and more. |
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| The renovations that began in 1997 cleaned the station, refurbished it for modern
commercial use, and added the Science City sections. But there are hidden areas of the station untouched by the
renovation. These large power generators on Level C are not accessible by the public, but we were able to examine
them during the previsits and the investigation itself. These machines are huge...and the room has an almost overpowering
smell from the oil that lubricates the machines. |
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There were several of these large generators within the generator room, and its hard
to imagine what it would have been like to be in this room with all of them running. Reportedly, these generators
are still operational, and a few years ago they actually fired them up and had them running.
At the back of the room, there are air-cooled power boxes that would have delivered the power from these generators
to the rest of the building. |
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| The powerboxes are metal and filled with huge power coils. Being in a room like this,
with the technology and even the paint on the walls virtually unchanged since 1914, was almost like traveling back
in time. The sights and smells in this room really took you to another time and place in our history. |
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A paranormal investigation took place at Union Station sometime around 2001, and
one of the investigators felt something "blow on her neck" twice in the abandoned western tunnels beneath
Union Station.
These tunnels have since been renovated and are used by the United States Postal Service. They are inaccessible
to the public, and since they are managed by the UPS, they were also inaccessible to Ghost Vigil. They are behind
these security doors. |
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These two pictures were taken in what is called the "attic" of Union Station.
This area is above the 5th and 6th floors that ring the Grand Hall, and offers access to the space between the
ornate ceiling of the Hall and the pitched roof above this ceiling. Its a huge space. Later in our previsit, we
were given a chance to walk on top of the ceiling of the Grand Hall. |
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During the renovation, the entire roof was replaced. The huge concrete roof tiles
were replaced with identical tiles, except they were made of a special combination of fiberglass and concrete.
The look identical, but they are much lighter and more durable. The most challenging condition of the renovation
was the water damage, caused by a roof that had been leaking unchecked for decades. The ceiling to the Grand Hall
was so damaged, that nearly half of it had to be completely replaced.
In this photo I'm on top of Union Station, in one of the flat areas that run the entire length of the building
on the northern and southern edges of the roof. With a short ladder its easy to climb up onto the pitched portion
of the roof, and climb to the very top of of the building. We were offered a chance to climb up there during the
previsit, but we were short on time and declined. During the investigation Team King did climb up there. See the
Photos section and the Team King sections of this investigation report for details. |
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| Walking on top of the ceiling of the Grand Hall was probably one of the most frightening
moments of my life. Knowing that I was walking on a suspended ceiling, 100 feet up in the air really got to me.
On the right you can see the chains that held up the huge chandeliers in the Grand Hall, as well as the steel cables
that replaced them. |
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The Grand Hall of Union Station is beautiful. Its one of those places you can just
sit, and absorb all the details for an hour or two without getting bored. The handpainted ceiling is colorful and
ornate. The arched windows, long balconies, and architectural details are stately and unlike anything you have
ever seen.
When rail-travel was our primary form of travel, this Grand Hall was a bustling busy place, full of travelers with
luggage and friends and family sending off loved ones, or welcoming them home.
One of the paranormal phenomena that reportedly occurs in the Grand Hall, is the sounds of a large bustling crowd.
Employees or visitors report being alone or nearly alone here, when suddenly they will be surrounded by the sounds
of a large crowd. This will of course startle them, and when they look up from what they are doing to see where
the crowd suddenly came from...the sound will stop as quickly as it started. They will still be alone or nearly
alone. See the Background section of this report for more details. |
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These photos were taken in an area of the building that has not been touched by the
renovation. Its an area that once held parts of the steam boiler system that heated Union Station. I love the orbs
in these photos. They are caused by the camera flash lighting up dust within a foot or two of the camera lens.
The texture within the orbs is common when a digital camera is used. |
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The "untouched" sections of Union Station are interesting to visit. The
essentially exist in the same condition the rest of the station was prior to the renovation. They are full of early
20th Century technology...and sometimes it feels as if you are exploring a ship-wreck at the bottom of the sea.
Some of the unused areas are fairly large. This boiler area was made up of several rooms, and is actually located
in the walls of the Grand Hall on what would be the 4th floor of the building. |
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| The perspective on this one is difficult, but essentially this photo was shot down
a metal ladder about 20 feet high that lead to the boiler. At the top of this ladder was another ladder that led
to the attic of the Festival Hall. The room in the photo on the right was about 20 x 40 feet, and completely empty. |
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This is the only fireplace in all of Union Station, and was located in the station's
offices at one time. It is located in the southeastern end of the building.
The beautiful wood-paneled room that features this fireplace is currently a board room for a law firm that has
its offices in Union Station. They were kind enough to let us go in and take a photo of it. The fireplace features
two hand-carved indian heads that hold up the mantle. |
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Our second pre-investigation visit was also conducted by Trish and I. All of the
photos from this second previsit were taken by me.
Reportedly a headless male ghost, in a white shirt and dark pants, is sometimes seen in the set of windows in the
center-left of this photo, directly above the "Pierpont's - Fresh Seafood - Prime Steaks" sign. At one
time there was a bench behind the window that he would be seen sitting on. See the Background section of this investigation
report for more details. |
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The round-shaped restaurant in the Grand Hall of Union Station was originally
a large round structure with all of the ticket windows for the station. It was originally a single story structure
with a flat roof. Now it is two stories and houses an excellent café, featuring pizzas, pastas, daily specials,
and a full service bar on the upper level.
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The entire Grand Hall was filled with scaffolding that reached the ceiling, so that
workers could repair and repaint the ceiling. Due to water damage, half of the ceiling material had to be replaced.
The color scheme was then matched to photographs and descriptions of the ceiling that remained.
Three large chandeliers hang in the Grand Hall. They were originally suspended from chains, so that they could
be lowered to the floor for the replacement of light bulbs. The chains have been replaced with steel cables. |
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Festival Hall was the main waiting room for Union Station, and was once lined with
benches. Now, it is a huge open space, second only to the Grand Hall in its beauty.
The place is full of light and the echoing sounds within its confines have an almost otherworldly effect.
Science City, the KCP&L City Gallery, and the Amtrak waiting room are all accessible from this hall...as well
as the KC Rail Experience museum. |
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This women's bathroom off of Festival Hall is said to be haunted. Several years ago
a psychic touring the station claimed there was a ghost named "Katherine" that resided in the bathroom.
It appears that this bathroom is not original to the station, and that this space was once a gate area. The columns
inside the bathrooms still have gate numbers painted on them, and it appears these bathrooms are a modern re-use
of this gate space. See the Sink Mystery section of this investigation report for more details. |
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At the northern end of Festival Hall, there is an entrance into the Kansas City Power
& Light City Gallery. The space is used to hold various exhibitions and displays throughout the year. At the
time of our investigation, the space held Robots: The Interactive Exhibition, described as, "Take an educational,
fun and exciting journey through a mechanical world."
It is said that people have seen phantom travelers within the City Gallery, much like what is experienced at times
in the Grand Hall and Festival Hall. See the background section of this investigation report for more details. |
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This huge freight elevator is located in the KC Rail Experience museum. It is about
10 feet wide and 25 - 30 feet long. It takes the elevator a minute or two just to travel from Union Station's main
floor to the track level below, though this is only about two stories.
When you step off of the elevator, the bench in the picture below is directly to your right. When Trish stepped
off of the elevator, she felt a little bit dizzy and nauseous for a moment. We're not sure why...but it was an
interesting reaction. |
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It was reported to us that an employee at the station was getting off the same freight
elevator, at a time before these white maniquinns were added to this bench. As he walked off the elevator and past
the bench, he saw a man sitting on the bench. When he looked back to confirm what he had seen, there was no one
there. See the Background section of this investigation report for more details.
The fact this bench now has mannequins sitting on it makes it very difficult to separate the uneasiness the mannequins
cause from any other causes of uneasiness. |
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There is a legend about people committing suicide by slumping over the balconies
in the Grand Hall, and sliding over the railing head-first to the marble below. Reportedly apparitions of these
suicidal people have been seen slumped over the railing.
We spent some time in the Grand Hall, trying to figure out which of the balconies the legend is referring. Our
best guess is that the legend is referring to the balcony at the east end of the Grand Hall...the one in this photograph. |
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This is the window where the headless male ghost, in a white shirt and dark pants,
is sometimes seen. The window above the Pierpont's sign. Reportedly Union Station security once caught this apparition
on video tape...but then erased the tape!
Pierpont's is the sister restaurant to Kansas City's legendary Hereford House.
Pierpont's maintains the family tradition of serving prime steak, perfectly aged and prepared. With fresh seafood
arriving daily, an award-winning wine list, and the unique creations of some of the areas finest chefs, Pierpont's
has won rave reviews. It is definitely worth a visit for the food. And you might just experience something paranormal
there...
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One of Pierpont's managers, Charles Peach, informed me that a frequent customer of
Pierponts often sits in this corner booth...and reportedly sees the "Lady in Black" in the area of the
stairs. That is the most common paranormal report at Pierpont's - the appearance of a Lady in Black on the stairway
leading downstairs.
This main room of the restaurant, containing the bar and the stairway in question was at one time the Ladies Waiting
Room at Union Station. |
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The stairs are somewhat unremarkable to look at. Its a fairly typical marble stairway,
with four sections of stairs and three landings. When Betty, Trish,and I went down these stairs...we all felt either
nauseous or feelings of anxiety on the second stretch of stairs from the top.
The feelings left us as quickly as they came, and we were all cautious to not indicate to each other what we felt
until we compared notes later. See the Background section of this investigation report for more details. |
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We came away from our two pre-investigation visits with photographs,
maps, stories, legends, and a real respect for Union Station. We also had a much better idea of how to structure
and organize our investigation. We owe a debt of gratitude to Andi, Betty, Bob, Denise, and Patty of Union Station
for their help during these pre-investigation visits.
-Mark Stinson |
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