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West Chicago station

Metra train station in West Chicago, Illinois, USA

Architectural plans, a scale model, maps and brass measuring instruments
Places and architectureInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionAug 9, 2026
Entity authorityQ7984731 ↗
Source-derived summary

West Chicago is a station on Metra's Union Pacific West Line, located in West Chicago, Illinois. The station is 29.7 miles (47.8 km) away from Ogilvie Transportation Center, the eastern terminus of the West Line. In Metra's zone-based fare system, West Chicago is in zone 4. As of 2018, West Chicago is the 88th busiest of the 236 non-downtown stations in the Metra system, with an average of 586 weekday boardings. Unless otherwise announced, inbound trains use the north (side) platform and outbound trains use the south (island) platform.

As of September 8, 2025, West Chicago is served by 51 trains (26 inbound, 25 outbound) on weekdays, by all 20 trains (10 in each direction) on Saturdays, and by all 18 trains (nine in each direction) on Sundays and holidays. One inbound train originates at West Chicago on weekdays.

West Chicago station lies south of the West Chicago City Hall and next to the Wilson Avenue Bridge. It is located at ground level and consists of two platforms and three tracks. Two tracks separate the side and island platforms, and one track lies south of the island platform.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “West Chicago station” as metra train station in West Chicago, Illinois, USA. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around West, Chicago and station.

Editorial reviewMost useful as a place-based finding aid connecting the present description to earlier jurisdictions, maps and built evidence. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—2018, 2025—that can be checked directly. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with West, Chicago and station providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “West Chicago station”, the useful work is to connect “metra train station in West Chicago, Illinois, USA” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 9, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7984731. Authority coordinates are 41.881, -88.199. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2018 and 2025.

Critical limits

Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.

Best used for
  • Historic place names
  • Jurisdictional context
  • Routes into maps and plans
Verify next

Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “West Chicago station”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow West Chicago station primary sources, West Chicago station archive and West research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “West Chicago station”?
  2. Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
  3. Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “West Chicago station” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.