- [Geoffrey] In the heyday of rail travel, the terminals themselves were awe inspiring.

And if you think they don't make 'em like that anymore, just ride a Metra train down to Ogilvy Transportation Center.

How's this for a grand entrance?

Architect Helmut Jahn was almost certainly thinking of the magnificent old Chicago and Northwestern train terminal that once stood right here when he designed this building to replace it.

The old Chicago and Northwestern Railroad terminal served riders for nearly 75 years.

It was one of the nation's largest and grandest terminals when it opened in 1911.

Ogilvy Transportation Center, which opened in 1987, tries to preserve that feeling.

And passengers who stop to notice seem to agree.

What did you think when you came through the doors?

- It's beautiful.

I'm so impressed.

- You know, the architecture allows the light to feel open at all times.

- Not a bad way to introduce the city to people coming off the train.

- There were six historic train terminals in Chicago, all the way up until the 1970s.

Only one of them is still in use for rail.

And that's where we're going next.

Chicago's Union Station.

Today, Union Station bustles with humanity, serving six Metra lines and Amtrak.

Well, this really gives you a wow effect, doesn't it?

- It is one of the favorite places in Chicago, seeing the- - [Geoffrey] That's DePaul University Professor, Joseph Schwieterman.

He remembers coming here as a child on family trips from Indiana, in the days before Amtrak.

- It was just like coming to another world.

I'm from a little farm town, so when you traveled, you had plans for people to meet you at the station.

You didn't have a cell phone to call.

So it was an adventure.

And this station, I think, is a testament to that era where railroads shaped cities.

- [Geoffrey] Chicago's six great terminals almost made the city seem like Oz.

In addition to Union Station and Chicago and Northwestern Station, there was LaSalle Street Station.

The tracks are still there and used by Metra, but the station was torn down in 1981.

Grand Central Station.

Yes, we had a Grand Central Station in Chicago along the Chicago River's South Branch.

It was torn down in 1971.

Dearborn Station on Printers Row still stands, but it was repurposed as a shopping mall in 1984, and Central Station, which towered over the south end of Grand Park, torn down in 1974.

According to Schwieterman, no other city even came close to the number of major terminals Chicago had.

And this is because Chicago was the railroad hub for the country?

- We are the railroad hub times two, you might say.

I mean Chicago, particularly in the area passenger, had no rivals.

- [Geoffrey] All of Chicago's train terminals were on the edges of downtown, and none connected to the others.

So if you were traveling through Chicago to another destination, you had to somehow make your way from one terminal to another.

- Oh, it was a major headache for passengers and it can be, you know, close to a couple miles for some of these things.

You don't just take your bag and head down the street.

- [Geoffrey] The enterprising Parmley transfer company capitalized on the situation, shuttling passengers and their luggage between terminals, and there was another fringe benefit.

- [Joseph] The Santa Fe's great trains to Los Angeles had the movie stars and Chicago being the connecting point, we were the spot where celebrities would travel across the country.

- [Geoffrey] Chicago restaurateur, Ernie Byfield, sent limos to transport stars like Richard Burton, Elizabeth Taylor, Lauren Bacall, and Humphrey Bogart to Byfield's famous pump room restaurant where Chicago Sun Times gossip columnist, Irv Kupcinet, was waiting in booth one for exclusive interviews.

The terminals might be gone, but they live on in the movies.

From High Roller Hijinks.

- It's worth that much to you?

- Yeah.

- [Geoffrey] To life-threatening Mistaken Identity.

- You keep walking.

I'll catch up.

- Yes ma'am.

- [Geoffrey] To baby saving G Men.

(tense music) And imagine cleaning up Union Station after this scene.

Fortunately, it was filmed on a sound stage.

(bright music)