"The Toledo and Ohio Central Railway station at 379 West Broad Street in Columbus, Ohio, is the largest remaining 19th century railroad palace in central Ohio. Paul Randolph, former dean of the Yale University School of Architecture, was quoted in the Columbus Dispatch after a visit as saying, "It is one of the most fascinating things I've ever seen in my life!" Today it serves as local headquarters for Volunteers of America, a national organization with a variety of charitable and service programs.
The "T&OC" station was built in 1895 and was designed by the architectural team of Yost and Packard who are responsible for the design of many other central Ohio landmarks. They include the former Ohio State University Armory, the Chittenden Hotel, and the still-standing Broad Street Methodist Church. The central tower at the front of the depot gives the building a pagoda look - an oriental aspect - but authorities credit the roots of the design to French and Swiss feudal architecture. Large clock faces on three sides of the tower during the first decade of its existence were a daily reference for Broad Street travelers. The clock faces and works have been removed. Railroad tracks originally were at ground level, but the Broad Street and railroad grades were separated in 1910 to allow for a smoother flow of burgeoning automobile traffic. The rails were raised and bridged over Broad Street which was lowered. Cars no longer needed to stop for passing trains. The tracks now are owned by Conrail, but the depot is owned the Volunteers of America.
During construction of the elevated tracks, a devastating fire burned the roof off the depot on November 10, 1910, but within a few days the roof was replaced and the depot was open for business. When the rails were elevated, a ramp was built on the east side of the depot and curved up and around behind it to bring passengers and freight from Broad Street up to the newly raised track level.
Disaster struck again on March 25, 1913 when a flood, which killed 732 people in southern Ohio and Indiana, wiped out rail and other transportation facilities. It brought the Scioto River up five feet into the T&OC Depot's "grand lobby" as the river and debris flowed west along Broad Street. Today, a small brass plaque on the side of the balcony staircase marks the high water mark.
Over the years, the depot served as a major transportation terminal. Recruits boarded trains here with the onset of World War I, and veterans returned from war to victory parades. Similarly, Ohio State University football teams boarded trains here for their away games as the Buckeye Band (TBDBITL) played them aboard.
By the late 1920's, the T&OC facilities had become part of the New York Central Railroad which moved its terminal operations to Union Station on North High Street where the Columbus Convention Center now stands.
Just as the depot became surplus to the New York Central Railroad, the old Volunteers of America facilities on Front Street were taken by eminent domain by the State of Ohio to make room for new state office buildings. New York Central officials made the old station available to the VOA for a rent of $1 for the first year and then sold the station to the VOA the next year, in 1930. It is just four blocks from the old VOA facilities on Front Street. The station has served as the local Volunteers of America headquarters since.
Disaster struck again in 1959 in the form of a flood and again on January 20, 1975 in the form of a two-alarm late-evening fire which burned the roof off the historic depot. The wood arches of the barrel-vaulted lobby ceiling survived the fire and were restored and new tin work was installed. The original skylight is now lit with florescent lights. The plaster "Cupid" arches on either end of the ceiling vaults were restored with new plaster casts made from molds taken after the fire from remnants of the original bas relief work. Several damaged marble wall panels had to be replaced as did lighting fixtures. New carvings replaced the damaged wood decorations on the bulletin boards, and a new grill had to be made for the ticket office window.
The depot has been adapted to serve the modern needs of Volunteers of America while preserving much of the 100-year-old architecture. The U. S. Department of the Interior has placed the T&OC station on the National Register of Historic Places."
-- Source