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55-414: Kansas City Union Station ( station code : KCY) is a union station that opened in 1914, serving Kansas City, Missouri , and the surrounding metropolitan area . It replaced a small Union Depot built in 1878. Union Station served a peak annual traffic of more than 670,000 passengers in 1945 at the end of World War II , but traffic quickly declined in the 1950s, and the station was closed in 1985. In 1996,

110-491: A clock tower above the main entrance that was 125 feet (38 m) in height. By the 20th century, over 180 trains were passing daily through the station, serving a city population that had tripled. In 1903, the lack of room for expansion and a major flood led the city and the railroads to decide a new station was required. The decision to build a new station was spearheaded by the Kansas City Terminal Railway ,

165-411: A switching and terminal railroad that was a joint operation of several railroads: Alton ; Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe ; Chicago, Burlington and Quincy ; Chicago Great Western ; Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific ; Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific ; Kansas City Southern ; Missouri-Kansas-Texas ; Missouri Pacific ; St. Louis-San Francisco ; Union Pacific ; and Wabash . The new location

220-525: A trusty , and his sentence was reduced to five years. On December 29, 1922, Nash was released. On March 3, 1924, Nash began a 25-year sentence at the United States Penitentiary, Leavenworth , in Kansas, for assaulting a mail custodian. He escaped on October 19, 1930. The FBI launched an intensive search for Nash throughout the entire United States and most of Canada. After an intensive investigation,

275-575: A Chevrolet sedan. There they took up their positions to await the arrival of Nash and his captors. Upon the arrival of the train in Kansas City, Agent Lackey went to the loading platform, leaving Smith, Reed, and Nash in a stateroom of the train. On the platform, he was met by SAC Vetterli, who was accompanied by FBI Agent Raymond J. Caffrey and officers W. J. Grooms and Frank Hermanson of the Kansas City Police Department. These men surveyed

330-517: A car. He noticed that both men were armed, at least one of them with a machine gun. Before Agent Lackey had a chance to warn his fellow officers, one of the gunmen shouted, "Up, up!" At this instant, Agent Smith, who was in the middle of the back seat, also saw a man with a machine gun to the right of the Plymouth. SAC Vetterli, who was standing at the right front of the Chevrolet turned just in time to hear

385-582: A criminal fugitive at the Union Station railroad depot in Kansas City, Missouri , on the morning of June 17, 1933. It occurred as part of the attempt by a gang led by Vernon C. "Verne" Miller to free Frank "Jelly" Nash , a federal prisoner. At the time, Nash was in the custody of several law enforcement officers who were returning him to the U.S. Penitentiary at Leavenworth, Kansas , from which he had escaped three years earlier. Charles "Pretty Boy" Floyd

440-575: A family-friendly interactive science center with more than 50 hands-on exhibits; the H&;R Block City Stage Theater, a live-action venue with productions for all ages; the Regnier Extreme Screen, the largest movie screen in the region at five and half stories tall; two restaurants, including Pierponts, an upscale steak and seafood restaurant, and Harvey's; many shops; the Gottlieb Planetarium,

495-517: A federal grand jury at Kansas City, Missouri, on October 24, 1934. On January 4, 1935, the four were found guilty of conspiracy to cause the escape of a federal prisoner from the custody of the United States. On the following day, each was sentenced to serve two years in a Federal Penitentiary and pay a fine of $ 10,000, the maximum penalty allowed by law. The Kansas City Massacre changed the FBI . Previously,

550-626: A few stations in Canada which it serves. A three-letter code system is in use in the MTR to identify stations. For example, Whampoa station of the MTR has the code of WHA. Indian Railways uses one- to four-letter codes. Most stations of the Indian Railways are assigned three letter codes, for example, the station code for Mumbai Central station is MMCT and for Guwahati is GHY. One-letter station codes of

605-434: A large train station declined in the 1950s. In 1973, it had 32,842 passengers, all passenger train service was now run by Amtrak, and the building was deteriorating. Kansas City government wanted to preserve and redevelop the building, and, in 1974, made a development deal with Canadian redeveloper Trizec Corporation . Between 1979 and 1986, Trizec constructed two office buildings on surrounding property, but did not redevelop

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660-560: A public–private partnership undertook a $ 250 million restoration, funded in part by a sales tax levied in Kansas and Missouri counties of the Kansas City metropolitan area . By 1999, the station had reopened as a suite of attractions, including museums. In 2002, train service returned when Amtrak began public transportation services, and the station became Missouri's second-busiest train station. The refurbished station has theaters, ongoing museum exhibits, and attractions such as Science City ,

715-601: A replacement for the Winchester, the agency later adopted specially modified variants of the Remington Model 81 semi-automatic rifle. The FBI Story depicts the massacre. A TV movie titled Kansas City Massacre directed by Dan Curtis was broadcast in 1975. The paranormal show Ghost Adventures investigated Union Station in Season 7 for the potential residual hauntings by the victims. A graphic novel titled Union Station

770-567: A result of a run-in with a criminal gang in New Jersey. Several authors, including Jay Robert Nash , have used Miller's death to argue that the Massacre was not a rescue attempt, but a syndicate hit meant to silence Frank Nash, who had extensive underworld connections. Richetti and Floyd were involved in an automobile accident in Wellsville, Ohio , on October 20, 1934, in which the automobile that Floyd

825-566: A train bound for Kansas City, Missouri , at 8:30 that night. The Missouri Pacific train's estimated time of arrival in Kansas City was 7:15 the next morning. Before traveling, the lawmen contacted Reed E. Vetterli, Special Agent in Charge (SAC) of the FBI's Kansas City office, to meet them at the train station upon arrival. Several outlaw friends of Nash had heard of his capture in Hot Springs. They learned

880-435: A voice command, "Let 'em have it!" At this point, from a distance approximately 15 feet diagonally to the right of Agent Caffrey's Chevrolet, an individual crouched behind the radiator of another car opened fire. Officers Grooms and Hermanson immediately fell to the ground, dead. SAC Vetterli, who was standing beside Officers Grooms and Hermanson, was shot in the left arm and dropped to the ground. As he attempted to scramble to

935-677: Is responsible for railways in Great Britain . Station codes are not used by Northern Ireland Railways for stations in Northern Ireland . In England, Scotland and Wales of the UK, railway stations are assigned three-letter codes and are issued by National Rail and are called the Computer Reservation System (CRS). Kansas City massacre The Kansas City massacre was the shootout and murder of four law enforcement officers and

990-570: The DS 100 code , for example, Luckenwalde station in Brandenburg has the station code BLD. Stations normally have a code of three capital letters, sometimes two letters. They are called "stedskoder" (location codes). Examples: OSL= Oslo Central Station , GAR= Oslo Airport Station , TND= Trondheim Central Station and BO= Bodø Station . Three-letter alpha codes (formerly called CRS codes - Computer Reservation System ) are issued by National Rail which

1045-652: The Irish Museum and Cultural Center , and the Todd Bolender Center for Dance and Creativity . Since 2016, it has been a stop for the KC Streetcar . On April 8, 1878, Union Depot opened on a narrow triangle of land in Kansas City, Missouri, between Union Avenue and the railroad tracks of the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad in what became West Bottoms . Nicknamed the "Jackson County Insane Asylum" by those who thought it

1100-425: The Kansas City metropolitan area in both Kansas and Missouri approved the so-called "bistate tax", a 1/8 of a cent sales tax , part of which helped to fund just under half of the $ 250 million restoration of Union Station. Renovation began in 1997 and was completed in 1999. The remaining money was raised through private donations and federal funding. The renovations enabled Amtrak to move its operations back inside

1155-583: The Super Bowl LVIII victory parade and rally honoring the Kansas City Chiefs . One person was killed and 22 others were injured. The station is served by four Amtrak trains daily. The Missouri River Runner has round trip service to Gateway Transportation Center in St. Louis . The Southwest Chief departs for Chicago Union Station in the morning and for Los Angeles Union Station late evening. Of

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1210-516: The Birth of the FBI, 1933-1934 (2007), asserts that Floyd "almost certainly was" guilty of taking part in the massacre, citing the testimony of several underworld informants arrested by the FBI; however, their testimony has been contradicted by those of other informants and witnesses. On November 29, 1933, during the FBI's search for Miller, his mutilated naked body was found in a ditch on the outskirts of Detroit, Michigan . He had apparently been killed as

1265-608: The FBI concluded that Nash had assisted in the escape of seven prisoners from the United States Penitentiary, Leavenworth, on December 11, 1931. The investigation also disclosed that Nash had a very close association with Francis L. Keating, Thomas Holden, and several other gunmen who had participated in several bank robberies throughout the Midwest. Keating and Holden were apprehended by FBI agents on July 7, 1932, in Kansas City, Missouri . The pair had crucial information about

1320-471: The Indian Railways In Japan, alphabetic station codes are not used. Japanese railways use station numbering, a sign system which assigns station codes consisting of a few letters and numbers to train stations. In South Korea , station codes are purely numeric, to reduce the problem of language and writing system barriers. For example, Seoul Metropolitan Subway 's Singeumho station has

1375-491: The Kansas City Massacre and was convicted on June 17, 1935, approximately two years after the massacre. He was sentenced to death. Following appeals and resentencing, he was executed on October 7, 1938. After an intensive search, the FBI and a team of local police officers located Pretty Boy Floyd hiding on a farm just outside Clarkson, Ohio , on October 22, 1934. Floyd shot it out with the law enforcement officers and

1430-515: The agency did not have authority to carry firearms (although some agents reportedly did) and make arrests (they could make a " citizen's arrest ", then call a U.S. Marshal or local law officer), but one year later Congress gave the FBI statutory authority to carry guns and make arrests (in May and June 1934). The FBI acquired its first Thompson submachine guns and Winchester Model 1907 self-loading rifles. But, after requesting that Remington Arms provide

1485-404: The area surrounding the platform and saw nothing that aroused their suspicion. SAC Vetterli advised Agent Lackey that he and Caffrey had brought two cars to Union Station and that the cars were parked immediately outside. Agent Lackey then returned to the train and, accompanied by Chief Reed, SAC Vetterli, Agents Caffrey and Smith, and Officers Hermanson and Grooms, proceeded from the train through

1540-593: The back. Nash was arrested hours later and sentenced to life in the Oklahoma State Penitentiary . On March 28, 1918, Nash's sentence was reduced to ten years after he convinced the warden he wanted to join the army and fight in World War I . In 1920, Nash was convicted of burglary using explosives, also known as safe-cracking, and sentenced to 25 years in the Oklahoma State Penitentiary. He became

1595-431: The back. Smith was unscathed. The three gunmen rushed to the lawmen's car and looked inside. One of them was heard to shout "They're all dead. Let's get out of here." With that, they raced toward a dark-colored Chevrolet. Just then a Kansas City policeman emerged from Union Station and began firing in the direction of one of the killers, later identified as Floyd, who slumped briefly but continued to run. The killers entered

1650-436: The car which sped westward out of the parking area and disappeared. The three survivors, Agents Smith and Lackey and SAC Vetterli, reported that the assault lasted possibly 30 seconds. They were uncertain if three or four gunmen staged the assault. From their account, it was apparent that the two Kansas City police officers were killed immediately, followed seconds later by Frank Nash and Chief Reed and then by Agent Caffrey, who

1705-575: The ceiling in the Grand Hall is 95 feet (29 m) high. There are three chandeliers weighing 3,500 pounds (1600 kg) each, and the Grand Hall clock face is 6 feet (1.8 m) in diameter. The building's scale reflects Kansas City's central location as a hub for both passenger and freight rail traffic. The station opened on October 30, 1914, as the third-largest train station in the country. The Kansas City massacre occurred on June 17, 1933, in front of Union Station, while captured fugitive Frank Nash

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1760-460: The center of the back; and Chief Reed sat beside Smith in the right rear seat. At this point, Agent Caffrey walked around the car to get into the driver's seat through the left door. SAC Vetterli stood with Officers Hermanson and Grooms at the right side near the front of the car. A green Plymouth was parked about six feet away on the right side of Agent Caffrey's car. Looking in the direction of this Plymouth, Agent Lackey saw two men run from behind

1815-492: The code of 538. In Sweden and Denmark , railway stations are assigned a capital letter followed by a sequence of lowercase letters that represent the station's name. For example, Stockholm commuter rail 's Stockholm City Station has the station code Sci. In Sweden the code is in a few cases a single capital letter, such as M for Malmö Central Station . Deutsche Bahn in Germany uses an alphabetic station code system called

1870-456: The largest planetarium in the area; and various temporary museum exhibits including Dead Sea Scrolls in 2007, Bodies Revealed in 2008, Dialog in the Dark in 2009, Dinosaurs Unearthed in 2010 and Diana, A Celebration focusing upon Princess Diana in 2011. The Irish Museum and Cultural Center has been located in the station since March 17, 2007. The old Union Station Powerhouse building

1925-438: The latter to the crime. The FBI account—including Floyd's involvement—has been disputed in three books: Joe Urschel's The Year of Fear (2015), Robert Unger's Union Station Massacre: The Original Sin of J. Edgar Hoover 's FBI (1997) and Michael Wallis's Floyd biography Pretty Boy (1994). The authors believe that Floyd and Richetti were framed by the FBI. The matter is likely to remain highly controversial, as evidence against

1980-476: The left side of the car to join Agent Caffrey, who had not yet entered the driver's seat of the Chevrolet, Vetterli saw Caffrey fall to the ground. He had been fatally wounded in the head. Inside the car, Frank Nash and Chief Reed were killed. Agents Lackey and Smith were able to survive the massacre by falling forward in the back seat of the Chevrolet. Lackey was struck and seriously wounded by three bullets in

2035-402: The lobby of Union Station. At the time, both Agent Lackey and Chief Reed were armed with shotguns. Other officers carried pistols. Frank Nash walked through Union Station with the seven officers. Upon leaving Union Station, the lawmen, with their captive, paused briefly. Again, seeing nothing that aroused their suspicion, they proceeded to Caffrey's Chevrolet. Frank Nash was handcuffed throughout

2090-487: The main building in 2002. Union Station receives no public funding. Operating costs are funded by general admission and theater ticketing, grants, corporate and private donations, commercial space leases, and facility rental. Union Station Kansas City, Inc., a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization , manages Union Station and had previously managed the Kansas City Museum . Union Station hosts Science City (opened in 1999),

2145-408: The mission. According to the FBI report, Floyd and Richetti happened to be on the way to Kansas City but had been detained at Bolivar, Missouri , early on the morning of the 16th, when the car in which they were riding became disabled. While the two were waiting in a local garage for the necessary repairs to the car, Sheriff Jack Killingsworth entered the building. Richetti, who immediately recognized

2200-449: The sheriff, seized a machine gun and held the sheriff and the garage attendants up against the wall. Floyd drew two .45 caliber machine pistols and ordered all parties to remain motionless. Floyd and Richetti then transferred their arsenal into another automobile and ordered the sheriff to enter that vehicle. The two, along with their prisoner, drove to Deepwater, Missouri , abandoned that automobile and commandeered another. After releasing

2255-440: The sheriff, they arrived in Kansas City about 10:00 p.m. on June 16. There, Floyd and Richetti abandoned that automobile and stole another car to which they transferred their baggage and firearms. Finally, that same night, they met Miller and went with him to his home. There Miller told them of his plan to free Frank Nash. Early the next morning, according to the FBI account, Miller, Floyd, and Richetti drove to Union Station in

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2310-432: The station. The deteriorating station closed in 1983, except a "bubble" inside the main hall housing Amtrak's operations until 1985, when all passenger operations were moved to a smaller "Amshack" facility adjacent to the old station. In 1988, the city sued Trizec for the failure to develop the station and settled in 1994. For most of this period, the building continued to decay. In 1996, residents in five counties throughout

2365-507: The time of the scheduled arrival of Nash and his captors in Kansas City and made plans to free him. The scheme was conceived and engineered by Richard Tallman Galatas, Herbert Farmer, "Doc" Louis Stacci, and Frank B. Mulloy. Vernon Miller was designated to free Nash, and while at Mulloy's tavern in Kansas City, he made several phone calls for assistance in the scheme. According to the official FBI report, Charles "Pretty Boy" Floyd and his sidekick Adam Richetti arrived in Kansas City to aid in

2420-421: The trip from the train to the Chevrolet, which was parked directly in front of the east entrance of Union Station. Agent Caffrey unlocked the right door of the Chevrolet. When the door was opened, Nash started to get into the back seat; however, Agent Lackey told Nash to get into the front of the car. Agent Lackey then climbed into the back of the car directly behind the driver's seat. Agent Smith sat beside him in

2475-402: The twelve Missouri stations served by Amtrak , Kansas City was the second busiest in the 2015 fiscal year , boarding or disembarking an average 421 passengers daily. Station code In most countries, station codes are purely alphabetic, usually compromising a few capital letters for ease of identification, in some countries one capital and one or some lowercase letters. Amtrak encodes

2530-534: The two men is far from conclusive. Urschel and Wallis maintain that the massacre is completely out of character with the rest of Floyd's known career. Additionally, longtime underworld figure Blackie Audett wrote in Rap Sheet (1954) that Floyd and Richetti weren't involved, and that the other two gunmen were really Maurice Denning and William Weissman, brother of noted racketeer Saul "Solly" Weissman. Bryan Burrough, author of Public Enemies: America's Greatest Crimewave and

2585-514: The whereabouts of Nash and eventually divulged that he was hiding out in Hot Springs, Arkansas . With information in hand, two FBI agents, Frank Smith and Francis Joseph "Joe" Lackey, and McAlester, Oklahoma Police Chief Otto Reed ventured to Arkansas to find the escaped outlaw. After an exhaustive search, Nash was apprehended in a local store in Hot Springs on June 16, 1933. The three officials then drove Nash to Fort Smith, Arkansas , to board

2640-581: Was at a valley at 25th Street and Grand Avenue used by the Kansas City Belt Railway. It was south of the central business district , above and away from the floodplain . Architect Jarvis Hunt was a proponent of the City Beautiful movement. The Beaux-Arts architecture design was a main hall for ticketing, and a perpendicular hall extending out above the tracks for passenger waiting. The building encompassed 850,000 square feet (79,000 m) and

2695-462: Was driving crashed into a telephone pole. Police Chief J. H. Fultz went out to investigate and a shootout took place with Floyd and Richetti. Chief Fultz apprehended Richetti after Richetti had emptied his gun at the officer. Floyd escaped, but the Police Chief thought Floyd might have been wounded. Adam Richetti, following his apprehension, was returned to Kansas City. He was tried for the murders in

2750-450: Was identified by the FBI as one of the gunmen. However, some evidence suggests that Floyd was not involved. Frank Nash was first convicted in 1913. He and a friend, Nollie "Humpy" Wortman, stole nearly US$ 1,000 (equivalent to $ 30,800 in 2023) from a store in Sapulpa, Oklahoma . While escaping, Nash suggested they hide the evidence. As Wortman went to bury the money, Nash shot him in

2805-478: Was killed in the shootout. At the time Floyd was killed, a watch and fob, consisting of a "lucky piece", were found on his person. Groups of ten notches were found on each of these items—reportedly carved by Floyd as an indication of the number of people he had killed. With his dying breath, Floyd denied he was involved in the shooting. The four individuals who aided in the conspiracy—Richard Galatas, Herbert Farmer, "Doc" Louis Stacci, and Frank Mulloy—were indicted by

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2860-567: Was renovated by the Kansas City Ballet . It is the ballet's new home and has been named the Todd Bolender Center for Dance and Creativity since August 2011. In April 2015 and 2017, the reality TV show American Ninja Warrior was filmed at Union Station. The 2023 NFL draft was held in front of, and partially inside, Union Station in April 2023. On February 14, 2024, another mass shooting occurred in front of Union Station immediately after

2915-504: Was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead on arrival. The FBI immediately initiated an investigation to identify and apprehend the gunmen. The investigation developed evidence that the scheme was carried out by Vernon C. Miller, Adam C. Richetti, and Pretty Boy Floyd. The evidence included latent fingerprint impressions located by FBI Agents on beer bottles in Miller's Kansas City home and identified as those of Adam Richetti, thus helping to link

2970-481: Was to be delivered to prison via train. Four lawmen (including FBI ) were murdered by the Kansas City crime family with Tompson submachine guns in an attempt to free Nash, who was also killed in the gun battle. The massacre highlighted the lawlessness of Kansas City under the Pendergast Machine and resulted in the arming of all FBI agents . In 1945, annual passenger traffic peaked at 678,363. The demand for

3025-490: Was too large. It was the second union station in the country, after the Indianapolis Union Station . Union Depot's architecture was a hybrid of Second Empire and Gothic Revival . The lead architect was Asa Beebe Cross , who "adorned the exterior of the building with intricate towers of varying heights, arched windows framed in stone and rows of dormers projecting from the steeply pitched mansard roof ". It had

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