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Choctaw Terminal sitemap
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Presidential Library
versus the
Choctaw Terminal



This artist's drawing shows the main part of the William J. Clinton Presidential Center, including the Rock Island bridge. The red brick building at the right margin is the Choctaw passenger station. The Choctaw freight station would be even further to the right, out of the picture. Note the "at grade or below grade" archive section of the library, to the right of the glass structure.


The site map illustrates the location of the Choctaw freight station in relation to the "main" visual component of the library -- the great hall, entry center and museum. As can be seen from the map, both Choctaw stations are on the far south periphery of the library complex. The blue area, identified as NARA Archives, will be partially at or below ground level. According to a library synopsis "Secure collections storage is located at and below grade in the Archive building, whose north side is defined as a linear two-story glazed pavilion, which contains research offices and support spaces for archivists and scholars." From artist sketches, it is believed that the two-story building is represented by the darker blue area to left of Choctaw freight station.

The Choctaw freight station could easily have been preserved by a very minor relocation of the archive annex component of the Clinton Library. The freight station, like the nearby passenger station, would have complimented the library and would have enhanced the overall project. Although no construction was underway, Clinton Library Foundation officials claimed that it would have been too expensive to redraw their blueprints in order to accommodate a historic 102 year old building which had the misfortune of sitting within the footprint of the future library.


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