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Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof
Location Am Hauptbahnhof, Frankfurt am Main, Hesse, Germany
Near Frankfurt city centre (approx. 1.5 km west)
Built 1883–1888
Architect Hermann Eggert (building); Johann Wilhelm Schwedler (iron train shed)
Style Neo-Renaissance; iron and glass train shed
Type Railway station
Original use Central railway station, replacing three earlier stations
Status In use; Hesse's busiest station
Features Iron and glass construction, Rooftop sculpture

Overview

Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof is a huge terminus station west of the city centre. Behind a long stone neo-Renaissance front building stand great arched iron and glass halls covering the platforms. When it opened in 1888 it was the largest railway station in Europe, and it is still one of the busiest in Germany.

The main story

  • 1881 – A design competition attracts 55 entries. Hermann Eggert wins. Johann Wilhelm Schwedler, the runner-up, becomes chief engineer for the iron train shed.
  • 1883 – Building begins, with the firm of Philipp Holzmann as contractor. The new station is to replace Frankfurt's three separate western stations (the Westbahnhöfe).
  • 18 August 1888 – The station opens after five years of work. Its three-span arched train shed makes it the largest station in Europe, a title it holds until Leipzig Hauptbahnhof opens in 1915.
  • 1924 – Two further halls are added to the sides.
  • Second World War – Damaged by bombing, then repaired after the war.
  • Today – Used by around 450,000–500,000 passengers a day.

The roof of the front building carries a large sculpture group, often described as Atlas carrying the globe, flanked by figures representing steam and electricity.

The alternative view

Five years for the largest station in Europe

The official story is that the biggest station in Europe, with its stone front building and three vast iron halls, was built in about five years. Supporters of the alternative view ask whether this timeline is realistic, and whether older foundations or structures were reused.

Three stations replaced by one

The new station replaced three older stations nearby. What happened to them, and how much of their land, foundations and materials went into the new building?

Atlas, steam and electricity

The sculpture on the roof shows Atlas holding up the world between figures of steam and electricity. Old world research often links grand buildings to ideas about lost energy technology. Is the sculpture just a celebration of the industrial age, or a clue to something the builders knew?

Part of a worldwide pattern

Frankfurt is one of many huge iron and glass stations built across Europe and the world within a few decades, from London's St Pancras to Milan and beyond, often with very similar halls and front buildings. The alternative view asks whether this shows a shared older building tradition.

What would support the alternative view

  • Structures or foundations under the station older than the 1880s
  • Gaps in the construction records or accounts
  • Unexplained features in the halls, cellars or tunnels

What would weaken it

  • Eggert's and Schwedler's competition designs and working drawings
  • Philipp Holzmann's company records for the build
  • Dated photographs and engravings of the construction

Open questions for contributors

  • The sculpture: Who made the rooftop group, and what exactly do the figures represent?
  • The old stations: What happened to the three Westbahnhöfe after 1888?
  • Passenger numbers: Sources give around 450,000 or 493,000 a day. Which is current?
  • Underground: What is under the station besides the S-Bahn and U-Bahn levels?
  • Photos: Historic photos and postcards from before 1900 are likely to be public domain.

Sources