[6] Located at the intersection of Atlantic Avenue and Summer Street in Dewey Square, Boston, Massachusetts, the historic station building was constructed in 1899 to replace the downtown terminals of several railroads.

Today, it serves as a major intermodal domestic transportation hub, with service to the Greater Boston region and the Northeastern and Midwestern United States.

The architects were Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge of Boston, and the construction was undertaken by the engineering firm of Westinghouse, Church, Kerr & Co.

The train shed, originally one of the largest in the world, was eliminated in a 1930 renovation due to corrosion caused by the nearby ocean's salt air.

[10] In the original configuration, two tracks came off each approach to join into a four-track line and then run under the main platforms in a two-track loop.

In September 2017, the Ashkenazy Acquisition Corporation, which also owns the Faneuil Hall Marketplace, purchased the 98-year lease on the office space and concourse areas of the station from the Blackstone Group for $123.2 million.

[17][18][1][19] In August 2019, the Federal Railroad Administration awarded MassDOT up to $41.2 million to replace much of the Tower 1 interlocking outside South Station.

[24][25] When the Boston Redevelopment Authority sold South Station to the MBTA in 1977, the BRA retained the air rights over the tracks.

[26] The South Station Tower complex, which is being built on the air rights, will include a 51-story, 678-foot (207 m) skyscraper and an expansion of the bus terminal.

This visual trick is common in classical buildings and is further amplified by the oversized windows and large balustrade on the third floor and roof.

Uncommon for Ionic order columns is the lack of fluting, which is usually used to draw the eye upward, increasing the grandeur of the facade.

The clock, once one of many in the city, is a hallmark of a bygone era—something that commuters rely on to make their trains, and which visitors admire for its historical presence.

This also gives the building a more distinctive and accessible main entrance from Atlantic Avenue, Summer Street, and Dewey Square.

The revitalization included addition of two wings that extend from each side of the head house, constructed with granite from the same quarries to provide a consistent appearance.

Renovation and expansion was completed in 1989, reinvigorating the area with a vital transportation link and a strong focal point.

With the completion of the Big Dig and the Rose Kennedy Greenway, South Station has become an even more important feature in the area.

In October 2010, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts was awarded a $32.5 million grant from the federal government to begin planning for this expansion.

[42] The planning project will advance the new station area, including a possible passenger mezzanine over the platforms, to the 30% design level.

Other elements include a redesign of the South Station interlocking, new commuter rail layover facilities, and the restoration of public access to the adjacent section of Dorchester Avenue and the Fort Point Channel, filling in a missing half-mile segment of the Boston Harborwalk.

Part of this deal would include moving the facility to South Boston, with MassPort taking some of the Post Office's parking lot located across Fort Point Channel.

These costs are in 2018 dollars and include purchasing additional rolling stock, other required infrastructure improvements and a 3.5% annual inflation rate.