Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Saint Quentin station, inaugurated in 1850 by the Compagnie des chemins de fer du Nord, became a strategic railway node between Paris and Brussels. It was first a terminus until 1855, when the line was extended to Hautmont. A second building, designed by architect Sidney Dunnett in 1887, was destroyed by a fire in 1922, marking a turning point in his architectural history.

The current station, rebuilt in 1926 by architects Gustave Umbdenstock and Urbain Cassan, embodies the Art Deco style with interior decorations signed Auguste Labouret. Its buffet and facades, which have been listed as historical monuments since 2003, bear witness to this period. The parvis, renovated in 2016, and the buffet, restored for visits, highlight its preserved heritage.

Symbol of modernity, the station appeared in 1964 in the cartoon Les Robinsons du rail de Franquin, reflecting its cultural anchor. Today served by TER Hauts-de-France and Ouigo, it hosts more than one million travellers annually. The line towards Guise, partly used by a tourist railway, recalls its historic role of forklift.

Spared by wars but marked by reconstructions, the station illustrates the evolution of transport in Picardia. Its architecture, combining functionality and aesthetic Art Deco, makes it a rare example of a monumental 20th century station. The number of visitors, slightly falling since 2015, remains supported by its positioning on the Paris-Brussels axis.

The station offers adapted services (PMR access, automatons) and developed intermodality (shippers, Pastel urban network). Its parking and proximity to the Haute-Picardie TGV station reinforce its usefulness. The Vermandois Tourist Railway, using a portion of the old line to Guise, continues its local railway heritage.

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