It’s
been awhile since we hit the road and I had the opportunity to find and
photograph some old railroad depots.
Actually, Laurie takes most of the pictures once we find the depots…
This is
the entrance to the grounds of the Depot Museum in Fort Payne Alabama. It is not, as one might expect, a railroad
museum. Instead, the depot and another
building contain extensive examples of Native American basketry, pottery, and
artifacts plus memorabilia from the Civil War, World War I and II, as well as
the Vietnam War. There is also a
collection of dioramas plus antique furniture, books, antique pictures and many
other artifacts. Admission is just $3.00
for adults and $1.00 for students. To
learn more, go to http://www.fortpaynedepotmuseum.com/.
In
addition to the depot itself, the railroad ‘relic’ on exhibit is a caboose. Cabooses became obsolete when
computer systems became capable of absorbing the duties of safe train functions
by the addition of electronic trackside detectors. This particular caboose was designed for local
and yard service only so it’s a bit unusual.
It has a potbelly stove, ice box, a toilet, sink and a water tank. There also is a small table on which the
employees did paperwork and ate their meals.
The
Fort Payne Railway Depot was built in 1891. This outstanding and unusual Richardsonian
Romanesque building was constructed using locally quarried pink and white
sandstone. It served as a depot for the
Alabama-Great Southern Railroad for about 85 years. When the Norfolk-Southern Railway announced
plans to dismantle the depot back in 1985, a group of preservation-minded
citizens bought the property.
The building
was added to the National Register of Historic Places 100 years after it was
built.
Originally
the town was the site of a major Cherokee village and for a time it served as
the home of Sequoyah, who invented the Cherokee’s written language. Then US Army Major John Payne built a fort
here to intern the Cherokee until they could begin the forced march to
Oklahoma…”The Trail of Tears”.
Circa
1889 – 1891, the town of Fort Payne underwent a major industrial boom based on
the promotion of the coal and iron ore in the area…and the resulting
speculation by investors. The depot and
nearby structures comprise the “Boomtown Historic District’. At the turn of the 21st century,
about 7,000 persons were employed in local mills manufacturing socks. (Almost
half of US production) Since then, Chinese imports have drastically reduced
output. The town currently has a
population of roughly 14,000.
We love
to see railroad depots that have been repurposed after the railroads ceased
service. This depot now serves as the
City Hall for Livingston Alabama. This very old Southern Railway depot was originally built around 1850 to serve the passenger
and freight services of the railroad system running between Atlanta,
Birmingham, and New Orleans. The left
side of the building was used for freight and the right side for
passengers.
Livingston
was incorporated at about the time that Andrew Jackson was inaugurated as
President! As green as this area of
Alabama is, available water was a serious problem for settlers in the early
days. The town was settled next to a
spring…and in the latter part of the 19th century Livingston became widely
known as a health spa because of the water from its unique Bored Well. This well was bored by an old blind mule which
pulled an auger around and around until an artesian well was hit in 1857. A pavilion covers the well in courthouse
square today.
Today,
the town of Livingston has a population of about 3,300 residents. It is also the home of the University of
Western Alabama with its 5,200 students.
There are several historic buildings and sites in Livingston which we’ll
try to check out on a future trip.
This is
the front of the 101 year old (but busy) railroad depot in Laurel Mississippi. This passenger station was originally built
in 1913 by the New Orleans and Northeastern Railroad, which in turn was
acquired in by the Southern Railroad in 1916.
This is
a trackside view of Laurel’s depot.
What!! Who are those people
sitting on the bench? Can it be…? Yes,
they are ‘passengers’ waiting for the “Crescent” passenger train that runs from New
Orleans to New York City.
The
city of Laurel has a population of almost 19,000. Located in the southeast region of
Mississippi known as the Pine Belt, Laurel was established in 1882 and first
flourished during the growth of the timber industry in that region. In the early 20th century, oil and poultry
replaced lumber as the main product of the area. The lumber industry in Laurel
received a needed boost in 1924 when William Mason of Laurel invented a process
for steam-pressing wood chips into sheets, now known worldwide as Masonite. In 1942, oil was discovered in Laurel, and
today there are more than 150 companies providing regional service for oil and
gas drillers.
Laurel's depot is served by 2 Amtrak trains daily. One traveler I talked to told me that he uses
the train to commute to Birmingham Alabama a couple times a month for
business. He catches the early train to
Birmingham and the late train back to Laurel and he can work on the train.
The city
took over the depot from the Norfolk Southern Railway in 1994. The structure was sound but the interior was significantly
decayed. The building was open to
vandalism and it was an eyesore. Restoration
of this 1913 brick structure included functional redesign of the existing rooms
and adding an Amtrak waiting area, replicating and repairing as many of the
historic characteristics as possible. The
original terrazzo floor in the main room was restored, turn-of-the-century
style light fixtures were installed, and the original wooden benches repaired.
The building now serves as a depot but also as a community meeting place and
event center for weddings, etc. It was
set up for a Christmas gathering when I peered inside the windows…
While I admit that I've seen much worse Amtrak facilities, I don’t
know if this can be considered a ‘true living passenger depot’. This is it…benches on either wall of this
room and a few Amtrak schedules on the wall.
No ticketing or baggage services are offered…
Of
course, even though it was just coming from New Orleans the train was about 40
minutes late… I hung in there though just because I haven’t seen very many
Amtrak trains stopping for passengers in small town America.
Notes:
· Laurel has been the birthplace of several celebrities. These include Lance Bass of the pop group
NSYNC, actors Ray Walston and Parker Posey, and Olympic gold medalist Ralph
Boston. Laurel was also the childhood
home of world-renowned opera legend Leontyne Price.
· Laurel is also home to the Lauren Rogers
Museum of Art. It houses a significant
art history library, as well as works by such noteworthy American artists as
Winslow Homer, Albert Bierstadt, Frederick Kensett, John Singer Sargent and
Mary Cassatt. The Museum also houses a
collection of fine European paintings, as well as 142 Japanese Ukiyo-e
woodblock prints from the 18th and 19th centuries.
This
was the climactic moment with passengers actually boarding the train in Laurel
Mississippi! The first stop south of
Laurel is Hattiesburg and the next stop north is Meridian Mississippi. This depot actually served 5,264 passengers
in 2013!
That’s
about it for now… Just click on any of the photos that you’d like to enlarge.
Thanks
for stopping by and checking out some memories from the past!
Take
Care, Big Daddy Dave
