National Register of Historic Places

Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway Combination Depot

Decorah, Winneshiek County, Iowa
Listed
September 11, 2016
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
16000609

About this property

The Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway Combination Depot is a historic building located in Decorah, Iowa, United States. After the Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad, later the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad, choose a different route for their north–south mainline, community leaders convinced them to build a spur to Decorah. This would open the town to larger markets to ship the products produced there. The tracks were completed in 1869, and a boxcar served as the first depot. That same year this single-story, wood-frame structure with Greek Revival features was completed south of the central business district. It served as a combination depot, servicing both passengers and freight. After the arrival of the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad in 1884 the Milwaukee Road started to plan a new passenger depot in Decorah. It was completed on the east end of the main commercial street in 1888. When it opened, this building continued to serve as a freight depot. Over the years its platforms were shortened, and sometime between the 1930s and the 1950s, the southwest end of the building was shortened. The Milwaukee Road abandoned the depot in 1971, and the tracks that flanked the building were removed the same year. The former depot itself was renovated for non-railroad use. This is believed to be a rare extant example of a wooden combination depot in Iowa. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2016.

Location

203 W. Pearl St.
Decorah, Winneshiek County, Iowa
43.29689, -91.78660
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Native Heritage
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Settlement
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Nearby Historic Sites

Broadway-Phelps Park Historic District
Listed
0.4 mi
Steyer Opera House
Industrial
0.5 mi
Ellsworth-Porter House
Industrial
0.6 mi
Decorah Woolen Mill
Civil War
0.6 mi
Decorah Hospital
Industrial
0.6 mi

Questions about this property

When was Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway Combination Depot listed on the National Register?

Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway Combination Depot was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 11, 2016.

What type of historic resource is Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway Combination Depot?

Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway Combination Depot is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway Combination Depot?

The period of significance for Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway Combination Depot is recorded as the industrial era.

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