Louisville and Nashville Railroad Freight Station in AL
Albertville Depot, Albertville Alabama
The Albertville Depot is one of Marshall County's older transportation landmarks and is the oldest building in the town which was leveled by a tornado in 1908.
The city of Albertville had its beginnings in the 1860s when a post office was established, but the town did not begin to grow until the 1890s, and was not incorporated until February 18th, 1891.
Since the 1850s efforts had been made to connect the navigable waters of the Tennessee and Coosa Rivers by rail. In 1890 the Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railroad undertook the completion of the project land on October 3rd, 1892 the first official run was made between Guntersville and Gadsden with a stop in Albertville.
The depot was erected in that same year and the town's economy was given a tremendous boost; by 1897 it had two newspapers and at least 33 businesses and professional establishments.
A series of disasters, which included two fires in 1905 and a tornado in 1908, left the depot as the only surviving business structure of the 1890s.
At present the depot is threatened by demolition and local citizens wish to restore the building for use by civic groups.
The building has not been used as a depot for several years and until recently the entire structure was occupied by the Albertville Roofing and Supply Company. At present the building is owned by the City of Albertville, Urban Renewal Department, and the office sections are being used for storage.
While the building has no great architectural significance, it is one of the few older structures in the town, and located in an area that features corrugated metal warehouses, recent brick stores, and parking spaces. Its simple dignity adds a measure of warmth to an otherwise undistinguished section of town.
Building Description
The Albertville Depot is a one-story board and batten structure which measures 112 feet by 40 feet. The roof is gabled with 8-foot overhangs supported by wooden brackets.
The entrance to the structure is on the north side and it is this portion of the building which made up the offices of the depot. A concrete platform extends across the northern facade of the building and around the sides to a distance of forty feet. At this point on either side of the building wooden steps lead to a loading platform that encircles the remainder of the structure.
There are two single doors on the northern facade. Both are wooden with simple wooden frames and a two lite transom above. Two windows alternate with the doors and these windows are double hung with six lites per sash.
The east elevation, which faces the tracks, has two large seven-and-one-half-foot wide doors that open onto the loading platform. Similar doors are located on the western facade.
The northern end of the east elevation has one door with a two lite transom above and three windows, double hung, with 4 lites per sash, while the same section of the west elevation contains one door and four windows. There are no doors or windows on the south elevation.
The interior of the structure is divided into three rooms. The large (80 feet by 40 feet) room on the southern end of the building is the warehouse space and 'the two small rooms of the northern end measure 40 feet by 16 feet each and were used as office space. The interior has not been altered.
Alterations to the station, which was built as a freight depot have been minor and include the addition of several coats of paint throughout the years and the installation of electricity.
East facade (1974)
West facade (1974)
