Arkansas Midland Depot, Clarendon Arkansas
- Categories:
- Arkansas
- Railroad Facility
- Passenger Station
This is the last of the two railroad depots built in Clarendon shortly after 1910. The depot at 205 Midland was constructed circa 1912 for the Arkansas Midland Railroad. The Midland was originally incorporated as the Arkansas Central Railroad on January 20th, 1871 to link Helena with Little Rock. The tracks from Helena to Clarendon were completed in 1872. Because of the panic in 1873, construction stopped. In 1874, the company defaulted. It was sold in 1877, and reorganized as the Arkansas Midland. In 1901, the Midland was purchased by Jay Gould and operated as a subsidiary of the St. Louis, Iron Mountain, and Southern Railroad. During this period, the depot was constructed around 1912, it was in a convenient location to the river and the small factories lining the river bank and also to the businesses surrounding the Courthouse on Madison, Main and Second. The Midland Railroad was consolidated in 1917, and the depot was abandoned. The tracks were taken up and moved south to Holly Grove. The space left by the tracks was covered over and called Midland Street. The depot remained abandoned for many years until it was converted into the Fakes Goodyear Tires business and later into a warehouse for the White River Tackle Company.
The Midland Depot is a simple, one-story structure, typical of the depots of the early 1900's used by the small, short-line railroads such as the Arkansas Midland. The rectangular building runs east and west along Midland Street where the original railroad tracks were laid. The building has an asphalt shingle gable roof with the west gable end containing the passenger loading exit and a large ticket window. The north side contained the protruding ticket booth and the main entrances into the depot. The east gable end was used for loading freight. It was covered when the aluminum and metal warehouse additions were added in the 1950's. The depot was abandoned in 1917 when the Midland tracks were taken up. It served as a warehouse for a tire store in the 1940s and 1950s and is now a fishing and tackle wholesale business. All the windows have been boarded over with wood. The windows and doors have stone lintels and the windows have stone sills underneath.
