Former Passenger & Freight Train Station in Holly CO


Holly Santa Fe Railroad Depot, Holly Colorado
Date added: October 02, 2024
West elevation (freight section) (1995)

Do you have an update on the current status of this structure? Please tell us about it in the comments below.

The Holly Santa Fe Depot is one of only four remaining county seat depots built by the Santa Fe Railroad in the state.

Most of the communities in eastern Colorado owe their birth and initial development to the railroads. In 1873, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe laid railroad tracks across western Kansas into Colorado. Construction of a main line from Dodge City to El Paso would take nine years, from 1873 to 1881. In 1881, the Holly station first appeared in the Santa Fe employee timetables.

Not too far south from this depot stands the ranch headquarters established by Hiram S. Holly (also spelled Holleys or Holley). By 1882, the ranch had blossomed into a community that provided services and shopping for its employees and area neighbors. Despite the blizzards of 1885-86 and 1886-87 that wiped out many cattlemen, Holly persevered. Shortly after 1891, the ranch established by Holly began to change from a ranch headquarters to a town.

Lured by open grasslands, abundant game, business opportunities, and land for homesteading, the railroad signaled settlement and town formation. In 1894, Holly first appears in the Santa Fe employee timetables, and a 24 by 62 foot, wood frame depot is erected in 1897 signaling the town's progress. Three major cattle trails ran through Prowers County in the late 1800s. The trails ended at various sites along the railroad where rail cars would carry cattle to eastern markets. In 1901, the Santa Fe constructed loading chutes and pens for cattle, sheep, and hogs. Acknowledging the growing number of farmers coming to the area, a mill, elevator, and warehouse were constructed in 1902 on the railroad right of way. The following year, in 1903, the town of Holly was incorporated.

The sugar beet industry began in 1905 with articles of incorporation drawn up for the Holly Sugar Company. The first factory building was constructed on the west end of Holly and it processed the 1905 crop of sugar beets. It was the start of a boom period for Holly.

The Holly Sugar Company's main office moved from Holly to Denver in 1911, marking the beginning of the end for the town's involvement with one of its major industries. Despite the company's move, a feeling of optimism permeated the town and several substantial improvements were made in 1912. The Broom Corn Warehouse and a new flour mill, the Holly Mill & Elevator, were both constructed that year. On August 10th, the new Santa Fe Depot was dedicated after being constructed at a cost of $31,000. Santa Fe officials toured the nearby Amity irrigation system and were entertained by a Wild West program.

Shipments from the Holly depot were demonstrating the dramatic change in the area from cattle ranching to farming. Rail cars once loaded with cattle were now filled with agricultural products. The 1912 crops of wheat, sugar beets, alfalfa, oats, and cantaloupes were all shipped to markets by rail. In 1915, 26,000 tons of broom corn was shipped from the depot. Cream and milk were shipped daily to a plant in Lamar. The railroad became the link between the produce of the land and the processing plant. The lifeblood of Holly in the early 20th century came from the tie between the railroads and agriculture.

Between 1908 and 1928, subsidiaries, as well as Santa Fe, built branches from Holly to service the growing farming community. The Arkansas Valley Branch, from Holly to Swink was one such line.

Similarly, the goods shipped into the Holly Depot were also critical to the town's development. The depot saw deliveries of lumber, cement, farm machinery, and automobiles. Most every freight need of the Holly community passed through the depot.

The depot continued to be an important element in Holly's history until 1949-50 when rail traffic began to decline. The depot stopped operating as a passenger stop in 1972 and freight service ceased in 1983.

One of the most common designs instituted by the Santa Fe Railroad was the "county seat" type which flourished between 1910 and 1915. In addition to Holly, there are "County seat" depots in Fowler, Manzanola, and Canon City. The Holly Depot employs Mission style elements, as do the depots at Fowler and Manzanola.

Under the offerings of federal land grants, railroads crisscrossed the country. Each railroad company sought to develop an identity within the customer's mind. They created distinctive logos that were applied to rolling stock. But they also sought a distinctive depot design with which the public could readily identify. Standardization within the railroad industry, especially in regard to depot plans, was not only desirable, but it was also a necessity. It made good economic sense to have an inventory stock of basic materials and plans that were already drawn. After 1900, as the construction of more branch lines were subcontracted out, standard plans allowed for better control.

The first thorough attempt to standardize Santa Fe depots came around 1895. A second set of standards for these frame depots went into effect in 1910. The 1910 plans established a variety of lengths and detailing, depending on whether the depot was on a main line or a branch line.

The Santa Fe Railroad constructed many brick depots between 1900 and 1925 around several generalized standard designs. A second type of depot standard was established with the "county-seat" brick depots. Usually a second generation depot, it replaced an earlier wood frame one. While brick was the standard construction material, the trim details often varied from depot to depot, taking advantage of local materials. Although there was a generalized standard plan, each depot was usually built to its own plan. When conditions warranted, these depots were also built at locations other than county seats.

As towns along its line developed, Santa Fe Railroad supplied larger and more elaborate depots. Santa Fe generally built the more substantial "county-seat" type at locations where the traffic justified the expense. Such was the case in Holly, where this "county-seat" type replaced an 1897 frame depot. The development of the sugar beet industry in Holly a few years before and the steady increase in other agricultural products might have prompted the Santa Fe Railroad to built this larger brick depot in 1912.

In the late 1890s, there was another important step in the development of Santa Fe depots. The company decided that facilities, both depots and associated hotels, should reflect the southwestern area of the railroad. The Santa Fe Mission style was born. The Holly Depot reflects that Mission style with its curvilinear gables, widely overhanging eaves with exposed rafters, carved triangular braces, and arched window and door openings.

Building Description

Prominently situated in the town of Holly, the Santa Fe Depot is a large, rambling structure located on the north side of the railroad tracks and at the south end of Main Street. The rectangular building, 28 by 161 feet, runs east to west and parallel to the track. The one-story structure has red brick walls in a running bond pattern, a concrete foundation, and an asphalt roof. Concrete was used in the coping, lug sills, lintels, keystones, corbels, and the stringcourse that encircles the building. The wood trim is painted green. The building was a "combination" depot in that it was designed to handle both passengers and freight and is comprised of two sections. The east end of the depot with its gabled roof and decorative detailing served passengers and their baggage. The plain, flat roof, west section was for freight. The windows in the baggage area and in the freight section are all small and high on the wall for security reasons. The large decorative windows indicate the public, waiting-room areas.

The gabled roof (passenger and baggage) section has eight-foot overhanging eaves with exposed rafters. Portions of the overhang are supported by decoratively carved triangular knee bracing that rests on corbels. There is a cross-gabled roof projection on both north and south elevations. Coping caps the modified curvilinear gables and the Santa Fe emblem, in concrete, occupies the apex of each gable. Decorative arched openings provide visual interest with their basket handle-shape, concrete keystone accents, and elliptical transom lights. Doors and windows accessing the baggage and office areas are straight-headed and topped with concrete lintels.

The gabled projection on the north (street) elevation contains a central door flanked by two windows. Above the door is a pair of two small windows. On either side of the gabled projection is a large arched window opening. These openings contain an elliptical transom light above three double-hung windows. Flanked by two windows, a large door opening provides access to the baggage room.

The east elevation has a shed roof overhang supported by knee braces and corbels. Underneath the overhang is an arched opening with an elliptical transom positioned above a door flanked by two windows. The word "HOLLY" appears above the overhang. A pair of two small windows appear above the letters and below the Santa Fe emblem.

The gabled projection on the south (track-side) elevation contains a large arched window opening comprised of an elliptical transom light over three double-hung windows. Above this arched window the word "HOLLY" appears. A pair of two small windows appear above the letters and just below the Santa Fe emblem. On either side of the projection, there is a large a large arched opening. The elliptical transom is positioned above a door flanked by two windows. The baggage area is identified by the large door opening with two small windows on either side.

The flat roof (freight) section of the building has a stepped parapet wall with concrete coping. All the windows and doors of this section are straight-headed with concrete lugsills. The letters "AT & SFRY" appear on the north and south elevations below the stepped parapet wall and above a central freight door. Flanking this door are three small windows with concrete sills. At each end are two large double-door openings; one a pedestrian, the other raised with wood bumpers for freight. A brick chimney projects from the roof.

The west elevation contains a freight door and two windows. The word "HOLLY" appears high on the wall below the stepped parapet.

The interior of the passenger/baggage section includes a foyer, an east (men's) waiting room, a west (women's) waiting room, two restrooms, and a baggage room. The foyer opens to the ticket office where there are three ticket windows trimmed in oak. The walls of the foyer and the two waiting rooms are red brick five feet up from the floor with plaster-covered brick above. An oak molding separates the two wall treatments. The ceilings are arched with an oak picture molding. The original tile floor has been removed leaving the concrete floors exposed. The restrooms at each end of the ticket office contained wainscoting that has been removed. The baggage room has brick walls. The brick floor has been removed, leaving only sand. The scales are still in place and there are plank sliding doors on the north and south walls.

The interior of the freight section includes a cream room, a boiler room, coal storage room, and a freight room. Like the baggage room, the cream room has brick walls, only sand remains from the removed brick floor, and plank sliding doors on the north and south walls. The coal and boiler rooms have brick and plaster walls. While the boiler has been removed, the chimney above the boiler room remains in place. The freight room has brick walls, plank flooring, and an exposed truss ceiling. The freight scales are along the north wall. There are five freight doors in the room.

The building has undergone few alterations since its construction. Sometime around 1980, the railroad replaced the tile roof with asphalt shingles. The freight dock was removed by 1985. Many of the windows have been broken and to prevent further damage, they have been covered with plywood. The remainder of the changes are interior ones. The depot was rewired in 1950 and 1964. Drop lights were installed and minor restroom changes took place in the 1960s. In 1993, the depot was leased to an amateur paleontologist with an idea of turning the depot into a museum. As a result, there is some damage to the interior walls where he removed bricks to create doorways.

Holly Santa Fe Railroad Depot, Holly Colorado East elevation (passenger/baggage section) (1995)
East elevation (passenger/baggage section) (1995)

Holly Santa Fe Railroad Depot, Holly Colorado North elevation (1995)
North elevation (1995)

Holly Santa Fe Railroad Depot, Holly Colorado West elevation (freight section) (1995)
West elevation (freight section) (1995)

Holly Santa Fe Railroad Depot, Holly Colorado South (track-side) elevation (1995)
South (track-side) elevation (1995)

Holly Santa Fe Railroad Depot, Holly Colorado Detail on north elevation (1995)
Detail on north elevation (1995)

Holly Santa Fe Railroad Depot, Holly Colorado Detail on east elevation (1995)
Detail on east elevation (1995)

Holly Santa Fe Railroad Depot, Holly Colorado Arched window with elliptical transom (1995)
Arched window with elliptical transom (1995)

Holly Santa Fe Railroad Depot, Holly Colorado Ticket booth (1995)
Ticket booth (1995)

Holly Santa Fe Railroad Depot, Holly Colorado Hallway (1995)
Hallway (1995)