Former Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad Station in IA
Rock Island Passenger Depot, Oskaloosa Iowa
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- Iowa
- Railroad Facility
- Rock Island RR
The Oskaloosa Rock Island Passenger Depot was built in 1887-1888.
The relatively small size (main block, 59'x 31'), and simple design (single story rectangle with gable roof) of this building, are typical of many depots constructed in the state during the late nineteenth century by a number of different railroads. However, the Oskaloosa depot was built of brick, rather than the wood frame construction used for most of these small depots. The use of brick may indicate the importance of Oskaloosa as a county seat town, or it may have been that local brick was readily available (no documentation on origin of the brick has been located). The major decorative elements on the exterior are the turned spindles used as eave braces, and the lunette windows in three of the gable ends. Finials originally adorned the peaks of the gables. The contrast (both color and texture) between: the limestone foundation and red brick wall adds another decorative element to the design. The building is functional in plan, featuring the two waiting rooms that were considered necessary in the 1880s, a small room for the ticket agent, an area for a lunch counter, and a wing to the east containing the baggage room and water closets. The attic area was left as one unfinished room. The interior featured common woodwork of the day, with wainscotting in all major rooms, and simple grooved molding with corner blocks around the windows and doors. The use of colored glass lights in the Queen Anne transoms and the lunettes adds a somewhat more elegant touch.
Little is known about the designer and/or builder of this depot. The records for the Rock Island line in Iowa have been deposited with the University of Iowa Library in Iowa City. The Oskaloosa Herald has provided some insight into the construction of the depot. In June 1887, there was a brief paragraph,
The Herald chronicled the arrival of sixteen car-loads of stone for the foundation (September 8th, 1887), and noted "Roadmaster Dye says that it will be a model." On October 6th, the Herald noted,
The next mention of the Rock Island depot is not found until February 9th, 1888,
These are the only articles about the new Rock Island passenger depot found in the Oskaloosa Herald during this period. The mention that this was to be a "model" did not explain whether that was "model" as in a "perfect" depot, or "model" as in a prototype. Many years later (c. 1940), the Herald ran a series on the history of Oskaloosa, and reported that A. Kimball, assistant to the President of the Rock Island, was responsible for selecting the site and design of the depot.
Extensive research has been done in the Manuscript Room of the State Historical Society of Iowa in Iowa City. This houses maps, postcards, and photograph collections, including the railroad photographs of Nicholas Pitsch. Pitsch is systematically photographing all of the known railroad depots in the state of Iowa. The Iowa City facility currently houses photographs of between 275 and 300 depots. None of these is similar to the Oskaloosa building. In the postcard collection, a card was found with a photograph of the Rock Island depot in Avoca (Pottawattamie County). It is a frame structure built to replace an earlier depot/hotel which burned in 1886. Except for the use of wood frame instead of brick construction, the Avoca depot appears to be the same size, shape, and design as the Oskaloosa building (even to the gable ornaments and finials). The Avoca structure is non-extant.
No other similar buildings have been located. It is possible that others existed, but it is unusual that no documentation remains. The Oskaloosa Rock Island passenger depot pre-dates the Rock Island depots in Grinnell (1892) and Iowa City (1898) which are of brick construction, but of more elaborate design. Today we view the Rock Island as a major railway, and study the design of its depots across the state. However, at the time that the depot was built in Oskaloosa, The Rock Island was not viewed as the major local railroad.
Railroads arrived in Oskaloosa at a late date in comparison to other area towns. When the Des Moines River Valley Railroad (successor to the Des Moines River Improvement Project) was built from Eddyville north to Pella in 1864, it bypassed Oskaloosa to the west. Not until the Iowa Central was formed in 1870 did Oskaloosa have tracks coming through the community. 'The Iowa Central, thought of as a "local" railroad, because prominent businessmen from the area had helped develop it, ran from Albia north to Mason City. After many years, and many mergers, the Iowa Central is now part of the Chicago Northwestern.
Even though the Iowa Central connected with major east/west lines, it was felt that Oskaloosa needed an east/west track coming directly through town. In 1875 it was proposed to extend the Rock Island line west from Sigourney to Oskaloosa. This was accomplished by the city providing the right-of-way for the tracks, and raising $20,000 to help fund the project. By February 1876 trains were running through Oskaloosa on the new R.I. track. A depot was constructed on the north side of the tracks at the foot of South 3rd Street. This served as both freight and passenger depot until the new brick building was constructed in 1887.
The Iowa Central continued to receive most of the press in Oskaloosa. There were regular notes of Iowa Central improvements and activities. The Iowa Central depot, located on the west side of Oskaloosa, was an imposing two-story building, complete with tower. The difference between the two depots was so striking, that in an 1896 souvenir book the article about the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad begins, "One of the picturesque buildings of this locality is the neat and cozy passenger depot of the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad."
Ten passenger trains a day stopped at this "neat and cozy" depot.
In 1903, it was to this depot that President Theodore Roosevelt came to dedicate the new Y.M.C.A., and it was from this depot that Oskaloosa soldiers left to serve their country in both World Wars. In 1930 the freight and passenger depots were consolidated into one building (the passenger depot), and on September 25th, 1973, the Iowa Commerce Commission authorized abandonment of the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific depot in Oskaloosa.
Building Description
The Rock Island Railroad crosses the southern part of Oskaloosa in an east/west line. The passenger depot is located on the north side of the mainline tracks (non-extant), facing Rock Island Avenue, between South 1st and South 2nd Streets.
The depot (1887/88) is a single-story brick rectangle with gable roof. It has an east/west axis, parallel to the main tracks. A single-story baggage room, with a slightly lower gable roof, is attached to the east end. The entire structure rests on a limestone foundation with stone watertable. The main block of the building (59' x 31') is bisected by a cross gable which covers a shallow rectangular bay (4' x 14') with gabled roof on both the north and south elevations. These bays are flanked on both elevations by a window/door/window arrangement. The bays have two windows on the primary elevation, and a single window on each side wall. The east (baggage) wing has two windows on "the north elevation, and a window and door on the south, while the east end wall contains one wide door. The west end of the building originally had two windows, but now has a single window and a freight door. All openings are segmental arched except for the "new" freight door.
The roof has broad eaves with diagonal braces of turned spindles, creating a Stick Style feeling. The gable ends originally had a design created by these turned spindles. Lunette windows are found at the attic level of the north, south, and east gable ends.
The interior follows the original room arrangement, with a large room (21' x 22") on each side of the narrow (13') center portion which housed the ticket agent. The east wing contained the baggage room and water closets. Throughout the interior, the original pine (or fir) woodwork is in place. Doors and windows have simple grooved molding with Bull's Eye corner blocks. The transoms above the doors feature Queen Anne lights. Some original hardware remains on the doors and windows. Wainscotting runs along the interior walls of the main block. Floors throughout are of hard maple. Those in the west room have been heavily damaged and may require replacement.
The present appearance of the building is almost unchanged from the original design. At some time the bricks were painted tan with a darker brown band from the sills down. Above the baggage door on the east end it is still possible to see the name "Oskaloosa" and the Rock Island logo. The windows are presently covered with wood panels on the outside, but the original windows exist under the panels and can be seen on the interior. A few panes have been broken, but most are intact. The lunette windows in the attic have colored glass panes, and all but two are extant. Several of the diagonal eave braces are missing, but enough remain to show the original design. Approximately ten years ago a wind storm damaged the west end of the building, causing the loss of decorative gable elements and part of the roof. The rest of the roof is intact, and sound. Beneath the composition shingles is a layer of metal which has kept the building dry over the years. Recently boxes containing ticket stubs and routing slips dated March and April, 1888, were found in the attic, in mint condition.
Both a historic photo and the 1896 Sanborn map show a narrow wooden porch or platform around the building. This was evidently removed and replaced by two sets of steps to the front (north) doors at a fairly early date, because the porch is not seen in a historic postcard of the depot. A large freight door and wooden platform were added to the west end of the building c. 1930 when the passenger and freight depots were consolidated.
Portions of a brick drive are found along the east and south sides of the depot. To the north, the lot slopes down to Rock Island Avenue. A stone retaining wall with steps leading from the depot to the street is seen in all the old photographs. The wall and steps remain, but a fence along the top of the wall has been lost. Rock Island Avenue is brick paved. Across the street from the depot is a frame two story building that served originally as a hotel, and a narrow two story brick building which was built as a saloon. To the northeast is a small building constructed c. 1920 as a lunch room. All of these buildings grew up around the depot and can be considered railroad related.
Present owners have plans for rehabilitation, retaining the historic fabric of the building.
North elevation, looking south from Rock Island Ave (1988)
North and west elevation (1988)
South elevation (track side) (1988)
East elevation (baggage room) (1988)
East elevation showing lunette and logo (1988)
Door on north elevation opening into east waiting room (1988)
Door and windows in north wall of east waiting room (1988)
