Historic Structures - Urban Exploration of Historic Properties

Denver South Park and Pacific Railroad Depot, Jefferson Colorado

Denver South Park and Pacific Railroad Depot, Jefferson Colorado

The Denver South Park & Pacific Railroad (DSP&P) filed for incorporation on June 14^th, 1873. Its founders included Colorado political and financial movers and shakers John Evans, David Moffat, and Charles Kountse. Evans, the prime mover behind the enterprise, envisioned the DSP&P extending from Denver across the Rocky Mountains all the way to the Pacific Ocean. In building the railroad, the company decided to utilize narrow gauge spacing of three feet between rails. In Colorado's mountainous terrain, narrow gauge construction allowed for steeper grades, sharper curves, and a lower cost for materials and rolling stock. Track laying began in May, 1874. Funding difficulties resulted in there being only 32 miles of track extending out of Denver by June of 1878. From

Alpine Railroad Tunnel, Pitkin Colorado

Alpine Railroad Tunnel, Pitkin Colorado

As the DSP&P managers contemplated their westward expansion, they surveyed a number of possible routes over the Continental Divide. Many passes were already being utilized for trail and wagon routes. These included Otto Mear's Marshall Pass Toll Road, the Hancock Pass Wagon Road and the Alpine and South Park Toll Road over Williams Pass. Chief engineers Leonard H. Eicholtz and James A. Evans settled on the route up the Chalk Creek drainage (Chaffee County), tunneling under 11,940 foot Altman Pass (at the Continental Divide), and proceeding down the Quartz Creek drainage (Gunnison County) through Pitkin and on to Gunnison. The grade on both summit approaches could be kept from exceeding 4%, close to the maximum possible for an adhesion railroad. Tunneling

Nueces County Courthouse, Corpus Christi Texas

Nueces County Courthouse, Corpus Christi Texas

The Nueces County Courthouse is a 6-story brick veneer structure located on the original courthouse block in Corpus Christi. The imposing Classical Revival structure, built in 1913-14, is the third courthouse and is one of the oldest remaining buildings in the city. The first permanent settler in the area was H.L. Kinney, who bought land near Corpus Christi and began ranching and trading. On the site of present Corpus Christi, he established Kinney's Ranch and Trading Post. The place grew precariously until General Zachary Taylor's army was stationed there in September, 1845. Kinney promoted the region and Corpus Christi became the county seat of the newly formed Nueces County in 1846. Nueces County, originally including the entire area south of Bexar

La Veta Pass Narrow Gauge Railroad Depot, La Veta Colorado

La Veta Pass Narrow Gauge Railroad Depot, La Veta Colorado

In the late 1870s the Denver and Rio Grande Railway began building out of Pueblo in the effort to cross La Veta Pass and enter the San Luis Valley. The mountainous terrain imposed considerable difficulties for up to that time no railroad had crossed a pass this high, 9,400 feet; but the barriers were surmounted and the road entered the valley. To serve passenger and freight trains on the run, the Rio Grande built this passenger depot and used it for more than twenty years until 1899 when the original narrow gauge line over La Veta Pass was abandoned in favor of a standard gauge road about seven miles farther south. Despite deterioration over the years the present owner plans to

Lyons Railroad Depot, Lyons Colorado

Lyons Railroad Depot, Lyons Colorado

The Lyons Railroad Depot was built in the summer of 1885 by Mark Boyd, a Longmont contractor and builder. It is one of the few remaining buildings which survive from the early days of the town and symbolizes the economic and social development of the area. In 1884, a narrow gauge track was brought in to Lyons by the Denver, Utah and Pacific Railroad to ship the sandstone which formed the base of the town's economy. In about 1888, it was replaced by wide gauge track, operated by the Union Pacific. By 1890 over a thousand tons of sandstone from the nearby quarries were being shipped daily from the Lyons station. The stone was widely used for buildings, not only in

Huerfano County High School, Walsenburg Colorado

Huerfano County High School, Walsenburg Colorado

Walsenburg and Huerfano County are located in southern Colorado along the margin of the mountains and plains, where the open ranch country to the east meets the towering beauty of Spanish Peaks, which loom above the surrounding countryside. Here the ground holds wealth in the form of great seams of bituminous coal, with the primary underground concentration of black gold running from northwest to southeast around and underneath the town of Walsenburg. The railroad arrived in the area in 1876 and mining camps soon emerged, employing thousands of men. After 1890, many of them arrived from southern and eastern Europe, bringing with them their wives and children. Toiling underground in dangerous working conditions, the miners extracted the fuel needed to operate

Santa Fe Railway Passenger and Freight Depot, Fullerton California

Santa Fe Railway Passenger and Freight Depot, Fullerton California

In 1930 Santa Fe began running their new Electro-Motive Corporation gas-electric motor cars. They were efficient and mechanically reliable. They handled passengers as well as the U. S. Mail and express parcels. Patronage on the trains increased through the late 1930's and into the 1940's. During those years the train was the most popular and reliable way to travel from other parts of the country to Southern California. Automobiles were not reliable, got only about fifteen miles per gallon, and had to traverse dangerous sections of roadways. The Santa Fe Depot was often the traveler's first view of Fullerton and its surrounding areas. The station, with its Spanish Colonial Revival architecture and surrounding semi-tropical landscaping, must have provided quite a sight

Southern Pacific Railroad Company's Sacramento Depot, Sacramento California

Southern Pacific Railroad Company's Sacramento Depot, Sacramento California

The Sacramento Southern Pacific terminal was a major transportation center in the west for freight as well as passengers. In 1926, 86 trains passed through the Sacramento station daily, 64 passenger trains and 22 freight trains, on an average of one every fifteen minutes. This level of activity was surpassed only by New York, Chicago, Omaha, Kansas City, New Orleans, and San Francisco. An average of 4,500 passengers daily passed through Sacramento. In addition, Sacramento was one of the principal railroad equipment-building cities in the United States. By 1926, the Southern Pacific shops in Sacramento had turned out 142 locomotives since the first one, #173 was built in 1872. Every part for trains was manufactured in Sacramento with a workforce of

Southern Pacific Railroad Depot, Susanville California

Southern Pacific Railroad Depot, Susanville California

Lassen County was formed in 1864, and local government was established in the community of Susanville. The area was slow to develop because of its isolated location at the northern end of the Sierra Nevadas. In the early 1880s, the community saw hopes of the railroad coming to town. However, several times, the town was bypassed, and other routes were chosen. It wasn't until T.B. Walker, a well-known lumberman from Minnesota, began to acquire timberlands in Lassen County and operate the Red River Lumber Company that negotiations with Southern Pacific Railway finalized the plan for a line that would run through Susanville. On April 26^th, 1913, the Fernley and Lassen Branch of the Southern Pacific Railway opened Susanville's first railroad depot,

Sonoma Depot, Sonoma California

Sonoma Depot, Sonoma California

As far as we know, Sonoma Depot is one of the oldest depot structures remaining in California. There may be some remote stations in northern or central California that are older, but this building certainly can be classified as one of the oldest. This building was built around 1875-76. It was originally built on the Plaza to service the narrow gage railroad, and early photographs show it at the northwest corner. It was moved to the present location around 1890, when there was considerable pressure from citizens in the Sonoma area to get the railroad off East Spain Street and the Plaza. It was altered at some time after its removal to its new location by an extension of the freight

Llanerch Public School, Haverford Township Pennsylvania

Llanerch Public School, Haverford Township Pennsylvania

On November 13^th, 1904, the Haverford Township School Board purchased a tract of land in Llanerch for $2,450 to construct a public school. At the time, the population of Llanerch was approximately 100 people. By January 1905, the school's architects, Churchman and Thomas, were accepting bids for a 2-story stone school building measuring seventy-five feet by thirty-three feet. The 2-story brick building measured seventy-five feet by thirty-three feet and had only four rooms. It was constructed at an estimated cost of $10,000. The building was originally used as a high school but, in 1907, because of a rapidly increasing population, a grammar school teacher was placed in the building to accommodate the population of the district [which was] rapidly increasing. Indeed,

Santa Fe Passenger and Freight Depot, Shafter California

Santa Fe Passenger and Freight Depot, Shafter California

The Shafter railroad depot (Santa Fe) is an excellent example of the Standard combination frame depot. Designated Number 2-A, it was designed by Santa Fe engineers in February of 1911. The word combination means use for freight, passenger and express service. The basic design of the Shafter depot was modified in May of 1913. This design modification is reflected in the architecture of the depot, which was finally constructed by Santa Fe employees in 1917. Shafter, then but a colony, had been the center of much farming activity in the past decade. This activity produced crops that provided the catalyst for the building of a depot. Although the colony, then the newest in Kern County, had been quite prosperous in its

Tehachapi Railroad Depot, Tehachapi California

Tehachapi Railroad Depot, Tehachapi California

Geology and geography combined to make Tehachapi dependent upon the railroad. Because of Tehachapi's location between the east-west Tehachapi Mountain range and the north-south Sierra range, travel to or through Tehachapi was difficult until the railroad went into service. However, this location placed Tehachapi on the best route linking the southern San Joaquin Valley to Southern California and the Eastern United States. The section of the railroad through Tehachapi is now one of the busiest tracks in the world and is very famous worldwide among railroad buffs. The Tehachapi community was created by the railroad. The original town was located four miles west of the present depot location. In the 1870s, the government provided financial incentives to the railroad builders in

Perris Santa Fe Railroad Depot, Perris California

Perris Santa Fe Railroad Depot, Perris California

Even before Perris Depot was completed, the site was the social and commercial center of the community. This is where the community received its merchandise, met friends, said goodbye to friends, embarked on a journey, or debarked from one. The names of the leading mercantile houses of the city are still written in lampblack on the freight house walls, indicating the location where all the freight for that business was to be left. Before the arrival of the railroad, the Perris Valley (known then as the San Jacinto Plain) was largely vacant. With little reliable water and sparse vegetation, it had been largely bypassed by aboriginals and European settlers alike. A few miners worked gold diggings in the surrounding hills, but

Fremont High School, Fremont Michigan

Fremont High School, Fremont Michigan

Constructed in 1926-27, Fremont High School, designed by Lansing architect Judson N. Churchill, was designed to address perennial overcrowding in Fremont's schools due to a growing population and the expansion of the high school curriculum in the early part of the twentieth century. The new high school also provided room for Newaygo County's normal school, a program that provided teachers for the county's rural one and two-room schools in the face of chronic teacher shortages throughout rural Michigan. The school today incorporates two major additions. In 1961, a gymnasium/natatorium complex, designed by prolific school architects the Warren S. Holmes Company, was constructed as a stand-alone building facing in the opposite direction from the main school. In 1988, an addition connected the

Colfax Freight Depot, Colfax California

Colfax Freight Depot, Colfax California

Freight shipping and distribution was an important activity along the Central Pacific and other railroads associated with the SP Lines. As a result, depots and freight houses became important and familiar structures along these railroads and to the citizens in towns served by the railroads throughout the Western states. With the passing of the railroad's less-than-carload (LCL) freight era, these freight houses have become an architectural legacy of the SP Lines' once-central role in the West's economic development. The Colfax Freight Depot is one of the few visible reminders of the importance of LCL freight in the nation. The Colfax Freight Depot was built by the Central Pacific Railroad Company using an SP-CP design and served as a shipping and receiving

Home of the Founder of the Town of Murdock MN to be Demolished

Home of the Founder of the Town of Murdock MN to be Demolished

The Sabin S. and Mary A. Murdock House, built in 1878 on Clara Avenue, was the home of the proprietor of Murdock, Minnesota, and represents the efforts of a single individual to conceive, found, and promote a rural Minnesota community. The Murdock House is important as the oldest building standing in Murdock and as the largest and most architecturally significant Victorian house in the town. Sabin S. Murdock, a man of Scottish and English descent who was the son of a physician, was born in New England in July of 1830. He married Mary Ann Peck in New York state in 1852. The couple had six children born between 1853 and 1876. Little is known about Murdock's early career, but in

Colfax Southern Pacific Railroad Passenger Depot, Colfax California

Colfax Southern Pacific Railroad Passenger Depot, Colfax California

The Colfax Passenger Depot was built by the Southern Pacific Railroad Company and served as a transportation and shipping focal point of the City of Colfax from 1905 to 1945. During the early twentieth century, railroads provided nearly 98 percent of intercity passenger travel in the United States (Bender 1998). As a result, Southern Pacific depots became important and familiar focal points to citizens in towns served by the railroad throughout the Western states. With the passing of the railroad era, Southern Pacific depot buildings have became an architectural legacy of the Southern Pacific's once-central role in the west's economic development, as well as its main source of transportation. The Colfax passenger depot is one of the only visible reminders of

Coconut Grove Playhouse, Miami Florida

Coconut Grove Playhouse, Miami Florida

Coconut Grove began as a frontier town rivaling early Miami, located around five miles to its southwest. Its early residents were mainly Northeasterners drawn to the tropical climate and low population density. Since South Florida was so remote, with no form of easy access via rail line, Coconut Grove incubated a unique culture, characterized by some of its early residents, including a few notable artists. Ralph Middleton Munroe, a yacht designer who was one of the Grove's earliest residents, was also known for his photography. In addition, Kirk Munroe, a children's adventure book author and conservationist who was not in any way related to Ralph, was very active in establishing Coconut Grove's early community institutions. The arrival of Henry Flagler's Florida

Santa Fe Railroad Train Depot, Carlsbad California

Santa Fe Railroad Train Depot, Carlsbad California

The Carlsbad Depot, constructed in 1887, was the site of Carlsbad's first commercial and public building and served continuously from 1887-1960 as Carlsbad's sole railroad stop for incoming and outgoing passengers and goods. Further, the very settlement and growth of the City of Carlsbad was the result of railroad influence along the Southern California coast. As such, the Depot has played a vital role in Carlsbad's history. Though built as transportation centers for people and freight, train depots often served other functions within a community. When it opened in 1887, the railroad shared space with the telegraph and Wells Fargo Offices. For a brief period from 1915 to 1920, it also housed the only general store in the community. Compared to

Book Title Abandoned Industrial Places: Factories, laboratories, mills and mines that the world left behind (Abandoned Places)

Abandoned Industrial Places: Factories, laboratories, mills and mines that the world left behind (Abandoned Places)

Book Title Lost Places: Images of Bygone America

Lost Places: Images of Bygone America

Book Title Abandoned America: Dismantling The Dream

Abandoned America: Dismantling The Dream

Book Title Abandoned: Hauntingly Beautiful Deserted Theme Parks

Abandoned: Hauntingly Beautiful Deserted Theme Parks

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