Former Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railroad Train Station in SD
Java Depot, Java South Dakota
The Java Depot is a combination depot plan constructed by the Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railway. Combination depots commonly used in small towns or as a short-term building are extremely hard to find in their original location.
The city of Java owes its existence to the railroad. The Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railway extended their service to the Missouri River. Workers laying rails dubbed the new town "Java" in honor of the coffee served in the town. James C. Corson, agent for the Milwaukee Land Company, sold town lots from his home in October 1900. Building began immediately after the sale of the land. By the end of 1900, the town had 24 buildings with at least three more in the midst of construction.
Construction began on the depot in the spring of 1901. The Railroad Company used a Combination depot plan. The plan also called for a side gable roof, brackets, a baggage room, a general waiting room, an office, and living quarters. Since the depot was a standardized plan of the Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railway construction was completed in July. The standard class A passenger station was a very simple depot.
The building served the town of Java as a passenger depot until 1975 when passenger service was discontinued. After a few years, the Java Equity Exchange turned the building into a warehouse. Now the building is being leased to a group interested in restoring the building.
It has only experienced a few alterations since its construction. In the early 1990s, the Java Equity Exchange purchased the building. They removed most of the interior walls and two fenestration openings to warehouse doors. The building still has brackets, most of the fenestration openings, the two original door openings, and the original wood siding.
Building Description
The Java Depot built in 1901 by the Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railway still retains most of its original features. The plan chosen by the company was the combination depot. This type combined form and function into the design. A passenger waiting room, office space, a warehouse, and a small apartment all occupied the building. The construction materials used lent themselves to a quick installation. Plans called for wood framing, clapboard siding, brackets, and a gable roof. The depot rests on a concrete foundation.
A wood shingle roof covers the side gable roof. The front facade faces the railroad tracks, which are also perpendicular to the main street forming a "T" town. Exterior siding changes on the building add to the attractiveness of the building. The first three feet are vertical wood wainscoting. Separating the wainscoting from the clapboard siding is a sill course of wood. The siding changes again under the eaves and in the gable ends. The siding is vertical with a decorative point at the bottom of the board.
The facade features six openings. The first is a two-over-two double-hung window. Next to the window is the entrance to the original waiting room. The door has a transom window. Continuing west, the elevation has a bay window. The bay featured windows on all three sides. Currently, windows only exist on the side elevation of the bay. The main facade changed when the Java Equity Exchanged purchased the building for a warehouse. A warehouse door replaced the center pair of two-over-two windows. Past the bay are two two-over-two windows and the original warehouse door with a three-light transom.
The west elevation only features a four-light window. On the east elevation, it originally had two two-over-two windows. The north window was removed and replaced with another warehouse door. The rear (north) elevation features three two-over-two windows, a rear entrance, and a warehouse door.
The interior is now two rooms. Historically the interior had an apartment, a small waiting room, and a warehouse. The apartment was used by the caretaker of the building.
Southwest (2001)
