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Duluth Depot

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Coordinates: 46°46′53″N 92°6′14″W / 46.78139°N 92.10389°W / 46.78139; -92.10389
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St. Louis County Depot
The Depot viewed from the north
Map
Established1973
Location506 W. Michigan Street, Duluth, Minnesota, United States
Coordinates46°46′53″N 92°6′14″W / 46.78139°N 92.10389°W / 46.78139; -92.10389
TypeArts and Culture Center
ArchitectPeabody and Stearns
Public transit accessBus transport DTA
Websiteexperiencethedepot.org
Duluth, MN
Former Amtrak inter-city rail station
The North Star at the Duluth Depot,
September 1981
General information
Line(s)
  North Star
Platforms3 island platform
1 side platform[1]
Tracks7[1]
History
Opened1892
Closed1985
Proposed services
Preceding station Amtrak Following station
Terminus Northern Lights Express Superior
toward Minneapolis Target Field
Former services
Preceding station Amtrak Following station
Terminus Arrowhead Superior
toward Minneapolis
North Star Superior
toward Chicago or Saint Paul–Midway
Preceding station Great Northern Railway Following station
Superior
toward St. Paul
 St. Paul – Duluth Terminus
Superior
toward Grand Forks
 Grand Forks – Duluth
Preceding station Northern Pacific Railway Following station
Superior
toward Minneapolis
 Minneapolis – Duluth Terminus
West Duluth
toward Minneapolis
 Minneapolis – Duluth
Via West Duluth
Superior
toward Staples
 Staples – Duluth
Terminus Duluth – Ashland Superior
toward Ashland
St. Louis County Depot
Architectural styleChâteauesque
NRHP reference No.71001028[2]
Added to NRHPDecember 9, 1971
Location
Duluth, MN is located in Minnesota
Duluth, MN
Duluth, MN
Location in Minnesota
Duluth, MN is located in the United States
Duluth, MN
Duluth, MN
Location in United States
Map

The St. Louis County Depot is a historic railroad station in Duluth, Minnesota, United States. It was built as a union station in 1892, serving seven railroads at its peak. Rail service ceased in 1969 and the building was threatened with demolition until it reopened in 1973 as St. Louis County Heritage & Arts Center (The Depot).[3] Train service also resumed from 1974 to 1985, by Amtrak.[3]

Owned today by St. Louis County, the building houses three museums (the Duluth Art Institute, Lake Superior Railroad Museum, and St. Louis County Historical Society Museum), two performing arts organizations (Duluth Playhouse and Minnesota Ballet), and serves as the departure point for the North Shore Scenic Railroad.[4]

Description

The Depot is located at 506 West Michigan Avenue right off of I-35, which runs immediately southeast of the Depot. The historic building houses several contemporary and historic artworks and artifacts, as well as an experimental theater, and also hosts public events in its Great Hall. The 1977 addition, houses a large theater and a ballet studio. The lower station has one side platform and three island platforms that provide access to its seven tracks. The outer southeast active track is used by a scenic railroad, with the remainder being used to display various trains and train cars.[1]

History

The current building is the second depot built on this site. The first, a small wooden building, was built in 1869. That same year a large group of Swedish immigrants arrived in Duluth, seeking work on the first railroad line to serve the city, the Lake Superior and Mississippi.

The Depot was designed by architectural firm Peabody and Stearns. Many local materials were used in the French Norman-style building, including granite, sandstone, and yellow brick. After two years of construction, the Depot was completed in 1892 at a cost of $615,000, at which point the earlier depot was demolished.

Over the decades, it served seven railroads: Duluth & Iron Range, Duluth, Missabe, & Iron Range, Duluth, South Shore & Atlantic, Duluth Missabe & Northern, Great Northern Railway, Northern Pacific, and the Saint Paul & Duluth.

The main entrance to the building on Michigan Street opened into a "general waiting room" (today known as the Great Hall) which featured a newsstand and a lunch counter. In addition the main floor also boasted a barber shop, a Western Union telegraph office, a smoking room, a ladies' waiting room, and a men's toilet. [5]

A large train shed originally covered the building's platforms, but it was removed in 1924 and replaced by the canopies that remain.

Its last trains in the late 1960s were the Great Northern Railway's Badger and Gopher, both to Minneapolis and St. Paul (later absorbed into the Burlington Northern Railroad)[6] and the Northern Pacific Railway ran local unnamed service to St. Paul and Minneapolis[7] and service to Staples, Minnesota.[8]

The station closed in 1969.[3] It was scheduled for demolition but was purchased from the railroad for the bargain price of $250,000. The edifice was in excellent condition, but renovations still cost $4.7 million.[3]

The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Duluth Union Depot in 1971 for its state-level significance in the themes of architecture and transportation.[9] It was nominated as a unique example of the era's large railroad terminals and the connection they provided to the rest of the nation.[10]

Former Amtrak service

While The Depot continued to house its other tenants, Amtrak provided rail service to the station for nearly a decade (1977–1985). In 1975, Amtrak launched the Arrowhead to run from the Great Northern Depot in Minneapolis to Superior, Wisconsin[11] (south of Duluth, just across the Saint Louis Bay of Lake Superior).

Amtrak Thruway service connected Duluth to Superior until 1977, when Arrowhead was extended the 4 miles (6 km) north to the Depot.[12] In 1978, the North Star replaced the Arrowhead and extended the rail service south from Minneapolis–Saint Paul to Chicago, Illinois.[13] The next stop for both Amtrak trains was in Superior. In 1981, service by the North Star was truncated to the Midway Station in Saint Paul.[14] In 1985, Amtrak discontinued the North Star and all passenger rail service to Duluth.

Current operations

North Shore Scenic Railroad

Scenic train rides from the station are provided by the North Shore Scenic Railroad, a heritage railroad operated by the Lake Superior Railroad Museum. Excursions of one to six hours' duration run northeast along Lake Superior's northern shore to destinations that include the Lester River, the area of Palmers, and the city of Two Harbors. The railroad runs other special excursions throughout the year, and may be chartered as well.[15]

St. Louis County Historical Society

SLCHS exhibits housed in The Depot include Veterans Memorial Hall.

Duluth Art Institute

The Duluth Art Institute exhibits work in its George Morrison Gallery, John Steffl Gallery, and Corridor Gallery and in the Depot's Great Hall & Performing Arts Wing.

Minnesota Ballet

The ballet has three rehearsal spaces in The Depot; it mounts occasional events and performances in the building.

The Depot Foundation

Proposed rail service

In 2011, renovations to the depot were planned to serve the Northern Lights Express Higher-speed rail service from Minneapolis to Duluth. This 155-mile (249 km) project is proposed to roughly follow the route of Amtrak's former North Star and is expected to include stops in Coon Rapids, Isanti, Cambridge, and Hinckley in Minnesota and in Superior.[16]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "Map of the Duluth Union Depot, as of 2014". www.duluthdepot.org. Retrieved May 28, 2014. (inset linked map)
  2. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  3. ^ a b c d "Depot History". The Depot St. Louis County Heritage & Arts Center. 2019. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  4. ^ "Organizations". The Depot St. Louis County Heritage & Arts Center. 2019. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  5. ^ "Duluth Union Depot". Zenith City Online. April 21, 2017. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
  6. ^ "Burlington Northern, Table 11". Official Guide of the Railways. 102 (12). National Railway Publication Company. May 1970.
  7. ^ "Northern Pacific Railway, Table 6". Official Guide of the Railways. 102 (12). National Railway Publication Company. December 1966.
  8. ^ "Northern Pacific Railway, Table 5". Official Guide of the Railways. 101 (1). National Railway Publication Company. June 1968.
  9. ^ "Duluth Union Depot". National Register of Historic Places Program. National Park Service. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  10. ^ Cavin, Brooks (November 23, 1971). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory – Nomination Form: Duluth Union Depot". National Park Service. Retrieved April 7, 2019. With three accompanying photos
  11. ^ Amtrak (May 15, 1975). "All-American Schedules". The Museum of Railway Timetables. p. 43. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
  12. ^ Amtrak (February 15, 1977). "National Train Timetables". The Museum of Railway Timetables. p. 26. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
  13. ^ Amtrak (April 30, 1978). "National Train Timetables". The Museum of Railway Timetables. p. 37. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
  14. ^ Amtrak (October 25, 1981). "National Train Timetables". The Museum of Railway Timetables. p. 42. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
  15. ^ "North Shore Scenic Railroad". North Shore Scenic Railroad. 2019. Retrieved August 3, 2019.
  16. ^ "Minnesota's Northern Lights high speed rail project receives $5m grant". Global Rail News. September 9, 2011. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
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