Cheyenne Depot Museum

The Cheyenne Depot Museum is a railroad museum in Cheyenne, Wyoming. It is located inside the historic Union Pacific Railroad depot, built in the 1880s. The depot, a National Historic Landmark, was the railroad's largest station west of Council Bluffs, Iowa, and a major western example of Richardsonian Romanesque architecture.

Cheyenne, WY
The San Francisco Zephyr at Cheyenne in April 1976.
Location121 West 15th Street, Cheyenne, Wyoming 82001
Line(s)Union Pacific Railroad
History
ClosedOctober 1979[1][2]
Former services
Preceding station Amtrak Following station
Laramie
toward Oakland-16th Street
 San Francisco Zephyr
1972–1979
 Greeley
toward Chicago
City of San Francisco
1971–1979
Preceding station Union Pacific Railroad Following station
Borie
toward Ogden
 Overland Route Hillside
toward Council Bluffs Transfer
through to Ogden via Overland Route Cheyenne – Denver Speer
toward Denver
Union Pacific Railroad Depot
Union Pacific Roundhouse, Turntable and Machine Shop
Union Pacific Passenger Station
Location121 W. 15th St., Cheyenne, Wyoming
Coordinates41°7′54″N 104°48′51″W
Built1887 (1887)
ArchitectVan Brunt & Howe
Architectural styleRomanesque Revival
NRHP reference No.73001934 (depot);
92000930[3]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJanuary 29, 1973 (depot);
July 24, 1992
Designated NHLFebruary 15, 2006 (depot)[4]

The museum, founded in 1993, interprets Cheyenne's early history and that of the construction of the Union Pacific Railroad. It hosts an annual Steam Train Excursion in July, and Depot Days, in which tours are offered of other railroad facilities.

History

The station is built from blocks of sandstone quarried and transported from Ft. Collins, Colorado. The Depot stands directly down the street from, and facing the, Wyoming State Capitol building, signalling its historic significance in the city and state.

It received major renovations in 1922 to lengthen the building and a redecoration 1929. From 2001 to 2006, another renovation to the depot is being made including a $6.5 million US dollar improvement provided by the City of Cheyenne and plaza built in front of the Depot. This plaza hosts a variety of music and events throughout the year.

Amtrak's San Francisco Zephyr ceased serving this station directly in 1979 in favor of a new station in Borie, south of Cheyenne. This eliminated a time-consuming backup move in and out of the station.[5] Passengers were bused between Borie and Cheyenne.

The Old West Museum and Cheyenne Frontier Days made an agreement which established the Cheyenne Depot Museum, Inc. as a 501(c)3 Corporation non-profit organization. The depot is under lease from the city of Cheyenne to this corporation for 25 years.

  • The station as seen in 2011
  • The nearby roundhouse, where the Union Pacific Railroad stores its fleet of historic steam locomotives.
  • The machine shop located near the round house

See also

References
  1. "Amtrak Timetable - Effective October 1, 1979". timetables.org. Amtrak. October 1, 1979. p. 44. Retrieved January 5, 2020.
  2. "Amtrak Timetable - Effective October 28, 1979". timetables.org. Amtrak. October 28, 1979. p. 44. Retrieved January 5, 2020.
  3. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
  4. "Union Pacific Railroad". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Retrieved 2008-06-28.
  5. "Other Board Actions Tied to Route Restructuring". Amtrak NEWS. 6 (10): 5. September 1979.
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