Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Depot -- Minneapolis
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Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Depot, Freight House and Train Shed
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The Milwaukee Road depot in downtown Minneapolis as seen from Washington Avenue.
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| Location | 201 3rd Ave., S. Minneapolis, Minnesota |
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| Coordinates | 44°58′47″N 93°15′44″W / 44.97972°N 93.26222°WCoordinates: 44°58′47″N 93°15′44″W / 44.97972°N 93.26222°W |
| Built | 1899 |
| Architect | Charles S. Frost |
| Architectural style | Renaissance Revival, Italianate |
| NRHP reference # | 78001542 |
| Added to NRHP | November 28, 1978 |
The Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Depot Freight House and Train Shed (commonly referred to as the Milwaukee Road Depot), now officially named The Depot, is a historic railroad depot in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. At its peak, the station served 29 trains per day. Following decline, the station was closed and eventually adapted into various other uses.
The Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad had a long history in the Minneapolis area, beginning in 1865 when a predecessor railroad, the Minnesota Central, built a line from Mendota to Minneapolis. The Minnesota Central also built a line from Mendota to St. Paul in that early era. Eventually, rail lines connected Minneapolis and St. Paul with Milwaukee, Wisconsin via Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin.
The freight house and the first depot were built in 1879, with an Italianate architectural style. The first depot was razed after a new facility, with Renaissance Revival architecture, was built in 1899.
Originally, the facility's most distinguishing feature, the clock tower, was pinnacled and modeled after the Giralda in Seville, Spain; high winds destroyed the pinnacle in 1941 and the tower has since had a flat top.
The freight house served a large percentage of less-than-carload freight arriving and departing from the Minneapolis area. Passenger traffic was also significant. In 1916, 15 passenger trains per day used the depot. Later years included the flagship Hiawathas. Rail yard facilities just south of downtown, on Hiawatha Avenue north of Lake Street, serviced the trains. By 1920, the peak of activity, 29 trains per day used the depot. Into the 1960s, the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad (or Rock Island) operated the Twin Star Rocket bound for Houston, via Des Moines and Dallas from the station.
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