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The wooden Blair passenger depot, was built in 1880 and stood on the same site as the 1910 brick Blair depot at 14th & Front streets.  It was later moved west then removed again across the tracks were it has sat since the mid-1950's. This photo, from about 1900 shows the south site of the depot.   (Photo from the BHPA Archives - Gift from Ron Hineline.)

RELEASED  March 21, 2007:

BLAIR, NEBRASKA -- Many people in Blair will remember the 1910 brick railroad depot and when it was demolished in a single day in October 1987 without any prior warning or discussions with the community. Even if there would have been prior knowledge that the historic structure was to be torn down, there was not a viable plan or finances to preserve the building that was already on the real-estate market.

Now another old, perhaps even more historic Blair passenger depot -- one that many readers probably aren’t even aware of , although it’s in plain sight -- is facing removal or perhaps destruction in the coming weeks. The wooden structure was built in 1880 at the crossroads of the east/west tracks of the old Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha line and the north/south tracks of the Sioux City & Pacific line, basically on the location of the 1910 brick depot.

Before this 1910 brick depot was built, this old 1880 depot was moved several hundred feet west and used as a freight storage building. In the 1950s it was again moved, this time across the tracks to where it stands now; just west of 16th Street and north of the railroad tracks. (This same spot was the approximate site of an even earlier three-story depot and hotel built in 1869 called the Blair House.)

On this site, this old passenger depot was again used for a while as a freight depot and more recently as a storage building.

Now the old 1880 depot needs a new home. The Mathiesen Grain Company, which owns the land it sits on, is expanding its operations and needs to find a new home for the building.

In the next few weeks, the feed mill and the depot must be removed to make room for a second grain bin. "The depot is already on cement blocks and ready to move," Matt Mathiesen, manager of Mathiesen Grain Company says. "We would love to have someone find a way to save this old structure. Our business is expanding and this old depot simply can’t be used where it is at anymore."

"The depot is really the only structure at that site that has a meaningful potential for preservation," Tom Kranda, president of the Blair Historic Preservation Alliance, says. "Our goal is to help the Mathiesens find a new home for the old depot. Ideally that home might be somewhere in Blair, but there are interested people from outside Nebraska looking at the possibility of adding this historic depot to their collection of ‘old style’ buildings in their community."

According to Tony Pasely, director of the Washington County Historical Association, the depot has many possibilities:  "It could become an additional exhibit building at the Washington County Fair Grounds, converted into a restaurant, coffee house, antique store, or if need be, continue its current use as a storage facility in another location. The most important aspect to remember is that this building has too much importance to be destroyed and fade into the shadows of Washington County and Blair history."

The building is a 24' x 64' wood frame structure with over 1,500 useable square feet. Many of the windows are boarded up. The interior still has a large amount of original beadboard paneling in place. The west section that was used for passengers still has its early pine flooring; otherwise, the building floor is made of two-inch sturdy planks. "The building must be moved soon,” Mathiesen says. “I’m hoping someone can find a good use for it.”

To learn more about the history of the old Blair Depot, log on to BlairHistory.com and look for "Old Freight Depot" link at the bottom of the page. You can also view historic pictures of the building from the early 1900s and see current snapshots of the building's interior and exterior at the website. To pursue the matter further, you may contact Tom Kranda (402) 533-1113 or at depot@BlairHistory.com.

-END-

Photos:  (click image to enlarge)

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The wooden Blair passenger depot, was built in 1880 and stood on the same site as the 1910 brick Blair depot at 14th & Front streets.  It was later moved west then removed again across the tracks were it has sat since the mid-1950's. This photo, from about 1900 shows the south site of the depot.  The train tracks were on the north side.   (Photo Postcard from the Pat Tripp Collection.)		Today, the old 1880 depot stands next to the old feed mill located just north of the railroad tracks and west of 16th Street. (Photo taken by Jay P. Anderson, 2006)	Photo of the 1910 brick Blair Depot demolished in 1987.    This photo shows the south site of the depot -- about the angle as the photo of the 1880 depot.   (Photo Postcard from the Pat Tripp Collection.)
			(THIS IS NOT THE DEPOT THAT IS BEING REMOVE.  THIS PHOTO MIGHT BE USED ONLY AS A REFERENCE TO OR COMPARISON WITH THE 1880 DEPOT PHOTO.)