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PRINCETON'S RAILROAD HISTORY
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The
depot as it appeared in the 1970s. |
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DEPOT
RESTORATION
The
acquisition and restoration of the old Princeton passenger depot began
as the dream of a small group of men in 1985. On December 12, 1985, the
group met at the office of Princeton attorney, George Rehnquist. Members
present at that first meeting were Harold Cook, Robert Gibson, Jr., Tim
Henning, Richard Horken, and George Rehnquist. This would be the first
of many meetings of the group to begin the process of acquiring and
restoring the only remaining train depot in Princeton.
The
restored depot has had several owners during its lifetime. The
Evansville & Crawfordsville
Railroad built the depot in 1875. The E&C became part of the
Evansville & Terre Haute Railroad in 1877. The E&TH later
became part of the Chicago & Eastern Illinois Railroad. The C&EI
came under the control of the Missouri Pacific Railroad in 1967 and was
merged into the Louisville & Nashville Railroad in 1969. The L&N
became part of the Seaboard System Railroad and that railroad was the
current owner of the depot. The group contacted the current owner to
begin the acquisition process. The group agreed to call themselves the
Princeton Railroad Station. On January 15, 1986 the organization was
incorporated by the State of Indiana as a not-for-profit corporation
known as Princeton Railroad Station, Inc. Harold Cook, Robert Gibson,
Jr., Tim Henning, Richard Horken, and George Rehnquist formed the first
Board of Directors of the new corporation.
By June of 1986 the Princeton Railroad Station, Inc. had negotiated an
agreement with the Seaboard System Railroad to acquire the depot building
in exchange for a 15 X 20 foot structure to be constructed on railroad
property north of the depot. The railroad also agreed to sell a portion of
their property to the Princeton Railroad Station and lease a portion of
their right-of-way under the depot. A 99-year lease allowed the depot to
remain on 13 feet of railroad right-of-way provided that the building is
used by Princeton Railroad Station, Inc. only as a museum. In the event
that the depot is destroyed, it cannot be rebuilt and the 99-year lease is
cancelled.
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Officials
at the public acquisition ceremony on November 2, 1986 |
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A public ceremony
was held on November 2, 1986 to celebrate the acquisition and future
restoration of the depot. Princeton's Mayor Frank Wade assisted in
organizing a parade from the city parking lot to the depot complete with a
fire truck escort. Several people spoke at the rally including Mr. L. C.
Love from the Seaboard System Railroad, Mayor Frank Wade, Harold Cook and
George Rehnquist. The event was well attended and was an excellent public
kickoff for the project. It had taken almost a year to get this far. It
would be almost another year (October 1987) before the old building would
be deeded to Princeton Railroad Station, Inc. By then the depot's owner
had become the CSX Transportation Corp.
In
August of 1986 John Burris was elected to the board of directors and began
to erect the building to be occupied by the railroad after the trade. John
also performed the bulk of the depot's restoration accomplished during the
next 15 years. Mr. Burris donated thousands of hours of labor to the depot
restoration project scrapping paint, restoring
windows and doors, replacing brick, and building the exchange building for
the railroad. The quality of his work is evident in the building
today.
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CABOOSE
RESTORATION
In July of 1988
the Norfolk Southern Railroad donated a retired caboose to the project.
The cupola style caboose had been built in 1955 for the Wabash Railroad
and numbered 2856. When the Wabash Railroad was leased to the Norfolk
& Western Railroad in 1964 the caboose was renumbered 562856. Later
the Norfolk and Western Railroad merged with the Southern Railway forming
the Norfolk Southern Railroad. The caboose arrived in Princeton on August
6, 1988 and was moved to the depot by Company on
August 13, 1988.
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Retired
caboose 562856 at Princeton before it was moved to the depot |
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caboose was placed on a section of track donated by the CSX adjacent to
the depot. The caboose was sandblasted and painted to represent its
original owner and 1955 paint scheme. |
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The restored Wabash
caboose at the Princeton Depot Museum
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Princeton IN, Genealogy, History
Gibson County, Princeton, Indiana |
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