Wilton station (Iowa)

Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad-Wilton Depot is an historic building located in Wilton, Iowa, United States. The Mississippi and Missouri Railroad built the first rail line in 1855 in what would be called Wilton Junction.[2] The railroad became the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad (CRI&P) a few years later. A wooden frame depot and a separate freight facility served the community. The railroad placed their repair and maintenance center in Wilton, and it remained here until 1881 when they started to move operations to Davenport and Muscatine. Rail service continue to increase along the CRI&P, which necessitated a new depot in Wilton.[3] This single-story, brick Romanesque Revival structure was completed in 1898. Six passenger trains stopped in Wilton in 1911, and by 1922 same-day service to and from Chicago began. While the number of freight trains passing through town numbered five or six by 1947, the number of passenger trains declined to one in 1948. The depot received part-time service from 1963 to 1974, when the depot closed.

Wilton
Former Rock Island Line passenger rail station
Location	Cherry Street and East Third Street, Wilton, Iowa 52778
History
Closed	1974
Rebuilt	1898
Services
Preceding station   Rock Island Line   Following station Moscow toward Colorado Springs Main Line Durant toward Chicago
Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad-Wilton Depot
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district Contributing property
Location	N. Railroad St. Wilton, Iowa
Coordinates	41°35′16″N 91°0′58″W
Area	less than one acre
Built	1898
Architectural style	Romanesque
Part of	Wilton Commercial Historic District (ID16000606)
NRHP reference No.	88001326[1]
Added to NRHP	August 25, 1988

After the building served as a train station it went into decline until the Wilton Historical Society obtained and restored it. The former depot was individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.[1] In 2016 it was included as a contributing property in the Wilton Commercial Historic District.[4]

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
2. "Local Sights". City of Wilton. Retrieved 2012-04-23.
3. James E. Jacobsen. "Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad-Wilton Depot". National Park Service. Retrieved 2017-05-28. with photo(s)
4. Jan Olive Full. "Wilton Commercial Historic District" (PDF). National Park Service. Retrieved 2017-05-28.