The Denver and Rio Grande Depot: A Century of Change 1910-2010

The Denver and Rio Grande Depot: A Century of Change

By KIRSTEN ALLEN

At the turn of the twentieth-century, fierce competition in the railroad industry facilitated the construction of increasingly impressive infrastructure and services for various railway lines. In this context, Salt Lake City became a battleground for the competing Denver and Rio Grande and the Union Pacific to showcase the superiority of their lines. By 1906, D&RG tycoons decided that a new structure was necessary to demonstrate the company’s dominance, and the plans for the Denver and Rio Grande Depot were born.

1910-2010

Despite controversy over the effect a new depot would have on the lives of downtown residents, business interests won out and construction began. At the time of this photograph in 1909 of the depot’s foundation, architect Henry Schlacks was in continual discussion with the operators of D&RG over the construction budget for the structure. The parsimonious behavior of the company, however, did not stop progress on the building from being made under Schlacks’ management.

Construction of the depot continued through the winter of 1909. This photograph of the east side of the depot shows the arches for the grand windows. Although architect Henry Schlacks used companies from all over the United States to complete his project, many of the contractors were from Utah.

The construction of the D&RG Depot was considered complete in 1910. Work on lighting and ventilation, however, continued. The lighting for the Grand Lobby, pictured here on April 25, 1910, was particularly problematic. Two of the chandeliers for the room were broken during installation, and the intended style of light fixture did not adequately brighten the space.

Voska, Foelsch & Sidlo of Kansas City furnished the marble interior of the depot. This photo taken on April 25, 1910, of the ground floor north wing depicts the impressive and elegant areas for the comfort of travelers. This included gender segregated smoking or retiring rooms and a restaurant.

The D&RG Depot was finished in 1910 at a reported cost of about eight hundred thousand dollars. Larger than 100 feet wide and 400 feet long, the completed structure was impressive for its scale and elegance and became an impetus for business development in the neighborhood. Shortly after the depot’s construction the Park Hotel on 300 South along with numerous shops and restaurants sprung up to the east of the building.

This postcard of the Denver and Rio Grande Depot captures the arched glass of the windows of the Grand Lobby. This combined beautifully with the building’s five foot tall marble base exterior. A red tile roof topped the terra cotta and “red New Jersey” brick of the outside walls.

Little pomp and circumstance surrounded the opening of the new station in 1910. This photograph of the first train to the D&RG Depot in August of that year shows that service and overall grandeur of the depot were left to speak for themselves. Newspaper reports on the new building teasingly declared that the new facilities were so large that employees could get lost if they wandered away from their desks.

The Grand Lobby, captured here in September 1910, was an elegant waiting area for passengers bound for destinations within Utah and to both the East and West Coasts. The second floor wings of the depot mainly housed railroad employee offices.

The interior of the D&RG Depot underwent changes of décor during early decades of the twentieth-century. Photographed in March 1939, the central lobby of the depot contains elaborate chandeliers and display cases along with the practical features of ticket offices and waiting areas.

The depot building today is home to the Rio Grande Café, but the depot has always housed a restaurant for travelers. This photograph of the kitchen of the D&RG Depot in 1910, shows some of the period appliances that were utilized to serve railroad passengers.

Travelers from across the United States as shown here in August 1910, contributed to the growing prosperity of Salt Lake City’s downtown commercial district. Restaurants, hotels, and stores were a burgeoning enterprise for the city’s entrepreneurs. On the east side of the station property values rose and business grew after the opening of the D&RG Depot. However, the depot and railroad tracks became a geographical divide of economic disparity. Neighborhoods to the west of the depot became a melting pot of immigrants and home to the city’s red light district.

The district near the depot housed a community of Greek, Italian, Japanese, Armenian, Mexican, and Syrian immigrants. Many of them worked for the railroad or in related industries. This photograph, from August 1910, looks southeast towards the depot.

After the completion of the depot, the areas near the depot prospered. In 1915, the historic Liberty Bell mounted to a flat-bed train car made a transcontinental journey from Philadelphia to San Francisco. Along the way, the Bell made frequent stops to allow people from across the nation to view a piece of their heritage. This photograph, taken July 11, 1915, shows a crowd that grew to more than 75,000 people. These Utahns gathered in Salt Lake City to see the Bell when it stopped at Pioneer Park for a five hour long event that featured United States Senator Reed Smoot and Utah Governor William Spry. Thanks to the railroad, the D&RG Depot seen in the background, Salt Lake City was a convenient and important railway passenger hub.

Soldiers waiting at the D&RG Depot in February 1911, show how railroads came to provide an important means of transportation during the years of both World Wars. Cars full of soldiers and the gloomy ‘mortuary trains’ filled the station to capacity. After the hard depression years of the 1930s, the railroads became essential for the transportation of personnel and war materiel during World War II. Wartime rationing of gas and rubber also increased civilian use of railroads.

Troop movements like this one in November 1911, enlivened the area around the D&RG Depot.

Between 1949 and 1970, the famous passenger train the California Zephyr, renamed the Rio Grande Zephyr and operated from 1970 to 1983, crossed most of the country and passed through scenic Utah and the D&RG Depot on its route to California. The journey was marketed as both a quick and efficient way to travel and as a sightseeing adventure.

Travelers in 1930 could relax in a comfortable lounge car before the introduction of the vista dome after World War II.

After World War II, railway passenger service gradually declined. The new Interstate Highway systems and commercial aviation competed to facilitate economic failure for many railroad lines. In consequence, railroad stations, the D&RG Depot included, fell into disrepair and faced the threat of demolition. Transportation of passengers in this context became less efficient and railways moved to hauling more freight. Maintenance of expensive depot buildings became undesirable by the 1970s, and in 1977, the D&RG sold the depot to the State of Utah for one dollar.

Restoration work and preservation by the state of Utah gave new life to the depot. Although the depot no longer functions as a railroad station, it continues to be a vital part of downtown Salt Lake City. Today, the restored D&RG Depot houses the Utah State Historical Society, the Division of State History, Utah State Archives, the Office of Museum Services, the Utah Arts Council, and the Rio Grande Café.

NOTES

Kirsten Allen is a student of history at the University of Utah and an intern for the Utah Historical Quarterly. All photographs are from the Utah State Historical Society Photo Collection.