website watertownhistory.org
ebook History of Watertown, Wisconsin
Union Depot
same as Watertown Junction Depot
The Junction
The Junction was the location of Union Depot
near Depot
and Lafayette streets;
the depot was demolished in 1994
1865
05 11 NEW DEPOT AT THE JUNCTION
The
new depot building at the junction of the Chicago & Northwestern and the
Milwaukee & St. Paul railroads is finished and is now in use. As matters now stand, there is no convenient
or direct way of getting to and from the new building. This is a disadvantage that ought to be
remedied in some way as soon as possible.
If a short and easy way can be found to get to it, let it be pointed
out, and steps taken to open a road in that direction. The roundabout way that must now be taken by
travelers to reach our hotels is an annoyance and delay that must be done away
with as soon as possible. WD
1872
10 03 THE JUNCTION DEPOT BURNED
A
little before 5 o’clock, last Sunday morning, the 29th inst., the Union Depot
building, at the junctions of the Milwaukee & St. Paul and the Chicago
& Northwestern railroads, was discovered to be on fire by the
watchman.
The
northern train on the Northwestern road, which was considerably behind, had
passed only about half an hour before, at which time there was no appearance of
fire. The flames broke out in the
Express room, but how they originated seems to be unknown and unexplained. The alarm was given, and as soon as possible,
the Engine and Hook & Ladder companies went to the rescue. The depot building being built of wood, the
flames spread so rapidly that when the firemen reached the spot, it was seen
that their chief business was to save the neighboring structures.
The
Bay State House, owned by Mr. J. W. Mathese, was in great danger, the cornice
having already caught fire from the heat or flying sparks.
In
the meantime, the depot itself was being rapidly consumed, the firemen making
the most active efforts to confine the flames to it alone, and the platform
adjoining it, which they succeeded in doing.
That portion of the platform touching the burning depot was ruined, and
other parts more distant badly injured.
The
depot itself was completely destroyed, very little within being saved. The telegraph instruments were got out and a
few other things. All the baggage in the
baggage room was taken away, but most of the express matter, which had just
been received, was lost, though every exertion was put forth to remove it.
But
for the heavy steady rain, which had been falling for some hours, this fire
would have been much more extensive and disastrous.
The
Bay State House and the machine shops would have been burned beyond a
doubt. As it was, the Bay State House
escaped with a slight scorching, and a few broken windows, which can be easily
repaired.
Notwithstanding
the distance the mud and the storm, the firemen promptly came out, and used
their best endeavors to keep the flames within the smallest possible bounds,
and they were remarkably successful, considering the conditions in which they
found things when they arrived on the ground. Watertown Democrat 10-03-1872
1873
08 14 ARTESIAN WELL near the Junction; highly
magnetic and possessing rare and extraordinary medicinal properties WD
1899
06 20 DEPOT TO BE RAISED
The
Milwaukee road depot is being raised two feet and eight inches in order to
conform with the grade of the tracks in the yard here. WR
06 27 DEPOT NOT TO BE RAISED
On
account of the great number of washouts along the Milwaukee road lately it has
been decided not to raise the depot as the ground and the gravel will be used
farther up the line. WR
06 27 ENGINE FALLS OFF TURN TABLE
[same
date] On Thursday night the engine of the passenger which arrived at 6:10 P.M.
fell off the turn-table at the Chicago & Northwestern depot. A wrecking crew was brought into service and
placed the engine back on the track. WR
1907
01 16 Train wreck at the Junction;
Northwestern and C.M.&St.P. Ry. freight trains.
1908
10 02 Bryan Passes Through Watertown
10 23 TRAIN WRECK AT THE JUNCTION
C.&N.W. Ry. and
C.M.&St.P. Ry. freight trains
At 1 o'clock last
Saturday afternoon a double-header freight train on the C.&N.W. Ry. going
north ran into a C.M.&St.P. Ry. freight going east at the railway crossing
at the Junction. No one was injured, but
one of the C.&N.W. engines and a number of coaches were badly wrecked. Conductor W. F. Clasen and Engineer Chas.
Burmaster had charge of the C.M.&St.P. freight, and D. F. Harrison and C.
F. Dunwiddie had charge of the Northwestern.
WG
1909
Sept President
Taft, train stop at the Junction
1927
1928
1994
11 02 Demolition
Watertown's old depot [Union Depot] at the west end of Depot Street is being
razed. The building has been in a state
of disrepair for years, and with the completion of a smaller railroad office on
nearby property, the decision was made to raze it. For decades the depot was used for passengers
on the old Milwaukee Road and the Chicago and North Western lines. The last Chicago and North Western passenger
train to use the depot was in 1952 and the final Milwaukee Road passenger
trains were in 1971 when Amtrak was born.
In recent years the depot was used for storage only.
History of Watertown,
Wisconsin