Anchorage Depot

Anchorage
General information
Location411 West 1st Avenue
Anchorage, AK 99501
United States
Owned byAlaska Railroad
Platforms1 side platform 1 Island
Tracks4
Construction
ArchitectJoseph L. Skoog
History
Opened1942
Rebuilt1948
Services
Preceding station Alaska Railroad Following station
Terminus Aurora Winter Train Wasilla
toward Fairbanks
Denali Star
Coastal Classic Girdwood
toward Seward
Glacier Discovery Girdwood
toward Grandview
Anchorage Depot
Alaska Heritage Resources Survey
LocationAnchorage, Alaska
Coordinates61°13′18″N 149°53′26″W / 61.22167°N 149.89056°W / 61.22167; -149.89056
Arealess than one acre
Built1942
Built byAlaska Railroad, J.B. Warrack Company
ArchitectJoseph L. Skoog
NRHP reference No.99001027[1]
AHRS No.ANC-00362
Added to NRHPAugust 27, 1999
Location
Map

Anchorage Depot, also known as Alaska Railroad Depot, is the railroad station at the center of the Alaska Railroad system at the junction of the two main lines their trains run on. It serves as the starting point for many tourists traveling on the luxury trains such as the Denali Star.[2] The station is a Moderne-style three story concrete building, built in 1942 and enlarged in 1948.[3]

It is located at the base of a hill, below downtown Anchorage. It measures 338 feet (103 m) by 45 feet (14 m).

In 1999, it was deemed significant in the history of transportation in Alaska and nominated for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. The depot, built of concrete and steel and well-equipped, was held to represent the railroad's transition from wooden structures and equipment inadequate for challenges of the World War II era and since.[3]

It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 27, 1999.[1]

It appears that sometime before October 2020, a high platform was built on the third track over from the main depot, thus making this the first train station in Alaska to have a high platform.[4]

  1. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ^ "Depot Locations". Alaska Railroad. Archived from the original on December 30, 2015. Retrieved November 16, 2015.
  3. ^ a b James Blasingame (March 24, 1999). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Anchorage Depot / Alaska Railroad Depot". National Park Service. Retrieved July 2, 2016. with three photos from 1999 and one from 1942-1947
  4. ^ Railway, Adventures (October 16, 2020). "ALASKA RAILROAD". YouTube. Archived from the original on November 2, 2020.