Kelso Depot facts for kids
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Kelso Depot, Restaurant and Employees Hotel
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 Location in California
Location in the United States
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| Location | 90942 Kelso Cima Road Kelso, California |
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| Built | 1923 |
| Architect | Los Angeles and Salt Lake R.R. |
| Architectural style | Mission Revival & Spanish Colonial Revival architecture |
| NRHP reference No. | 01000760 (original) 100003401 (increase) |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | August 2, 2001 |
| Boundary increase | January 31, 2019 |
The Kelso Depot is a cool old building in the Mojave Desert in California. It used to be a busy train station, restaurant, and hotel for railroad workers. Today, it's the main National Park Service Visitor Center for the Mojave National Preserve.
The depot is located in a small place called Kelso, California. It sits between two major highways, Interstate 15 and Interstate 40. Because of its history and unique style, the Kelso Depot was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2000. This means it's a special place worth protecting!
Contents
History of the Kelso Depot
Building a Desert Oasis
The first train station in Kelso was built in 1905 by the Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad. But as train travel grew, they needed something bigger and better. So, in 1923, they started building a brand new, fancy building. It opened in 1924.
This new building was called the "Kelso Clubhouse & Restaurant." It was designed in a beautiful style called Mission Revival architecture and Spanish Colonial Revival architecture. Imagine a grand building with arches and red tile roofs, right in the middle of the desert!
The Kelso Depot was built for a few important reasons:
- It served as a place for train passengers to stop and eat.
- It provided a hotel and services for railroad employees.
- It was a crucial water stop for the big steam locomotives that needed water to run.
The depot also helped transport ore from nearby mines. It was a very important spot for the Union Pacific Railroad. They wanted to make their stations as nice as their competitors, like the Santa Fe Railway's famous Harvey Houses.
Gardens in the Desert
The area around the depot was designed to feel like an oasis in the desert. There were gardens with shade trees like Fremont cottonwoods and Chinese elms. There were even neat, green lawns! Most of these gardens didn't survive the harsh desert conditions after the depot closed. But some date palm trees are still there today.
World War II and Beyond
The Kelso Depot played a big role during World War II. It was a busy hub for moving supplies and soldiers across the country by train.
After the war, things started to change. Fewer people traveled by train, and new diesel locomotives replaced the old steam engines. Diesel engines didn't need water stops, so the depot became less important. The local Vulcan Mine also closed in 1947, which meant less freight traffic.
There was a small boost in activity during the Korean War in the early 1950s. But by the 1960s, even more powerful diesel engines meant fewer railroad workers were needed at Kelso. The need for "helper locomotives" (extra engines to push trains up hills) also disappeared in 1959.
Finally, on August 14, 1964, passenger train service to Kelso stopped completely. The depot's main job was over. Only the Lunch Room stayed open for a while, serving food until 1985.
Saving the Kelso Depot
By 1985, the Union Pacific Railroad wanted to tear down the old, unused depot. But many people thought it was too special to be destroyed. They worked hard to save it.
In 1992, the building was given to the Bureau of Land Management. Then, in 1994, the Mojave National Preserve was created, and the depot was transferred to the National Park Service.
A big project began in 2002 to restore the Kelso Depot. Workers carefully fixed up the building, making it look like it did in its glory days. Since 2005, the Kelso Depot has been the main Visitor Center for the Mojave National Preserve. Now, people can visit this historic building, learn about its past, and explore the amazing desert around it!
