In 1884, the Oregon Short Line (subsidiary of Union Pacific RR) made its way west through Idaho and on into Oregon. The little town of Weiser was still 3 years from incorporating as a City and was situated mostly east of the present highway 95 in what we now call “Old Town.” Typically, commerce and therefore townsites would center around depot locations selected by the railroad and Weiser would eventually be no exception, though our story has its unique twists. Some enterprising entrepreneurs speculated the depot would be sited south of town and so constructed a few buildings in that location hoping to capitalize on their timing. OSL fooled them and constructed a wood frame depot not far from the brick building you see today in what was then the western outskirts of “Old Town.”
Any inconvenience this location created for our citizens didn’t last long, for in 1890 a devastating fire leveled most of the business district in “Old Town.” Rebuilding gravitated west around the depot and by 1907 the OSL was ready to construct grander and more permanent structures at their locations in Weiser, Payette, Ontario, and Caldwell. All were designed following the same floor plan, yet each incorporated unique exterior details. A visitor exiting the Weiser depot was greeted with an illuminated sign stretching across State Street before them. Within a block could be found two hotels and numerous shops and entertainment.
While the old wooden depot survived for many years as a freight station, the new brick depot soon became the southern terminus where the P&IN (Pacific & Idaho Northern) connected to the OSL. Intended to service the mining districts in central Idaho, 84 miles of track were laid north generally paralleling the Weiser River. Grand two-story depots were built in Council and a short distance from the OSL depot here in Weiser. For years, the I&PN’s “Galloping Goose” as it was affectionately known, transported locals to vacations in McCall as well as freight and commerce between the upper country and points south. Just south across the tracks from the OSL depot was a venue called “Mortimer’s Island.” For many summers, it was the place to go for dances, performances, skating, and just a good time in general. Weiser thrived in those years, but by the late 1960’s and early ‘70’s, transportation, commerce, and lifestyles were changing.
The P&IN depot and old OSL freight depot were both gone. In fact, UPRR had discontinued passenger service from Weiser and all that remained was a freight clerk. All three of our major hotels had either burned down or were demolished. While our depot had survived, its decorative dormers had been removed in a reroofing and the interior had accumulated multiple coats of paint in addition to remodeling which removed the old ticket window in favor of a long counter. We weren’t alone as these trends were impacting many towns across the country whose depots were abandoned or demolished altogether. So, it came as no real surprise when one evening in 1985, one of our members got a call from a preservationist in Payette warning us that UPRR had just demolished their depot and were headed to Weiser in the coming days to do the same!
WAPC quickly got into action and began negotiations with UPRR. We contracted a planner to develop the site plan you see today. Community outreach and fundraising quickly got underway and so began a two-year process to secure our depot. By early 1987, UPRR had agreed to donate the building and enter into a long-term lease of the underlying property but were unwilling to transact this arrangement with our group. It seemed some of their past donations to well-intentioned groups eventually ran aground, leaving depots abandoned and a liability to the RR. They were willing to transact this arrangement with the City of Weiser, but City officials made it clear to us they had no use for a depot. Knowing we weren’t saving just a historic structure but perhaps a key component of any future downtown revitalization effort, we negotiated with the city to accept the agreement and then transfer the building and lease to WAPC thereafter. This was accomplished and so began the long challenge for WAPC to bring our depot back to life.
We set about implementing our site plan and UPRR soon donated a historic caboose which was moved to the newly re-created park. A trackside security fence was installed and the exterior was stabilized and painted. But many of the structural changes UPRR had made through the years, such as an elevated freight dock on the east end of the building, dormer removal and interior wall alterations represented major economic challenges, say nothing of the new roof that was needed. By 2000, the downtown revitalization we’d dreamed about had begun. The city secured a variety of grants, one specifically targeting historic transportation related structures that resulted in the installation of a new roof as well as street, sidewalks, curbs and gutters.
Idaho Heritage Trust offices had recently relocated to Weiser and with their help, we were able to secure additional grants a few years later that permitted us to completely restore the interior and exterior to its original historic appearance. Following original UPRR architectural plans, we restored the ticket counter, put in some new floors and refinished others, reconfigured walls, restored the freight room, recreated our dormers, restored our original hot water radiator heating system, and installed central A/C. This has permitted us to provide limited public access for private events, be the host site for our community farmers market, as well as a variety of other community functions.
Currently, the Weiser Garden Club has undertaken the redesign and implementation of a new landscape plan for our depot. This will compliment and augment the ongoing lawn maintenance Sivero’s Landscaping has generously provided to us through the years. What you see today is the result of a community wide effort over 35 years that we hope will continue to inspire ongoing preservation in our community!