By Michele Smith
The Times
History of Depot and Rail Transportation Now Online
Eight month effort for museum director
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Dayton's historic railway depot.
DAYTON-Dayton Historic Depot Museum Director Tamara Fritze has spent the last eight months researching the history of the 1881 Oregon Railway and Navigation Company Depot, better known as the Dayton Historic Depot, and looking into the significance of the depot to the local community, from the time it was built in 1881, until 1934, when passenger traffic to the depot ceased.
"We as a community should know how important to our town the depot was. It changed the lives of people who lived here," said Fritze.
Before rail transportation, grain, and other agricultural products, had to be hauled overland to Walla Walla, or to the community of Grange City, at the mouth of the Tucannon River, as discussed by Fritze, in her research.
Fritze also points out the importance of the railroad to the social aspects of living and recreating in Columbia County. Entertainers, politicians, salesmen, and lecturers came to town by rail, providing an opportunity for an otherwise isolated community to connect with the greater world.
"For example, in June, 1891, all of the Sunday schools of the county came together for a picnic at the Shiloh Campground (now Lewis & Clark State Park.) The Union Pacific provided train service from Dayton's Depot to the park at 8:30, 9:30, and 10:20 in the morning, and return service at 3:30, 4:30, and 5:00, in the afternoon. Although only a distance of five miles, the trains helped make a longer day of music, addresses, and entertainment possibilities," according to Fritze's research.
Fritze said she conducted her research mainly at the Dayton Memorial Library, but also in the Depot archives, as well as looking into the research of other historians.
The Depot was originally listed on the National Register of Historic Places in September, 1974, said Fritze.
"At that time there was no real history of the Depot, or its significance to the community. It needed to be updated to today's standards, she said.
A link to the history of the Dayton Historic Depot, and the story of rail transportation in Columbia County, can be viewed at The Dayton Historical Depot Society homepage, under Events & Exhibits.
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