'Train Day' honors historic depot

SANDPOINT — Trains, an important part of the Idaho Panhandle’s past and future, are finally getting their due.

Mayor Marsha Ogilvie honored the locomotive’s importance to Sandpoint on Monday by officially declaring May 12 as Train Day in the town.

“(I want) to reflect on the important role that trains and the railroad have played in our country’s history and to celebrate the unique perspective of America as seen only from the windows of a train,” Ogilvie said.

The declaration of train day was a joint effort between the mayor and the Historic Preservation Commission. As the 143rd year since the United States completed its transcontinental railroad — an event symbolized on May 10, 1869, by the driving of a golden spike into the final tie of 1,776 miles of track — the May date seemed appropriate to remember the train’s role in Sandpoint’s history.

Of course, no observance of local locomotive history is complete without acknowledging the Sandpoint Train Depot. Constructed in 1916, the Gothic-style depot is the oldest remaining active passenger train depot of the former Northern Pacific railway.

Although the depot has long since fallen into disuse and disrepair, brighter days may well be ahead for the historic structure. In June of last year, Councilwoman Carrie Logan, former Councilman John Reuter and Public Works Director Kody Van Dyk brokered a deal between Amtrak and BNSF Railroads to partner with the city in restoring the Sandpoint Depot. The initial deal hinged on $1 million in escrow funds from Idaho Transportation Department as a requirement of the Sand Creek Byway’s Environmental Impact Statement.  

According to Historic Preservation Commission members Dann Hall and Sue Graves, progress in initiating that restoration have been progressing slowly. However, they’re optimistic that the restored depot will eventually be a link between the Sandpoint of days gone by and the Sandpoint of the future.