The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe railroad first reached Tulia Texas in 1906, thanks to local Board of Trade enticing the railroad with funds to build the extension from Amarillo.[1] After the original 1906 depot burned in 1915, a second was built in 1916-17. Seventy years later, That station was saved from the wrecking ball by the Swisher County Historical Commission, which raised money through local residents and community grants to restore and refurbish it in 1987.[2]
The town of Tulia, Texas was established in 1887 on the Tule Ranch division of the Ja ranch. However the the nearest rail connection was more than 100 miles away in Colorado City or Quanah. In 1888, the railroad was extended to Amarillo, but a trip from Tulia could still take days in unfavorable weather. So, in 1906, the Tulia Board of Trade offered money for the construction of a rail line to Tulia. In January 1906 grading began for an extension of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway along a survey previously made by Avery Turner, vice-president and general manager of the Pecos Valley and Northeastern Railroad. The first train arrived in December of that year.
The current depot was built south of the original in 1916-17, combining a passenger station, express office and freight house. The single-story brick and stucco building featured mission revival style architecture typical of Santa Fe depots. It included “a deep overhanging ceramic tile roof, prominent brackets, and projecting bays with peaked parapets and the Santa Fe logo. A narrow passageway divided gentlemen’s and ladies’ waiting rooms, with the ticket office facing the railroad tracks. The baggage room was north of the passenger section.”[3]
Passenger service was discontinued in 1965, and in 1987, the Santa Fe railway demolished the baggage area, which led concerned citizens to band together to raise the money needed to save the remaining structure. Now the depot hosts historical commission meetings, and is rented out for parties and family events.
The architectural drawings presented here, completed before the baggage section was demolished, were created by John Jennings, and won honorable mention in the Charles E. Peterson Prize in 1983.[4]
The National Park Service’s Heritage Documentation Programs (HDP),hosts the annual Charles E. Peterson Prize, which annually recognizes the best set of measured drawings prepared to HDP standards and donated to HDP by students.The prize honors Charles E. Peterson, FAIA, founder of the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), and is intended to increase awareness, knowledge, and appreciation of historic buildings, structures, and cultural landscapes throughout the United States while adding to the permanent HABS/HAER/HALS Collection of measured drawings at the Library of Congress. To date, more than 3,000 students from 75 colleges and universities have participated by completing more than 500 entries and almost 6,800 sheets of measured drawings. The students have worked alone and in groups, in required courses, electives, independent study and summer institutes. They have been, for the most part, architecture students in addition to architectural history, interior design, and American studies majors.
[1] Historical marker, 2010 on site
[2] https://abc7amarillo.com/news/local/tulia-depot-serves-as-a-community-center
[3] Historical marker, 2010 on site
[4] https://www.nps.gov/hdp/competitions/peterson.htm
Citation for architectural drawings:
Historic American Buildings Survey, Creator, Sponsor Texas Tech University, and John Jennings. Tulia Railroad Depot, State Highway 87, Tulia, Swisher County, TX. Tulia Swisher County Texas. Documentation Compiled After 1980. Drawings delineated by John Jennings. https://www.loc.gov/item/tx0495/.
