Northern Pacific Railway Depot

The work of the nationally prominent architectural firm of Charles Reed and Allan Stem of St. Paul, the Northern Pacific Railway depot in Bismarck is notable for its Spanish mission-style architecture, a familiar mode in the Southwest and California but uncommon in the northern plains. At the time of construction, the quality of the depot design enhanced the popular image of the foremost rail transportation system in North Dakota, one which had reached Bismarck from the East in 1873 and which, on completion a decade later, had linked the state to the west coast. The depot occupies block 10 of the original plat of the city of Bismarck, its predecessor on the site being the 1877 Sheridan House, a leading hotel in 19th-century Bismarck and the largest building, when erected, in Dakota Territory. The Sheridan served as both hotel and - railway passenger depot, and when it was decided to build the present depot, the hotel was moved east across Fifth Street, remodeled, and opened as the Northwest Hotel. On the next block west of block 10 there had been a frame freight depot dating from the 1870s but it was destroyed in the fire of August 8, 1898, which leveled much of downtown Bismarck. The Bismarck Daily Tribune of August 13, 1898 ("New Depot," p. 1), carried the following notice from the St. Paul Globe:

The Northern Pacific Railway company will immediately begin the construction of a new depot and office building in Bismarck, N.D., to replace those which were destroyed by fire Monday morning. General manager Kendrick and other officials of the road were in consultation with architects yesterday, making plans for the new buildings. The company does an immense business at Bismarck and it requires ample facilities.

It is the company's intention to erect at Bismarck one of the finest depots and freight offices on its system, and one that will be all that the people of that city can desire from an architectural standpoint. As rapidly as possible the plans will be perfected and no time will be lost in commencing work.

Begun in September 1900, and completed in December 1901, at a cost of $33,601, the depot attracted public attention from the start. Its opening was hailed in a page-one story of December 6, 1901, Bismarck Weekly Tribune, which emphasized both the novelty of the design and the caliber of its execution. A few years afterward, a publication endorsed by the Bismarck Commercial Club (forerunner of the Chamber of Commerce) boasted that "The Northern Pacific depot at Bismarck is noted for its unique beauty and is one of the notable sights pointed out to passengers on passing trains by the trainmen, the trains being held for a few moments that those who wish may inspect it" (Glimpses of Bismarck. Bismarck: W.F. Cushing, 1906).