Agreement Reached to Move and Preserve Former Rock Island Depot at Perry, Arkansas

(August 5, 2018) – Over the summer, there were several key developments in the project to save the Rock Island depot at Perry, Arkansas. The city eventually approved buying the depot for $10 and providing an adjacent city-owned piece of property to place it on. We finalized plans with a house moving company to handle the project, then had to get final approval from the Little Rock & Western’s parent company to allow the movers onto the property to access the depot. It look a lot a work, including buy liability insurance to cover anything that could go wrong. Below are updates I wrote as the project progressed.

Plan Hopefully Coming Together, Fundraising Begins to Save Rock Island Depot

(June 2, 2018) – It has taken longer than everyone involved had hoped, but an effort to move and preserve the former Rock Island Railroad depot at Perry, Arkansas seems to be coming together. The Perry City Council recently gave final approval to allow a nearby city-owned piece of land to become the new home for the depot and a house-moving company has provided a reasonable estimate on the cost of moving the century-old structure.

Now paperwork needs to be approved by the corporate parent company of the depot’s current owner, and a fundraising campaign is being launched to cover the second installment of paying to move the building. The goal is to turn it into a museum that tells the history of Perry County, as well as the important role the Rock Island once had in the community. We’re accepting donations here via Go Fund Me, or you can find an address to mail a check below.

The current prospect for saving the depot is far better than it was at the end of March thanks to the perseverance of members of the Perry County Historical Museum and the Perry County Historical and Genealogical Society. The company, Combs Home Builders & House Movers, also deserves a lot of credit for filling out extensive paperwork and working to address a myriad of concerns.

The shortline Little Rock & Western Railway now owns the depot and has been patient, working with us as it has taken time to complete the details of the project. Its parent company is the Genesee & Wyoming, which owns 120 railroads worldwide and will have to give final approval. As the project has progressed, corporate officials have agreed to waive $3,500 in application fees to help make this happen, which has been greatly appreciated. The key issue now is how much insurance and liability coverage will be needed by the house-moving company.

For 68 years passenger trains operated through Perry, along the Rock Island’s Sunbelt Line, which ran from Memphis, Tennessee, through Little Rock, into Oklahoma, and eventually reached Amarillo, Texas. From there, passengers could get connecting service with another railroad and even travel all the way west to Los Angeles, California.

The effort recently received some public attention when it was announced that the depot was one of 10 locations named by the group Preserve Arkansas to be on its 2018 list of Arkansas’s Most Endangered Places. I had nominated the depot, which was then chosen by a selection committee, and I was proud to speak on behalf of the project at a press conference in Little Rock on May 4.

Rachel Patton, executive director of the group, told me after the ceremony, “I’m very encouraged with the efforts with the Perry depot right now. I feel like it’s really going to happen.” She first learned of plans to demolish the depot early last year and contacted Buford and Lynda Suffridge with the Perry County Historical and Genealogical Society, who are leading the effort.

Being on the 2018 list will enable the project to get expert advice on how to move forward in a way that will make it more likely that the depot will be named to the National Register of Historic Places. Getting that designation could help in receiving grant funding for the restoration.

“I think the Perry depot being the last wood frame depot built by the Rock Island that’s remaining in Arkansas, that makes it significant, and then I think it being in a small community like Perry makes it more significant because that community doesn’t have a whole lot of historic buildings remaining,” Patton said. “Everybody from that region, or even if they weren’t from that region, if they traveled as a passenger on the Rock Island Line, they remember that little depot, and so I think that it’s important to the community.”

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette published a detailed article about several of the properties named to the 2018 list on Sunday, May 27, which included a section about our effort to preserve the Perry depot. That too should help get the word out about the project and help in our fundraising efforts. There for the announcement by Preserve Arkansas of its 2018 list was the Little Rock & Western’s General Manager Ryan Richardson. His presence was a great show of support from the railroad.

“We hope it happens too. We live here too. This is our community,” Richardson told me. “Everybody that works there lives in that area… we hope it works out for everybody.”

The building is the last remaining Rock Island depot in the state west of Little Rock. Fortunately, it never fell into an extreme level of disrepair seen at other depots thanks to the Perry location continuing to be used in some capacity even after passenger service ended in 1967. That was when a mail contract, which had kept passenger trains profitable, was cancelled by the federal government. Many other depots were abandoned, boarded up and quickly deteriorated. Some were torn down to avoid having to pay property taxes on unused buildings.

The Rock Island continued to staff the Perry depot for freight duties, even putting the new logo of the railroad on the sides of the building when it was rebranded as “The Rock” in 1975. Those signs are still there. After a federal judge ordered the bankrupt railroad shut down at the request of creditors in 1980, the Little Rock & Western was formed by former employees to serve a handful of clients west of Perry. Most of the Rock Island’s tracks elsewhere in the state were eventually taken up.

The Little Rock & Western built a small locomotive servicing facility behind the depot in the 1980s, along with a small office building on the other side of the tracks beside Arkansas Highway 10. In the years since, the depot has only been used for storage and is of little use for an active railroad, especially as it has been deteriorating in recent years. Richardson says they’re planning on building a new locomotive servicing facility on the site.

“We’ve got some upgrades, as you know. That old building is not useful for much more than storage, so if we can get rid of it, we’re going to put a new building there, have bathrooms, a shop, have an office space and just upgrade it. It’s just so old,” Richardson said, “we need to make it more safe as well.”

The Little Rock & Western was owned by Rail Management Corporation until 2005, when RMC was purchased by the Genesee & Wyoming. In 2015 the Arkansas Midland Railroad, which operated nine other stretches of tracks in the state, was also acquired by the Genesee & Wyoming.

These days locomotives are shared among the sister railroads, so it’s not uncommon to see Arkansas Midland locomotives on the Little Rock & Western’s tracks; however, because the lines aren’t connected, a fee has to be paid to Union Pacific to move locomotives from one railroad to another. That’s another reason for building a new, heavy duty locomotive servicing facility at Perry so that railroad can be more self-sustaining.

“We’re going to put an overhead crane, we’re going to put doors on both ends, we’ve got a lot to do. We’re bringing some jacking pads, a lot of concrete is going to be going in, electrical works, water works, so you know, we’ve got lots of plans in that area,” Richardson said.

The railroad initially gave us a deadline of the end of 2017 for the depot to be moved or it would be torn down. But officials have given us more time as it has been clear that we’ve been making solid progress. They’re eager to have the depot gone as soon as possible, saying they won’t be able to get a cost estimate on their new building until the old one is gone.

We have done everything we need to do at this point and are waiting for final approval from the railroad’s corporate folks. We have secured a new location, found a company to move the building, and are ready to pay half of the cost to cover the move, with the rest due after the move is completed.

The first house-moving company we reached out to gave us an estimate of $18,000 to $24,000, which, as I noted in my last update on the project in March, made the whole prospect of moving the depot seem unrealistic. But on the suggestion of a member of the Arkansas Railroad Club, we reached out to Combs Home Builders & House Movers of Ratcliff, Arkansas. A representative of the company who was familiar with the depot came over to inspect the site. I can’t tell you how ecstatic we were to get a much more realistic estimate of $7,000 to $8,000. Combs has moved other railroad equipment in the past, including a locomotive and caboose, and seemed genuinely interested in making this happen.

With that good news, Buford Suffridge, local business leader Jimmy Middleton, Perry County Historical Museum President Michael Allison and I went to the Perry City Council meeting on April 19 seeking approval to place the depot on a city-owned piece of land a couple hundred feet from where the building is now. The new location is also along the tracks, which would allow the depot to maintain its original historic integrity by looking the same as at its original location. Factors like that are important when applying for a national historic designation.

Members of the city council had discussed the proposal at their March 15 meeting, but ended up tabling the measure because there were too many unanswered questions. The three of us were hoping we would be able to effectively address their concerns.

Overall Mayor Britt Ryles and council members were enthusiastic about the project. They liked the idea of the depot becoming a place to educate younger generations about the history of the community and the importance that the depot once had in being the connection to the outside world by providing transportation, mail and Western Union telegraph service.

Middleton told the council that during the Vietnam War, “I used to meet the troop train down here heading to California.” I then spoke to the council about how that depot, especially during World War II, was where locals leaving for war would depart, and if they survived, it was where they would be reunited with loved ones. For those who lost their lives in combat, it was also where relatives would claim the bodies for burial.

The mayor and council members noted that a lot of traffic today passes through Perry on Highway 10 because it is a scenic highway and is near Petit Jean State Park. They hope the depot can become a place where people driving through, or the bicycling groups that often roll through, will stop.

A key question was who would own the depot if it’s moved and converted into a museum: the city of Perry or the Perry County Historical and Genealogical Society? Suffridge told the council it wouldn’t be practical for the society to own it because their membership is declining as people die off. He said the group could move the depot, oversee its preservation, maintain it, create displays and staff it, but he felt it would be in the best interest for the city to own it. The city leaders agreed.

Another question was whether to charge visitors an admission price or accept donations. Suffridge suggested taking donations and only being open a few times a month, maybe on Saturdays or when special events are taking place.

The property being offered on the east side of Johnson Street had been the site of Perry’s water and waste treatment plant, which was long ago removed. In recent years the location has only been used by the city to burn tree limbs and other debris. The ground would need to be built up to be level with the railroad tracks, and the mayor offered to get the dirt and fill needed to create a place for a foundation that the depot can be placed on.

Below is a 3D image from Google Maps of the location being provided by the town to place the depot on. You can move the image around to get a better idea of the layout of the area in relation to where the depot is now. A power pole in the center of the property will likely be moved back.

There is a water pumping station next to the site which is used by the local fire department to fill their trucks with water. Concern was raised by one council member about whether there would still be room for large fire trucks to get in and out, especially if it’s a time when the depot is open and cars are parked there.

After hearing the dimensions of the depot, which the mover said are 18 feet wide and 65 to 68 feet long, it was determined there would be adequate space. If needed, an arrangement could be made to enable a more distant connection for the fire trucks to access water.

Building up the ground and constructing a foundation for the depot could take time. Since the railroad wants the depot removed as soon as possible, the moving company suggested the depot could be lifted onto a trailer and trucked off the railroad’s property. It would then remain on the trailer parked near where the depot would eventually be placed after a foundation is built.

The process sounded similar to what I saw in 2012 while reporting on the restoration of Johnny Cash’s boyhood home in the east Arkansas town of Dyess. Gumbo soil in that region constantly rolls and shifts which would cause the foundations of houses there to become unlevel. The Cash home was lifted onto a trailer and moved a short distance away until the gumbo soil was replaced with better soil and a solid concrete foundation.

One concern raised by Mayor Ryles was where the Perry depot would be stored in the short term in that the area is susceptible to flooding. It’s hoped that being several feet up on a trailer would protect it.

After a half-hour of discussion, the council decided by a voice vote to unanimously approve allowing the city property to be used for the depot. Ryles told Suffridge to share the news with the Little Rock & Western’s management.

“You can tell them we have a place to put it, and we’ll get started on the dirt work. The place that they’re going to store it until we’re ready to move it, this second lower road here, I’m fine with that, but it does flood. We are coming into the dry season, but they just need to know that it does flood,” Ryles said. He warned the city should have sandbags ready just in case they’re needed.

The representative from Combs Home Building & House Moving said it shouldn’t be a challenge to move the depot. He told Suffridge that he has moved much bigger buildings and that the depot looked to be in relatively good condition.

With news that the project was progressing, Richardson, the railroad’s general manager, had a shipping container moved to the property in April and instructed workers to begin moving items stored inside the depot into the container. On May 7 he wrote to me that the depot had been cleaned out and was ready to be moved.

The following day on May 8 members of the Perry County Historical and Genealogical Society voted to kick in an additional $500 to the project. They had originally allocated $3,500, but the down payment for the moving company to start the project is $4,000. The group will now have enough money to get the depot removed from the railroad’s property, while we’re launching a fundraising campaign to cover the additional cost, that at a minimum will be $3,000 due once the depot is placed at its new home. The cost could easily end up being more than that, so a tentative fundraising goal of $5,000 is being set, which would also go toward building a foundation. The cost of the restoration itself would be another matter that we’ll address if everything works out as planned.

Obviously the vintage semaphore signals would also be moved. We would need to pour a new concrete base for the four bolts that are keeping it in place. The two manual controls for the signals are inside the projected telegrapher’s booth. One interesting note, I realized looking at photos of the depot over the years that the semaphore signals were at one time about twice as high as they are today. They were lowered sometime between 1965 and 1967, judging by photos taken in those years.

There is interest in the depot from others. Richardson said that a group from Iowa, where the Rock Island had a major presence, approached the railroad about buying the depot if our efforts fall through. He said the group learned about our project after coming across one of my earlier online posts.

The representative of the house-moving company said someone had approached him four years ago asking about the potential of moving the depot to the nearby community of Oppelo. Richardson also said a group from Texas had inquired about the depot a few years back, sending a representative to look at it, and reporting that the building seemed to be structurally sound.

Combs Home Building & House Moving has filled out paperwork requested by the Genesee & Wyoming. It seems the key issue now from the railroad’s corporate folks is making sure the mover has an adequate amount of insurance and liability coverage. The representative I’ve been speaking with says he has standard coverage for moving buildings, but the railroad is asking for more, probably more along the lines of what their contractors have.

Once everything is settled, the company says it’s ready to move the building. The railroad says they’ll make sure the tracks are clear and trains aren’t running when the move happens.

The first matter to be addressed once the building is moved would be the roof, which has been noticeably sagging in recent years. Suffridge says a local business owner is volunteering to help with that and provide workers to repair or replace the roof. Obviously we want to make sure water isn’t getting inside the structure.

As for when the depot was built, railroad historian Bill Pollard says an insurance listing of railroad buildings, as well as a profile for the area, seems to suggest it was constructed in 1918. But an earlier structure had definitely been there before that.

Pollard also recently acquired a list of station agents for the Rock Island in July 1902, shortly after the railroad took over the route in a hostile takeover of the Choctaw, Oklahoma & Gulf, which was the railroad that built this line a few years before that. The list showed the station agent at Perry was T.H. Shelton, and Pollard notes he was also likely the CO&G agent before the takeover. So it’s a safe assumption that he was the first Rock Island agent at Perry.

As I noted in my first update on this project, there are names of former employees of the railroad written or engraved on the ceiling and walls inside the freight area of the depot. Also included are dates, which were likely when they started with the railroad and established seniority. One of the most prominently visible names is Thomas E. Holmes, with a date of 1/1/1910. A friend recently notified me that a Thomas Erwin Holmes is buried at Harris Cemetery in Perry and is probably the same person, given that the tombstone says he was born on Jan. 1, 1891.

It’s history like that which I believe will make this a compelling project and hopefully bring people together – railroad fans as well as people interested in the area – to make donations that will enable this depot to be moved and restored. This is an all-volunteer project, so all money donated goes directly to moving and restoring the depot. The museum is a non-profit with a 501(c)(3) tax exempt status, so your donation may be tax deductible. Please check with your tax professional concerning that. I have launched a Go Fund Me account to accept donations online. Or you can send a check to the address listed above.Please make checks payable to the Perry County Historical Museum and specify that the donation is intended for the Perry Rock Island Depot Restoration.

 

(June 19, 2018) – Forgive the sloppiness of this web page, but I wanted to urgently get out details of a setback in our effort to move and preserve the former Rock Island Railroad depot at Perry, Arkansas. Further down the page you’ll find an update I wrote on June 2 when it was looking like things were finally coming together. If you’re not familiar with the project, you may want to read what’s below then come back up here to learn the latest.

It has been a roller coaster ride in trying to preserve this building. After overcoming so many hurdles, it was looking like everything was going to work out. But the Little Rock & Western Railway’s parent company is requiring that the house-moving company have $6 million in liability coverage ($2 million occurrence, $6 million aggregate limits) to access the property and move the depot a block away. Having that level of insurance will cost us $3,600, on top of the estimated $7,000 to $8,000 to actually move the building. That puts the total cost of moving the depot at about $11,000.

The Perry County Historical & Genealogical Society set aside $4,000 for the first installment to the mover and we started a fundraising campaign on Go Fund Me earlier this month hoping to raise the rest, which would be due after the move was completed. But I stopped actively promoting the fundraising when it became clear a couple of weeks ago that there was an issue with getting the required insurance and it wasn’t even certain if we would find an insurer to handle this. Today I got word from Combs Home Builders & House Moving that an insurer has been secured and what that addition cost will be.

This, along with not getting the level of support we had been expecting based on previous conversations with many, has us sadly coming to the realization that it’s probably not going to be financially possible to make this happen unless we can raise a significant amount of money quickly. The railroad has given us a deadline of July 1 for the depot to be gone or they will begin taking steps to tear it down. We would be doing the railroad a favor if we can move it, because to demolish the depot will likely cost them a few thousand dollars because of abatement procedures for structures with lead paint and asbestos, which this depot almost certainly has. I’ve asked if the railroad would be willing to make a donation to our project since we would be offsetting that expense, but don’t know anything yet.

With time running out, I wanted to make one more plea here. If you’re interested in helping us save this depot, please make a donation on Go Fund Me or help us get the word out by sharing this with others who might be interested.

In the fundraising box above (which automatically updates) you’ll see the latest amount donated. As I write this, we’ve raised $655, which is certainly not enough. We need in the range of $7,000 to cover the difference, and that doesn’t include work to prepare the ground and construct a foundation at the new location. So I’ve raised our fundraising goal to $9,000, but know it’s a long shot. Maybe the railroad will help, but we don’t know yet. If you donate money and we end up not being able to move the depot, your money will be refunded. This is being organized by the Perry County Historical Museum, which is an accredited charity. We’ve been working for almost a year to make this happen, but it just doesn’t look possible at this time.

 

Time is Running Out, Cost Has Gone Up in Effort to Save Rock Island Depot

(June 24, 2018) – Thanks so much to those who have donated since I launched a fundraising campaign earlier this month to help support an effort to try and save the century-old Rock Island Railroad depot at Perry, Arkansas. All we need at this point is an additional $2101 in donations to begin the project, which would involve moving the depot off the property it sits on today, saving it from demolition. I’ll explain more about the finances and give the back story on this effort below, but please note that we’re facing a deadline of July 1, which is one week away.

While the overall goal listed above $9,000, the total we need by the end of the month is $3,600 to pay for the additional insurance coverage demanded by the depot’s current owner. As I write this on Sunday, June 24, we’ve raised $1,299 through the online campaign and one person mailed a check for $200, so we’ve got a total of $1,499. We need to raise an additional $2,101 this week to cover insurance for the project to happen. The Perry County Historical & Genealogical Society has already allocated $4,000 which will be the first payment to the house-moving company, with the balance due after the move has been completed.

A lot is still up in the air. Some people with influence are now working to see if they can help find grant-type money to cover the additional expense, but that’s difficult to do on short notice. We didn’t know we would need the additional insurance coverage until earlier this month, and didn’t have an amount until last Tuesday.

The shortline Little Rock & Western Railway, which today owns the property, has given us a deadline of July 1 or it will begin the process of preparing to demolish the depot so that it can build a new locomotive servicing facility on the property. We’re making a final plea here for donations. If we’re able to secure grant funding or additional money later, that will go toward paying the balance of the move IF we make this key deadline.

If you’re not aware of the effort that was started almost a year ago to move the depot, you can read my post below. There are also links to two earlier posts I’ve written in that time. As I note below, if the effort to move the depot fails, all money donated will be returned. If you’d rather not have your name listed on the Go Fund Me page, there is the option to remain anonymous. If you would rather mail a check, I’ve provided a mailing address below.

$2101 is a relatively small amount to enable the project to begin, which would involve removing the depot from the property so the Little Rock & Western can begin its long-planned project. The depot would be stored on the back of a house-moving truck until we can prepare a foundation to place the depot on about 150 feet away from its current location on a lot owned by the town of Perry. We were initially expecting the standard coverage that the house-moving company has would be adequate, but the railroad said it is concerned that there is asbestos and lead paint in the depot. If a wall were to crack and contaminate the area, that could cause an expensive cleanup. As I note below, the railroad has been working with us, but wants to make sure it is protected and that it can begin getting bids next month for its new shop.

If you can donate, please do. If enough people make small donations, we can make this happen. Or if a few people or entities can make big donations, even better. This effort to save the depot is still a long shot, but all the people I’ve been working with at the Perry County Historical & Genealogical Society, Preserve Arkansas, and other interested people, are vowing to keep trying until the demolition begins. We just don’t have much time. If you have any questions or suggestions you can write to me at michael@hibblenradio.com.

 

Fundraising Progresses in Bid to Save Former Rock Island Depot, New Concern Raise

(July 1, 2018) – This is an important day in the effort to move and preserve the former Rock Island depot at Perry, Arkansas for two reasons. First, this was the deadline that the shortline Little Rock & Western Railway had given us to move the 100-year-old depot or steps would begin moving forward to demolish it. Second, today our online fundraising campaign crossed the halfway mark toward our goal of $9,000. Thanks to everyone who has given!

As I write this on Sunday evening, we’ve raised a total of $4,565 through 47 donations on Go Fund Me, though the donation box above may show we have since received additional donations, as the box is automatically updated. The treasurer of the Perry County Historical Museum reports that as of Thursday, June 28, we have also received $1,601 in checks. Based on verbal commitments, we expect to receive at least a couple more checks in the mail this coming week.

That totals $6,166, which should be enough to start the project and move the depot off its current location, where the railroad now operating that stretch of track wants to build a new locomotive servicing facility. We still need to continue raising money which will go toward the second installment that will be due to the house-mover once moving the depot is completed.  If you haven’t been following this project, you can read earlier posts below to learn the whole story and how we have addressed the many challenges that keep popping up, mainly from the railroad’s parent company which is looking at liability concerns.

We received more media attention this weekend when Little Rock television stations KARK-channel 4 and its sister station KLRT-Fox 16 broadcast a story about our effort to preserve the depot. Buford Suffridge of the Perry County Historical & Genealogical Society and I were interviewed for the story, and reporter Charmaine Nero drove out to Perry to film shots of the depot.

Regarding the July 1 deadline, with what we’ve raised at this point, we were prepared to pay a house-moving company to start the project this coming week by placing it on the back of a trailer until a nearby location offered by the city of Perry is ready. But new issues have again left us scrambling.

On the cost to move the depot about 150 feet to an adjacent piece of land, Combs Home Builders & House Movers gave us an estimate of $7,000 to $8,000. The first $4,000 will be due before the move, and the Perry County Historical & Genealogical Society has allocated $4,000 to cover that. The balance would be due afterward.

The railroad’s corporate parent company wanted the house-mover to have $6 million in aggregate insurance coverage. That would be the maximum amount paid if something goes wrong during the move. As I noted in my previous entry, after some struggle we finally found an insurer willing to back the project. It was expected that would add $3,600 to the cost, but last Thursday, June 28, we learned from the insurer that will cost is a total of $4,500. That’s $900 more than was planned, but we can absorb that to get the project going.

We got another surprise Thursday, three days before the July 1 deadline, when the railroad’s parent company Genesee & Wyoming said it wanted the house-mover or the Perry County Historical & Genealogical Society to have environmental and/or pollution insurance. The concern involves the possibility that when the building is lifted up asbestos or pieces of lead paint could contaminate the site.

Asbestos and lead paint are very legitimate concerns, but this shouldn’t be an insurmountable problem. Old buildings like this are moved on a regularly basis, so we’ll immediately reach out to environmental experts or environmental attorneys to learn the best steps we can take to address the concern.

This is a relatively small depot, about 17 feet by 67 feet, and I’m told the only asbestos is within the operator’s bay. There apparently was an assessment done a couple of years ago. The asbestos likely would have been between the walls or in the attic. Looking at photos from when I was allowed to go through the depot on August 19, 2017, the walls appear to be cheap wood paneling that became popular in the 1950s. It also looks as though the ceiling was lowered, so perhaps there is asbestos above that.

I’ll find out what an environmental insurance rider would cost to address the possibility of chips of lead paint or pieces of asbestos coming out. I’ll also learn if a letter of indemnity that would release the railroad from liability would be sufficient to address the railroad’s concerns.

From my discussions with others who have preserved historic railroad stations, it sounds like a relatively simple process of using a sealant that covers areas with asbestos so that fibers are not released. Removal would be more expensive, but it sounds like if we get the depot moved, grant money will be available to assist.

As I noted, today was the deadline the Little Rock & Western had given for the depot to be moved. I’m told contractors will be at the site on Monday, July 9 as part of the process to make bids on building a new locomotive servicing facility. Management wants to know by Friday, July 6 at the latest if the move is going to take place. I’m going to be hustling on the phone to see what I can learn.

If we can come up with some kind of plan in the next few days it will take money to make it happen. If you haven’t donated and are interested in helping, please give. Also sharing on social media to let as many people as possible know about the campaign would be a big help.

This is an all-volunteer project, so all money donated goes directly to moving and restoring the depot. The museum is a non-profit with a 501(c)(3) tax exempt status, so your donation may be tax deductible. If our effort to move the depot doesn’t work out, money will be refunded. Donations can be made anonymously on Go Fund Me if you’d rather not have your name appear in the list of supporters.

If we get the depot moved and keep it along railroad tracks as the current plan calls for, it would most likely be eligible for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places, according to experts who have been consulted. If that effort succeeds, significant grant money would be available for the depot’s restoration.

Over the past week I’ve been communicating with the Department of Arkansas Heritage. Two people with the department’s Arkansas Historic Preservation Program say the reason the depot is not eligible for the national designation in its current location is because of the addition in the 1980s of the large, attached metal shed where locomotives are serviced.

If the depot is moved to the proposed location and run by a not-for-profit entity, which the Perry County Historical Museum is, then it would most likely be eligible, the department says, and the state would work with us in preparing the application.

Finally, here’s what Arkansas railroad historian Bill Pollard wrote about the depot in March. I included this in an earlier post, but feel it’s important to share again. He has been visiting and photographing this building since 1967 and summed up its importance so well.

This building is so much more than just a weathered old depot. Consider what a critical role this building played in years past… medicine, merchandise, and a variety of items not available locally were ordered by catalog and shipped in by Railway Express, yesteryear’s version of United Parcel Service. The Western Union wire brought all kinds of news, good and bad, from baseball scores to declarations of war. Western Union telegrams also brought news of a more personal nature, sometimes good news such as the birth of a child, but often bad news, such as a War Department notice that a soldier had been lost in combat. How many tearful farewells took place in that depot, and how many joyful reunions? Even the post office relied heavily on the railroad, and every passenger train, whether or not they stopped at Perry, would exchange mail. For the trains that didn’t stop, a pouch of outbound mail was hung on a mail crane near the depot. A postal clerk in the railway post office car would snag the pouch as the train passed by at speed, while another clerk tossed out a pouch of mail destined for the Perry post office. People mailed letters and knew when to check their post office boxes based on train schedules. All mail sorted aboard the RPO received a distinctive postmark, and overnight letter delivery from Perry was the norm for a several state area. Watching all this activity was an enjoyable pastime, as well as giving people a reliable connection to the rest of the world. The Perry depot was a social and communication center of the town for many years. Hopefully Perry can join a small but elite group of cities that have successfully preserved their train stations, providing a tangible connection from the past to the present and the future.

 

Something Will Need to Happen Soon Regarding Rock Island Depot’s Future 

(July 8, 2018) – It has been a week since a key deadline passed regarding the future of the Rock Island Railroad depot at Perry, Arkansas. While there are still matters to finalize regarding insurance, I’m more confident than ever that we will be able to move this century-old depot from its current location so that it won’t be demolished. It may cost more than was hoped to provide an adequate level of coverage, but people have been generous in making donations to our fundraising campaign and there will be additional sources in the future to help with the depot’s restoration.

I’ve learned a lot of new information this past week and continue to be amazed at the support we have received. It’s not just the monetary donations, which are vital if we are to save this depot, but also the number of people and state government entities and officials who have shared their expertise and advice. It’s a broad array of people – some interested in the railroad history, some in the history of that region of the state, and many who simply realize how much of our heritage in Arkansas has been lost by tearing down places like this.

But first let me share one extremely disappointing thing that happened this past week. Apparently someone took one of the two depot signs that were on the sides of the building. They were placed on the depot in 1975 when the Rock Island rebranded itself as “The Rock” after filing for bankruptcy and attempting a reorganization of the company. The depot signs with the final blue and white logo symbolize the last gasp of a once grand railroad with a storied history that would be shut down in 1980.

The shortline Little Rock & Western Railway was created about a month after the Rock Island halted operations to service a few major industries along a 79-mile stretch that had to have continued rail service. For the first many years, it was run entirely by former Rock Island employees who were familiar with the tracks, the area, and the needs of the clients.

The Little Rock & Western was initially operated out of the depot. By 1984, once it became evident that the shortline could be a sustainable, profitable company, a new office building was constructed in front of the depot along Highway 10. The metal, attached shed was built directly behind the depot to service locomotives, although that later became a hindrance in the depot getting a historic designation. As I wrote in my post last week, which you can read further down, that issue will be resolved if the depot is moved.

The depot signs with the final logo weren’t removed in those following years, which I assume was a nod to the heritage of the Rock Island. For 43 years they remained on the east and west sides of the building until someone or maybe a couple of people removed one of the signs in the last few days.

I learned the news late Friday night and drove out to Perry on Saturday morning for a look. The remaining blade from the vintage semaphore signal was also at a noticeably lower angle and part of the pole appears to be bent, suggesting the person might have also tried to take it.

While there, I called the railroad’s general manager, who is based in Malvern, to let him know what I was seeing. He wasn’t aware it had happened but said he’d check with employees who work out of Perry to see what he could learn. Improving security on the property is now an issue, and we also talked about removing the remaining Rock Island sign from the western side of the building to secure it in a safe place.

Maybe the person who took the sign was concerned about the July 1 deadline that was given by the railroad for the depot to be removed or steps would begin to demolish it. Or, maybe it was the television report from last weekend (which you can see further down this page), which made the outlook for the depot seem more ominous than I think it is.

It’s true we missed the deadline as additional liability concerns were raised by the railroad about asbestos in the building, but talks are continuing. I should be cautious in how much of the ongoing discussions I share because I don’t want people involved in the talks to feel uncomfortable, worried that every step will be immediately posted online for the scrutiny of today’s social media world. But, I also want as much transparency as possible since we’re asking for the public’s financial support of the project.

Perhaps the person who took the sign thought the depot was about to be demolished and that the sign would be lost. Someone responded to a post about the project last weekend on Facebook by saying that someone needed to get the signs. I’ll write more about the status of the project shortly, but let me note, as I have in previous updates, that throughout our talks with the Little Rock & Western, we have said that if the effort to save the depot is unsuccessful, any artifacts like the signs should be donated to museums. The railroad has been amenable toward that suggestion.

The Arkansas Railroad Museum seems a logical choice for the depot signs and, if they’re interested, the semaphore signal. The volunteers there successfully restored the Rock Island’s triangle-shaped block signal that had stood alongside the Ola depot, just a short distance from Perry. Or perhaps the depot signs would be ideal for the Perry County Historical Museum given the incredible importance the Rock Island once had in moving passengers, freight, mail, and was often the area’s lifeline to the outside world.

If you or someone you know took the sign, please return it immediately. No questions will be asked if it is returned in a timely manner. You can contact me at michael@hibblenradio.com or drop it off at the Little Rock & Western Railway office in Perry. I’ve heard that many people who had taken pieces of the Cotton Belt’s steam engine 819, which is now on display at the Arkansas Railroad Museum, eventually returned the pieces via a no questions asked policy. I’m hopeful that will happen here!

Relics like these should not be hidden away from the world in personal collections, but instead kept where the history they convey can be appreciated by the public. And again, I’m more confident than ever that we can get the money needed to move and preserve the depot.

Saving the depot is not a definite because the Little Rock & Western needs it removed soon so that work can begin moving forward with construction of an expanded locomotive servicing facility. Potential contractors are going to be at the site in Perry on Monday, June 9 and Tuesday, June 10 to prepare bids on that project.

The railroad wanted the depot off its property before now, but that hasn’t happened as its corporate parent company raised new liability concerns two weeks ago about asbestos. As I noted in my previous post last weekend, which you can read below, a survey conducted for the Little Rock & Western a couple of years indicated asbestos was present in the operator’s bay toward the center of the depot.

Efforts to resolve that and, if needed, get an additional level of insurance regarding potential pollution were hampered by last week including Independence Day and many people being out of the office. After all the other issues we have effectively resolved over the 12 months, this shouldn’t be what kills our effort to move the depot.

A representative of the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality talked with me at length Tuesday and said the presence of asbestos does trigger certain requirements from the state if this depot is to be moved or demolished. The survey conducted by the railroad will need to be provided to the state, along with a notice of intent 10 business days before any work is to be completed.

A copy of the survey would have to be at the site on the day any work is done and workers would have to be provided protections to avoid any potential exposure to asbestos. If the asbestos is within the walls of the operator’s bay, he said the area that would be most at risk of being compromised and releasing asbestos would be at the bottom of the building. I’m not sure if the building is sitting on piers or if there is any kind of foundation.

I also spoke this past week with a representative of the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program, which is part of the Department of Arkansas Heritage. He said, as others have, that historic buildings like this are moved all the time without problem. As long as the asbestos is not disturbed and remains intact, there won’t be a problem.

He said most depots were built with very substantial floors, especially in the freight areas, which were designed to withstand heavy loads. The process used by house movers of placing steel beams underneath, then lifting the beams and the building up should work well, he said, in this situation.

The presence of lead paint had been brought up by the railroad as another environmental concern, but the state officials said if soil sampling was done around the depot today, there would already be contamination from years of the chipped paint falling off. Lifting the building up to be placed on the back of a trailer won’t likely do much to exacerbate that.

So in the coming week I’ll be in touch with the railroad and the house-mover’s insurance company to find out what is needed and how much more it will cost. With the support we’ve received and the promise of future grant money, I’m confident we can pay what is needed to get additional coverage and move the depot off the property it sits on today.

I’ve been told repeatedly that this is a low-risk move. We’re only moving the building about 150 feet to a neighboring lot being offered by the city of Perry. In the short term, we’re focused on getting the depot onto the back of a trailer and off the railroad’s property. It would remain there until the ground can be prepared where we’ll place the depot.

To update the project’s financial picture as I write this on Sunday, July 8, we have raised $5,230 thanks to 58 donations to the online Go Fund Me campaign. We have also received $2,601 in checks. THANK YOU TO THESE GENEROUS DONORS! That totals $7,831 which is available right now and will hopefully be more than enough to pay for insurance, while the Perry County Historical & Genealogical Society has allocated $4,000 to cover the first half of the estimated cost to the house moving company.

Once the depot is in the new location, more money will be available to help us pay the balance due to the house moving company. One group we’ve been working with has promised $2,000 and another group that has already donated $1,000 is promising another $1,000 once the move is completed. If you can help and haven’t already made a donation, I ask you to please consider doing so. Money will be refunded if our effort to save the depot fails.

As I’ve said in the past, we’re also getting guidance from state officials about how proceed in this project so that the depot will be eligible for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places. Thanks to the help of so many people, I’m confident that we can make this happen and turn the Perry depot into a museum that tells the history of the community and the role the railroad once had there.

 

(July 16, 2018) – I’ve got good news to share! I think we’ve finally cleared the last hurdle presented by the current owner of the former Rock Island Railroad depot at Perry, Arkansas and can proceed with plans to move the 100-year-old structure one block to a city-owned piece of land where it can be preserved. Today we got a quote for an additional layer of insurance, this one to cover the the risk of any asbestos contamination during the moving process. That will cost an additional $1,560, which will be on top of what I’ve detailed in previous posts, which you can read below.

Tomorrow we hope to get the final numbers regarding insurance, which will cost $5,000 to $6,000. That will come out of the money that has been raised so far. The first installment to the house-moving company, which is $4,000, has been allocated from the Perry County Historical & Genealogical Society. We’ll then need to raise the balance which will be due to the company after the move is completed. Based on the support we’ve received and the promise of more donations, as well as the prospects for grant funding, we’re confident we can raise the money and begin the restoration process.

There is still a lot we’ll need to finalize. Once we provide a copy of the insurance documentation to the Little Rock & Western Railway’s parent company, I’ve been told paperwork will be finalized for us to take possession of the depot and move it off their land. The railroad wants to build an expanded locomotive servicing facility there. We’ll have to submit paperwork to the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality 10 days before the move can take place. Then we’ll need to find a date that works for the house-moving company.

I’ll share more details when I have them. Once we have a date for the move, I’ll also be sure to post that here. Thanks to the many people who have donated to our effort to preserve this incredible relic of history! If you haven’t given and would like to help, you can find a donation box below. I’ll have more details on where we are financially, as well as more history on the depot in the coming days.

 

Agreement Reached to Move and Preserve Former Rock Island Depot at Perry, Arkansas

(August 5, 2018) – It’s finally happening! This weekend I received paperwork from the Little Rock & Western Railway for the town of Perry, Arkansas to acquire the former Rock Island Railroad depot there. The asset purchase and sale agreement is the contract for the town to buy the 100-year-old depot for $10 and move it off the railroad’s property to make way for an expanded locomotive servicing facility. Now the city attorney for Perry will need to review the document. It spells out safety rules for the contractor that will be moving the depot, relieves the railroad of any liability and notes that the building is being sold as is.

A year ago the railroad was preparing to demolish the depot, so this is great news. It has taken a lot of conversations to make this happen. It has also taken more money than was anticipated, largely to cover insurance demands made by the railroad’s parent company, but hopefully this will all be worthwhile when we get to see this building preserved and turned into a museum.

We will need to start a renewed fundraising effort to cover the actual cost to move the depot and prepare a foundation. The hope is that as people see this effort to save a piece of history coming to fruition, we will get more donations to help in this next step. Once the depot is moved, grant money should then be available to help in the restoration process.

On July 19, Buford Suffridge with the Perry County Historical & Genealogical Society delivered a check for $6,360 to the house-moving company to cover the cost of insurance. The railroad insisted the mover have up to $5 million in aggregate coverage as would be required of any of its contractors. We also had to get pollution insurance because of the presence of asbestos in the depot.

A notice of intent will have to be filed with the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality to move the building because of the asbestos. On August 2, I spoke with the company that had done the asbestos survey for the railroad in July 2017 as steps were being taken in anticipation of tearing the depot down. I was told the asbestos was in floor tiles in the operator’s bay, which is a minimal threat and can be removed relatively easily. At this point I’m waiting to get an actual copy of the report, which will need to be on site when the depot is moved.

Meanwhile Suffridge says that over the last month, the city-owned lot being offered for the project has been built up significantly with heavy equipment used to add several layers of shale. That will make the ground for the depot level with the tracks. When rails were first laid through this area by the Choctaw, Oklahoma & Gulf Railroad about 120 years ago, the track bed was built up about five feet higher than surrounding land. The new location for the depot is only about 150 feet away from the current location.

We don’t have a date yet for when the depot will be moved. That’s contingent on final approval of the agreement by the city and the railroad. The house mover will also need to arrange a time in his schedule.

Our effort to save the depot might get some significant news attention. On July 27, a reporter for the New York Times, who is writing a story about railroad stations inspired by what is happening with Detroit’s once-grand facility, went through the Perry depot with a photographer. He met with Little Rock & Western General Manager Ryan Richardson, Suffridge, Jimmy Middleton and other community leaders. The reporter told me he’s visiting a few depots around the country, and if we can get even a brief mention, I think that would be quite a boon to our project. UPDATE: The story was published Sept. 29, 2018 and can be viewed here. Thanks to reporter Mitch Smith for including Perry among the seven train stations featured.

Concerning finances, we haven’t been aggressively fundraising lately while waiting to get approval for the project by the railroad. At last report, we raised $5,230 through our online Go Fund Me campaign, and received $2,601 in checks. When taking out the eight percent charge for online donations, we have raised a total of $7,412. Much of that was eaten up by the $6,360 paid for insurance. The Perry County Historical and Genealogical Society has allocated $4,000 from its funds to cover the down payment to the mover. An additional $3,000 to $4,000 will be due once the move is complete. If you can help by making a donation, please do!

You can also mail a check to:

Perry County Historical Museum
P.O. Box 1128
Perryville, AR 72126

It has been almost a year to the day that I was first invited to speak to the Perry County Historical & Genealogical Society on August 8, 2017. At that time the group was considering options to try and save the building which had played a key role in the community’s history. It was also a significant relic of the Rock Island, which was my area of expertise having published a book earlier in the year about the railroad. Since then Buford Suffridge and I have gotten to know each other well as this preservation effort has slowly progressed. It looks like everything is finally coming together.

Finally one bit of history. A westbound train carrying President Franklin D. Roosevelt rolled by the Perry depot during the morning of Saturday, July 9, 1938. It was while Roosevelt was campaigning for a third term in office and he was traveling on the Rock Island heading for the west coast. The only stop the train made for a public appearance in Arkansas was about 70 miles west of Perry in Booneville, where the president spoke to a crowd of about 3,000 from the back platform of the train at 10:35 a.m. Unfortunately the Booneville depot was destroyed by a fire on May 28, 2001.

The building in Perry is the last wood frame depot of the Rock Island’s left in Arkansas. It may look in rough shape with roofing tiles sagging, but there seems to be a consensus that it’s in good condition. That’s thanks in large part to it never having been abandoned. Also depots were made to be sturdy and withstand the elements. I think it will be great as a museum that tells the history of Perry County, as well as the important role that the railroad had there. Below you can read earlier posts as this project has evolved.

UPDATES ON THE PERRY DEPOT:

The Rock Island’s Perry, Arkansas Depot is Moved in Advance of Restoration (Oct. 28, 2018) – During the last week of September 2018, a house moving company placed steel beams underneath the Perry depot and moved it to a temporary location until we had a new foundation ready to place the depot on. This includes photos of the moving process and inside the depot. READ MORE

Grant Money Will Ensure Former Rock Island Depot in Perry Gets Back on the Ground (April 28, 2019) – At a time when fundraising was stagnant, we got great news as the Arkansas Economic Development Commission awarded the project nearly $10,000 to create a community meeting place and museum inside the depot. READ MORE

Preparing to Place Rock Island Depot at Perry, Arkansas in New Location (Jan. 5, 2020) – Extensive work was done to build up a city-owned piece of land to place the Perry depot on. Record flooding threatened the depot in its temporary location and showed the ground where it would be placed needed to be higher than originally planed. READ MORE

Relocation Completed of Rock Island Depot in Arkansas, Now Fundraising Begins to Repair Roof (March 1, 2020) – In January, the house moving company returned to Perry and placed the depot in its new location. Then a block mason built a foundation underneath, with the depot now ready for renovations to begin. The next priority is repairing the roof. READ MORE

PREVIOUS ENTRIES ON THE PERRY DEPOT:

Effort to Save Former Rock Island Depot in Perry, Arkansas from Demolition (Sept. 2, 2017) – Features extensive photos I took inside the depot and details the early proposal to move it. This was before the city offered a property and at that time the idea was being floated to move the depot across the tracks to an area also owned by the Little Rock & Western Railway. READ MORE

Challenges Persist in Moving the Former Rock Island Depot at Perry, Arkansas (March 27, 2018) – Includes the first estimate from a company on the cost of moving the depot, which was unrealistic. I also update details of a rejected request for the Little Rock & Western to donate a piece of land. READ MORE

I welcome any additional information, photos, stories, comments or corrections. Write to: michael@hibblenradio.com.