Carroll IA - The Chicago & Northwestern Passenger Depot and Baggage Room

Point of Interest in Carroll, IA

The Chicago & Northwestern Passenger Depot and Baggage Room-Carroll, also known as the Carroll Depot is a historic building located in Carroll, Iowa, United States. It is an example of a replacement station built along its Iowa mainline by the Chicago and North Western Railway (CNW) in 1896. It replaced a two-story, frame, combination station that was first built in 1867 by its predecessor line, the Cedar Rapids and Missouri River Railroad. That building had experienced two fires. The CNW had built two branch lines from Carroll in 1877 and 1880, which increased business and necessitated a larger depot. A separate wooden freight house had been built in 1888. Chicago architect Charles Sumner Frost designed this station in the Romanesque Revival style. The baggage room is separated from the depot by a breezeway. Frost designed at least 15 stations for the CNW in Iowa and Nebraska and another 14 in the Chicago area. The building represents the prosperity of the line during the Golden Age of Railroads.

Passenger service ended here in 1959, and the building was used by the railroad for storage for years after that. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. At that time efforts to restore the building began. Exterior renovations were completed in 2004, followed by the interior. Once the renovations were complete, the building has housed the local chamber of commerce.

Map and Info

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W 5th St
Carroll, IA 51401

Carroll County, IA


Carroll County, IA

Visit our county page and you will find information about our town and county's points of interest, festivals/events and faith community. You also will find stories about the contributions made by farmers/ranchers located throughout our county and of course you will learn about the community organizations that have built and continue to build strong communities (chambers, community groups, and departments, etc) and much more when you visit the Carroll County, IA page.