(rshsdepot) Mattoon, IL

[Bernie Wagenblast <brwagenblast_@_comcast.net>]

Link:
http://www.iltrails.org/coles/trainstation.jpg  (1922 postcard view)

Train depot gets historic status

BY CARL WALWORTH

City Editor - Mattoon Journal Gazette

MATTOON - The recent listing of the city's train depot on the National
Register of Historic Places is considered an important step toward the
building's restoration.

The Coles County Historical Society has a goal of restoring the Broadway
Avenue building by the city's sesquicentennial in 2005. Representatives of
the state's historic preservation agency toured the site on Wednesday to get
a first-hand look at the building in which the agency invested $22,500 in
the new roof.

Agency representatives Chris Knorr and Mattoon native Anna Borntrager walked
through with local architect Don Hance and others who are working toward
making the facility functional. Knorr and Borntrager, while officially
following up on the use of grant funds, may be in a position to help the
society identify more funding sources.

Renee Henry, the society's executive director, said the designation on the
national register is an important milestone. "It's a major step," she said.
"It gives you something like the Good Housekeeping stamp of approval,
something that says this building deserves to be saved by the community."

The designation could be a factor in future grant applications, she said.

Buildings on the register are ones that the agency considers worthy of
preservation.

The depot project is a focus for the society, which sees the depot as the
center of a Midtown development effort. "This building is historically
important to the community," Henry said. "Some may not realize it now but it
was a centerpiece of this community."

Henry said the society sees the depot returning to the status as a community
gathering place and a big part of the city's identity.

Commissioner Mark Donnell commended the society for its efforts. "This is a
huge compliment for the society's efforts," Donnell said of the designation
on the historic register.

The city doesn't have money to lend to the effort, Donnell said, but
otherwise will cooperate, including support of grant applications. "We want
to help them any way we can," Donnell said. "We don't have the money
ourselves, but the city owns the building now and we're interested in seeing
it be a place that people come to and use."

Jacqueline Record of the historical society said a new elevator that makes
the entire facility accessible is the next step in the redevelopment.

She noted that four grants were involved in the funding for the roof.

Record said a time capsule was found when a plaque was taken down in the
building, and the society is waiting for an appropriate time to open the
capsule.

She mentioned two other upcoming events involving the depot. The rail
corridor meeting that typically is attended by about 25 people along the
line is scheduled to be in Mattoon on May 14. And the society has scheduled
another cleanup day on May 4.

- - Contact Carl Walworth at cwalworth_@_jg-tc.com.

=================================
The Railroad Station Historical Society maintains a database of existing
railroad structures at: http://www.rrshs.org

------------------------------