Alamosa Depot

This monument is placed here to preserve the important history of the start of the whole San Luis Valley, by the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad's entrance to Alamosa.

The work train arrived in Alamosa in late 1877, and the first passenger train arrived at this spot on July 4, 1878. The depot was completed in 1893, but was completely destroyed by fire on December 25, 1907. The new depot, built of brick was completed in October 1909 at a cost of $17,500.00. Amazingly after almost 100 years, the building still exists today, with remodeling to fit Alamosa County's needs.

In 1897 standard gauge rails came in and then Alamosa began to grow. It became the narrow gauge capital of the world. As many as six passenger trains left Alamosa daily, with the main train being on route to Denver, including an occasional train to Pueblo. There were daily trains that traveled to Salida, Gunnison North, Durango, Farmington, Santa Fe, and also to Creede. Several freight trains also left each week to all points. Travelers could go by coach, or take a night Pullman to Denver. It contained a baggage coach and a U.S. Post Office to dispatch mail, though the main use of the railroad was to supply service to Denver. One could mail a letter for supplies on the late train to Denver and receive the supplies in baggage within 2 days.

Alamosa was the service point of all of Southwestern Colorado and Northern New Mexico. At one time, over 2,000 employees worked in the railroad shops building cars and coaches and also assembling the steam engines. The railroad was at its peak in the 1920's and the 1930's and this particular site contains history beyond our knowledge.

Always interested in seeing future generations keep this history alive, this monument is to preserve the history of early Alamosa. This was made possible through the efforts of Lloyd E. Jones.