Anna Depot

Anna Depot. . The Houston and Texas Central Railway, formally known as the Galveston-Red River Railway, came thru the area we now call Anna in 1873. At that time, the railway established a "flag stop" where a flag could be raised to indicate when freight or passengers needed to be picked up. In 1883, the town was established with 20 residents, two stores, and a steam grist mill. The post office opened that year as well. Anna was named for Miss Anna Quinlan, daughter of G.A. Quinlan, former superintendent of the Houston and Texas Railway. In 1885, Captain James Greer, veteran of the Civil War, who later served in the Texas Legislature, donated the land for the depot, switch line and main line. His brother John Greer was the owner of the first house in Anna and also owned one of the stores. The depot building was constructed in 1885. The first agent was Andrew Sherley. Other agents were Alden, Gitler, Jones, Schenewerk, Hamm, Star, and Charles Darwood. The depot design was the same as the others on the line. It featured 3 rooms: an agent's office with a bay window to see up and down the tracks and a small window for a ticket office, the central room which was a passenger waiting room, the north room for freight. The freight room floor sat 16" above the other floors with 2 sliding doors for supplies and materials to be delivered. One notable traveler thru the future city of Anna is said to be Doc Holliday, traveling from Dallas to Denison in 1874. The original depot building sat on the west side of the railroad tracks close to what is now 4th Street. This building was moved off the site in the 1960's. The original site was later sold to DART.