East Kentucky Extension Office Revives Train Depot
By
Aimee Nielson
 HARLAN,
Ky., (Jan. 10, 2007) – In the early 1900s, railroad travel was
one of the most popular means of travel and train depots were
major hubs of activity. Most of those depots are now only
memories. However, one University of Kentucky Cooperative
Extension office in Eastern Kentucky recently recreated an old
train depot to serve as a new kind of activity center.
The building may resemble the site’s original
depot, but it’s actually an annex of the Harlan County
Cooperative Extension Service and will be the site of meetings
and other Extension activities.
“People see that it is
on the site of the original depot and it’s historical,” said
Jeremy Williams, University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension
agent for agriculture and natural resources in Harlan County. “A
lot of folks were upset because the original depot was torn down
in the 1980s and this has re-created it … and has brought
something back to life on this piece of property.”
Charlotte Nolan
remembers the old train depot. She grew up in Harlan, and at a
ribbon-cutting just before Christmas she recalled what an
exciting place the depot was when she was a young girl.
“This particular depot
was the hub of our town,” she said. “The traveling salesmen came
in here and stayed at one of the local hotels down the street.
It was just a hustle and bustle. And then when they built it
back, it looks so much like the original. Those of us who
remember the early days are thrilled that it is back. They have
given us back our history. We feel like a member of our family
has come home. Isn’t that wonderful?”
Williams and other
Harlan County Extension agents see the new depot as a way to
create space for more programs, which allows more people to
participate.
“We have never had this
amount of space to provide educational programs,” said Teresa
Howard, Harlan County Extension agent for family and consumer
sciences. “We have gone from a cubby-hole in the courthouse, to
an old home we remodeled with limited seating of 50 to 60
people. We have had as close as 100 in it, and that’s too
crowded. So our board developed this dream of having a new
building – one that we could have a big meeting in, or three
smaller ones.”
Raymond Cox, Harlan
County Extension agent for 4-H youth development has already had
a few 4-H activities in the new depot.
“We have already had a
reality store in here and we just started a new horse club, and
we are meeting here right now learning the basics about horses,”
he said. “We have a quilt club and a sewing club that meets here
right now, so it’s going to allow us to do a lot more programs.”
The depot also is part
of an effort to revitalize downtown Harlan. It was built without
raising taxes or asking local people to pay for it.
“We had the funds in
hand and the folks have supported it throughout the county, and
it has caused a buzz county-wide, especially in downtown Harlan
because so many people get to see it day in and day out,”
Williams said.
Coal trains from the
mines still run by the new depot today, but they don’t stop.
Agents said the depot may be used in the summer as a location
for a farmers’ market. |
