The Depot

The construction proves that at one time Henderson was a prominent railroad center in this region of the state. 

The depot is an one story building built of brick masonry construction with stone trim.  It had a slate roof when it was built.  The building measures at approximately 120 feet by 36 feet.  This gives the depot 4,320 square feet of space.  The skeletal structure of the building has almost no wood or steel.  There was a considerable amount of marble used in the construction of the depot.  The depot has two very notable features:  one is a very elaborately detailed entrance, the other is a projecting square steeple-like tower.

The entrance is a rounded stone arch.  The arch rests on a pair of short red marble columns.  The upper part of the column, called the capital, is decorated with a leafy design.  The import for the massive stone arch consists of a simple stone entablature that sits in a stone wall with ornamental designs or “traceries.”  The curve or surface of an arch is called an intrados.  The intrados are recessed panels that contain flower accents.  A single story porch shelters the entrance.  Iron posts and brackets support the porch.

The base of the tower is formed by stone buttress-like elements at the sides of the entrance.  A buttress is a support built against an outside wall of a building.  Stone capitals reinforce the corners of the tower.  They are decorated with foliage and they sit on a flat rectangular pillar or pilaster made of brick.  Slender holes or gaps pierce the sides of the pillars.  A stone band which encircles the tower is easily seen because of the red brick on either side of the band.  Just above the band of stone, piers rise to support the roof.  A low-pitched overhanging roof supported by wooden brackets shelters the linear section of the building.  The depot originally had stained glass windows, but all of them have been removed.

Entering the front of the building one would step into the vestibule or entry way.  To the north of the entry way was the men’s general waiting room.  To the south of the vestibule was a smaller waiting room formally reserved for the coloreds.  To the extreme northern end of the building is a projecting semicircular bay area that was the ladies’ waiting room.  The wide moldings encircled the entire room and were capped with Corinthian capitals.  Corinthian capitals were part of the last of the Greek order of architecture that consisted of elaborate carvings of leaves of the acanthus plant.  The top pieces or a cornice displays dentalis.  Dentalis are little indentations made into wood trim.  The frieze that was the middle portion of the molding had an anthemion motif that again was a leaf or flower/vine pattern.  This resembles but surpasses contemporary crown molding used in some new buildings.

The doors in the building are round arch openings and have moldings that are referred to as egg and dart design.  The floors were done in a mosaic tile and some still are intact.  The depot has a brick and concrete basement.  The basement is small and was basically designed as a furnace room.  It is found under the west end of the building.  A tunnel runs from the furnace room to the east side of the building to provide access for heat, sewer and water pipes.   The tunnel is constructed with brick and concrete and runs under the center of the building to connect the east end to the west end.  Access to the basement is by a stair pit that has a pipe railing.  A temporary structure has been built to prevent anyone from getting into the furnace room.  There is a coal shoot in the north wall of the furnace room.  The basement has windows in the south wall for ventilation, but they are now sealed.