402 North Ann Arbor Street

Historic Photo taken by Robert Brando
Saline Depot - New York Central System Era
Courtesy of the Saline Area Historical Society

1994 Survey Photo by Kosky & Glynn Associates
Copyright held by the City of Saline

2004 Survey Photo
Copyright held by the City of Saline

Photo by Lori Swick
February 2013

Architectural Description: The Saline Depot is a one-story timber frame building with a steeply pitched gable roof. The roof ridge runs east to west, parallel to the tracks. Open timber brackets support the broad overhanging eaves on the north and south elevations of the structure. The exterior walls of the depot are clad in vertical board and batten. There is a wooden loading dock along the north elevation (trackside), which wraps around the east end of the depot. The north elevation contains a double-hung wood window with six over six lights, a wooden freight door, and two double fixed windows set up high, each with six lights. On the facade of the building, facing North Ann Arbor Street, a paneled door with four upper fixed windows is towards the north end and there are two tall double hung windows, containing six over six lights, which are symmetrically placed on the façade. The south elevation contains two sets of freight doors (one in the center and one towards the east end) and a double hung window towards the west end of the elevation. The Depot's east elevation faces the livery barn and contains two centrally located, fixed windows, with six lights each.

History: The Depot was built in 1870 for the Detroit, Hillsdale and Indiana Railroad. Trains on this line didn’t actually ever go to either Detroit or Indiana.
The DHI line only ran from Ypsilanti to Bankers, a small town west of Hillsdale. The line connected with the Michigan Central Railroad in Ypsilanti and the Lakeshore and Michigan Southern line in Hillsdale (Shackman). Saline historian Bob Lane writes: " The Panic of September 1873 caused the failure of the DHI and the bankrupt railroad was replaced by the Detroit Hillsdale and Southwestern."

In the early years, the Depot handled both passenger and freight service. Passenger service from this Depot served as the only link to the outside world until 1899, when the interurban trolley, known as “Old Maude,” rolled into town. The Depot played an important role in the economic growth of Saline in the late nineteenth to mid-twentieth centuries. Saline area farmers were able to ship many products, including grain, apples, wool and livestock to larger markets. Incoming trains brought new machinery for the farmers, as well as coal and lumber for Saline residents. In 1881 the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern leased the track from the DH&S and after World War l, the Lakeshore line was acquired by the New York Central system. The last passenger train ran in 1938 and freight service ended in 1961. The New York Central eventually sold the Depot to the Saline Mercantile, which used the space for a garden shop. In the 1970s David and Dean Zahn purchased the depot property from the Saline Mercantile. The Zahns rented out the freight section of the Depot for storage. In 1980, the Zahn family gave the Depot to the Saline Historic District Commission and sold the land to the City of Saline. The Depot was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 17, 1994. It is leased by the Saline Area Historical Society and operates as the Saline Railroad Depot Museum.

Undated photo of the Livery Barn , when it was located at 101 N. Lewis St.
Courtesy of the Saline Area Historical Society

Photo by Lori Swick
February 2013

Livery barn description and history: The gabled livery barn is clad with vertical wood siding. The west gable-end appears to be the original main façade.
There is a double entry door and an upper loft access door. The south elevation contains one double-hung window with two-over-two lights and a painted sign at the top with the words: "Horses and All Kinds of Livestock Bought and Sold." The east elevation has a single barn door on the north end and a small fixed window opening under the gable. The north elevation has two double-hung windows with two over two lights each. There is a four-sided gabled cupola in the center of the ridgeline.

Livery barns were places where one could rent or board a horse, often located within walking distance of a hotel. It was common for these types of barns, or stables, to provide pickup and delivery services for people. The Risdon livery barn was originally located at 101 North Lewis Street, near the Saline Exchange Hotel on the Old Chicago Road (West Michigan Ave). Orange Risdon, the founder of Saline, owned the home and this livery barn at that site. The house was built prior to 1837 and the livery barn may have been built around the same time. Local history indicates that Risdon once lived in the house for a short time (Study Committee Report). Horse-drawn buggies and sleighs were also kept at the livery and these provided transportation for travelers who were met at the Depot. The Saline Area Historical Society relocated the livery barn to its current location and presented it to the City of Saline in 1991. The structure has carefully been restored and is now a part of the Saline Railroad Depot Museum.

Sources:
"Historic District Study Committee Report of North Ann Arbor Street Local Historic District." 2004.

Kosky & Glynn Associates. "Historical and Architectural Survey." Saline, Michigan. 1994.

Saline Area Historical Society photos, available through the Saline District Library website. http://saline.lib.mi.us/

Shackman, Grace. " The Saline Railroad Depot." Ann Arbor Community Observer, 2006. http://aaobserver.aadl.org/aaobserver/36249

Shackman, Grace. " The Saline Train Depot." Ann Arbor Community Observer, 1998. http://aaobserver.aadl.org/aaobserver/36117

National Register of Historic Places, Detroit, Hillsdale and Indiana Railroad - Saline Depot. 1994. National Register# 11940617

Sommers, Laurie. "National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form: Historic Resources of Saline, Michigan--Partial Inventory: Historic and Architectural Properties." National Park Service. 1985.

Suggested Reading:
McAlester, Virginia, and Lee McAlester.  A Field Guide to American Houses. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. 1984.

Prepared by Lori Swick
April 17, 2013