Kelso Depot- Kelso, CA

Kelso Depot, like a mirage, just appears before your eyes in the middle of the Mojave National Preserve. A welcomed stop for those exploring dusty desert roads between Palm Springs and Las Vegas, it is a wonderful example of Spanish Mission Style architecture. It is impossible to drive by and not stop, if only for the restroom. But seriously, it is impossible not to be charmed by the depot.

The original depot at Kelso dated to 1905, a needed water stop for steam locomotives on the Los Angeles & Salt Lake Railroad. The Mojave was hot, and Kelso had access to a spring. Soon a town grew around the depot, including a post office, and a restaurant to serve depot workers and train passengers alike.

The current depot was constructed in 1924, when train travel still reigned supreme, and the now Union Pacific Railroad Company found themselves competing with the Santa Fe Railroad, and their fancy Harvey Houses. Los Angeles architects John and Donald Parkinson were retained to design a swoon worthy station, that would meet the expectations of savvy travelers. While it is lost to history if Kelso Clubhouse employed wholesome, efficient waitresses at its restaurant as Fred Harvey did, it was designed with other upgraded features such as a telegraph office, library, and billiard room.

The new depot was also elaborately and lushly landscaped, intended to resemble a desert Oasis. Which it was. It was populated with Cottonwoods to provide shade, Date palms, Chinese elms, and grass. Gorgeous, glorious, green grass. However, after several decades, the utility of the depot declined. The mines the depot serviced closed. The automobile stole away passengers, and newer locomotives required fewer personnel to keep them running. Passenger train service was suspended in 1964, however the lunch room managed to hang on until 1985.

At that time, Union Pacific no longer had use for the building, and fearing the vacant depot would attract vandals, proposed demolition. Fortunately that did not happen. Local residents fought for preservation, and ultimately the building was transferred to the Bureau of Land Management, who already owned much of the surrounding land. With the creation of the Mojave National Preserve in 1994, depot ownership was transferred to the National Park Service. By 2002 renovations were underway, and in 2005 the depot reopened as a new visitor center for the preserve. Win, Win. Unfortunately, all that remains of the original landscaping are the Date palms and grass, but it still manages to look like a welcoming oasis.

While in the area, make sure to stop by Kelso Dunes, where sand rises up 650 feet above the desert floor. For those in search of a little Route 66 nostalgia, Roy’s awaits. You just never know what you might find in the desert.