The Wabuska Railroad Station was erected in 1906 by the Southern Pacific Railroad as a freight and passenger facility serving the Mason Valley region of Lyon County, about 30 miles east of Carson City. . The single story,wood-frame depot was constructed by company carpenters and remained in active service until 1979. In 1982 the Southern Pacific Transportation Company donated the vacant depot to the Nevada State Museum with the understanding that the station would become part of the Virginia & Truckee Railroad Museum (now the Nevada State Railroad Museum) in Carson City. The Wabuska Railroad Station was moved to the Museum in Carson City, Nevada, in July of 1983 and was placed on the National Register on August 30, 1984.
The station is a one story, wood frame building supported by a series of twenty-six inch wood piers. The twenty-four by eighty foot depot terminates in a gable roof sheathed in wood shingles. The roof design includes extended eaves which project approximately four feet from the structure's exterior wall planes. The resulting overhang is supported by brackets located at eight foot intervals. The depot's roof employs a common rafter system incorporating collar ties, purlins and vertical braces. The structure’s roof was originally punctuated by a brick stove chimney. This element was later replaced by a metal stove pipe vent.
Exterior walls combine four foot, vertical tongue and groove wainscotting with five inch, rustic channel siding. The east elevation includes a three by ten foot bay window which originally housed the station ticket office. The east elevation bay is defined by double hung windows similar to those found on the body of the building.
Wooden, four panel, sliding freight doors are located on the south, east and west building elevations and provide access to the depot's freight room. Above these doors are found eight-light transoms. Door units are enframed by simple board surrounds. East and west passenger and freight entrances originally included poured concrete platforms. These slabs were not moved to the Carson City site', however, similar platforms will be reproduced during the restoration.
Eight foot station signs, reading "Wabuska" were originally fixed to the building's gable ends. These signs included the distance to San Francisco and Keeler, California, stations located along the Southern Pacific line. These original station signs were later replaced by smaller fixtures, one of which survives in the museum’s collection.
The interior of the depot is divided into three major service areas by twelve foot interior partitions. These areas were designed to accommodate freight, the depot ticket office,and passenger facilities. The southern half of the building is occupied by the freight section which adjoins the freight agent's office. The northern end of the structure includes the passenger waiting room, rest rooms and storage areas.
Surviving interior features include the station's original ticket counter found between the waiting room and ticket office. Interior partitions are also original and are characteristic of those used in Southern Pacific stations of the period. These partitions are constructed of five foot, vertical, tongue and groove wainscotting and horizontal, tongue and groove panelling. Lower walls are painted dark green while upper portions are painted a contrasting lighter green as is characteristic of Southern Pacific stations.
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