MK&T / Belton Railroad Co Depot, Belton Texas
Posted by: 
Tygress
N 31° 03.430 W 097° 27.750
14R E 646699 N 3436953
It may have lost its tracks, but this depot of the Missouri-Kansas-Texas (aka KATY) Railroad is still right purty.
Waymark Code: WM8JCY
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 04/09/2010
Views: 6
Icon of a time way back
Poor thing even lost its tracks
Still the depot stands all right
Painted for looks in red and white
Cornerstones with date AND location
All aboard! for this waymark station.
The MKT Depot in Belton is a sliver of local history. Now it houses shops, but, back in its day it saw plenty of comings and goings....
According to the Official History of Belton (written by Lena Armstrong) (http://www.ci.belton.tx.us/index.aspx?NID=128):
"Belton met its first setback in 1881 when the City fathers, after meeting the demands of Santa Fe railroad representatives and putting up $75,000, found themselves duped out of a railroad in Belton. They sued, but the company built their own town that they named Temple. After many years, the Supreme Court finally ended the case in favor of Belton. Meanwhile, they contracted with the M.K. & T. and by 1882, the Katy's depot was built a block from the courthouse...."
The MKT operated through here until it was bought out by the Belton Railroad, beginning operation on June 1, 1961. ...On June 3, 1991, certain assets of the Belton were sold to the Georgetown Railroad Company, and in 1993 the line continued operation as the Belton Subdivision of the Georgetown. Fred Guffy, Jr., retained rights to the Belton name as well as the station and other property located west of Interstate Highway 35 in Belton. [Handbook of Texas OnLine "Belton Railroad" (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/BB/eqb8.html) ]
The Belton Railroad had the 'distinction' of being 'a very short line.' (http://www.trainweb.org/lfnwfan/html/veryshortlines.htm)
Belton Railroad Company
7 miles. Locomotives (diesel-electric), 1. Connection with Missouri-Kansas-Texas at Smith, TX. According to the Railroad Magazine rosters, this line had one 50 ton Whitcomb numbered 1 and a GE 25-ton loco numbered 2161. According to the Kalmbach Diesel Locomotive Rosters (Third Edition), more recently it operates an EMD SW1 numbered 504.
MORE READING:
Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad Company (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missouri%E2%80%93Kansas%E2%80%93Texas_Railroad)
“The Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad (reporting mark MKT) was incorporated May 23, 1870. In its earliest days the MKT was commonly referred to as "the K-T", which was its stock exchange symbol; this common designation soon evolved into "the Katy."
The Katy was the first railroad to enter Texas from the north.
Reporting as MKT
Locale Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas
Dates of operation 1870–1988
Successor Union Pacific
Track gauge 4 ft 8+1/2 in (1,435 mm) (standard gauge)
Headquarters Dallas, Texas
Handbook of Texas Online MISSOURI-KANSAS-TEXAS RAILROAD (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/MM/eqm8.html)
Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad and the Katy Railroad Historical Society (http://katyrailroad.org/)
The Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad, The Katy (http://www.american-rails.com/the-katy.html)
Handbook of Texas Online OKLAHOMA, KANSAS AND TEXAS RAILROAD: (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/OO/eqory.html)
Further reading:
In the I DID NOT KNOW THAT department: ELECTRIC INTERURBAN RAILWAYS (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/EE/eqe12.html)
Is the station/depot currently used for railroad purposes?: No
Is the station/depot open to the public?: Yes
If the station/depot is not being used for railroad purposes, what is it currently used for?:
Appears to be Shops. [Note, it was not open on Sunday -- or at least not on Palm Sunday when we were there.] I do know at one time it housed a custom wood furniture builder/gallery. There was activity along the loading docks, and a shop sign.
What rail lines does/did the station/depot serve?: M-K-T & Belton Railroad Co.
Station/Depot Web Site: [Web Link]
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