Hope station is a

passenger rail Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a prep ...

station Station may refer to: Agriculture * Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production * Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle ** Cattle statio ...

Hope, Arkansas Hope is a city in Hempstead County in southwestern Arkansas, United States. Hope is the county seat of Hempstead County and the principal city of the Hope Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Hempstead and Nevada counties. As of ...

. The station is located on

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

's ''

Texas Eagle The ''Texas Eagle'' is a daily passenger train route operated by Amtrak between Chicago and San Antonio in the central and western United States. Prior to 1988, the train was known as the ''Eagle''. Trains #21 (southbound) and 22 (northbound) ...

'' line. Trains run daily between

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, and

San Antonio, Texas ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

, and continue to

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, total, three days a week.

History

The red brick Hope depot was built in 1912 by the St. Louis, Iron Mountain & Southern Railroad, a subsidiary of

Missouri Pacific Railway The Missouri Pacific Railroad , commonly abbreviated as MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers. In 1967, the railroad o ...

, more commonly known as the "MoPac." The building exhibits the MoPac's signature Mediterranean Revival style architecture, especially in the gabled red tile roof. A combination depot, the building originally housed passenger and express services under one roof. The depot remained in active passenger use until November 1968, and then fell into disrepair for many years. However, the station was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

on June 11, 1992. To celebrate the election of Hope native

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

to the U.S. presidency in 1992, a group of citizens advocated for the conversion of the depot into a museum focused on Clinton's life. With the museum concept in place, the Missouri Pacific Railroad Company, by then part of

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

, donated the depot to the city in 1994. Renovations were finished the next year, and the facility opened to the public. The building also houses a visitor and information center. The tourism possibilities created by Clinton's presidency prompted civic leaders to approach Amtrak in 1993 about making Hope a regularly scheduled stop for the ''Texas Eagle''. During the depot renovation, part of the building was set aside with the idea that it could one day serve as a passenger waiting room. The persistence and hard work of city officials paid off in October 2010 when Amtrak President and CEO Joseph Boardman traveled to Hope to announce that the stop had been approved by Amtrak and the Union Pacific. Exhibiting pride of place, each section of the concrete platform is stamped with "Hope, a Slice of the Good Life"—the city's logo and a reference to its famous watermelons. Amtrak service began on April 4, 2013, and the first train was greeted by fireworks in the early morning hours. More than 150 local citizens boarded the ''

'' to ride to Texarkana, then returned on school buses to enjoy a community breakfast in Hope.Great American Stations
Accessed April 8, 2013.

References

External links

Amtrak Texas Eagle Stations - Hope, AR

Hope (HOP)--Great American Stations (Amtrak)
{{National Register of Historic Places Amtrak stations in Arkansas Hope micropolitan area Buildings and structures in Hempstead County, Arkansas Transportation in Hempstead County, Arkansas Railway stations in the United States opened in 1912 Railway stations closed in 1968 Railway stations in the United States opened in 2013 Former Missouri Pacific Railroad stations Railway stations on the National Register of Historic Places in Arkansas 2013 establishments in Arkansas Individually listed contributing properties to historic districts on the National Register in Arkansas 1912 establishments in Arkansas 1968 disestablishments in Arkansas National Register of Historic Places in Hempstead County, Arkansas

History

See also

References

External links