Ashland Station
In 1973, the oldest depot in the West moved to a new home. Ashland Station, reportedly the oldest railroad depot west of the Mississippi, was transported across Rainbow Bridge to its present location at the Folsom Interpretive Area next to the Folsom Chamber of Commerce. Crews moved the rustic station from its previous site at the intersection of Folsom Rd. and Greenback Lane by inching it across the narrow bridge. Ashland Station served the small town of Ashland, previously known as Big Gulch, Russville and Rowlesville. Mining is thought to have begun as early as 1849 and this settlement boasted a tumultuous history with names that changed almost as fast as their rowdy population.
In 1862, the California Central Railroad and the Sacramento Placer Nevada Railroad completed tracks. Trains heading north from Folsom crossed the American River over the high-rise railroad bridge to Ashland and then continued to Auburn or Marysville. In the late 1860’s Central Pacific Railroad offered Sacramento to Roseville service forcing Sacramento Placer Nevada Railroad into foreclosure. The tracks would be eventually used for the Folsom to Placerville connection. With the end of the railway, the population of the town moved and the depot sat empty or as a storage shed for years until moved to its current location.
Marker can be reached from Wool Street near Leidesdorf Street.
Courtesy hmdb.org
