The Northern Pacific Depot was donated by Laudie P. Tuhy and was moved to the park from South Heart in July of 1984. The caboose and track were added in 1985, compliments of the Burlington Northern Railroad, successor to the Northern Pacific.

The train depot was a significant building in early North Dakota towns as it was heavily relied on as a transportation system for moving people and hauling freight.  Few people had cars in the early 1900s, road conditions were poor, and travel between communities could be very difficult.  Often the only other option besides a train would be travel by horse and wagon.  Most North Dakota towns were not established until it was clear there would be rail service to the town.  Towns that were built based on speculation on where the tracks would go often had to be relocated if the railroad  ended up building in a different direction.  Many towns still maintain the familiar "T" lay-out of a primary street parallel to the tracks with a second primary street perpendicular to that.  The depot would be located at the intersection of the two main roadways through town.  T-Towns still reflect the influence of the railroad through the layout and resulting development of many North Dakota communities.

The main part of the depot served as a waiting room, with one end reserved for the ticket agent's office.  Usually there was another room where luggage and/or freight could be stored in preparation for loading and unloading.  A depot agent and family originally would have lived in the back rooms attached to the depot.  This area might have been converted to storage and/or office space in later years.  The agent was on-call twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.

*This building has limited accessibility for visitors with disabilities.