A SA&AP passenger depot which still exists.

A SA&AP freight depot which no longer exists.

The Kerrville passenger depot was located on the Kerrville branch which ran from San Antonio to Kerrville. Kerrville was a former terminus with a small yard and a turntable. About 50 years ago, the engineers of the steam trains would blow the whistle when they arrived in town. The neighborhood kids would run to the turntable to meet the engine, and then they would push the turntable around with the engine. The track was abandoned in 1970 and was removed.

The depot is a single-story, masonry structure that was built in either 1913 or 1915 by the San Antonio and Aransas Pass to replace a wooden depot that burned down earlier. Two arches on the building were open and later were enclosed. "Originally the arches were gray, the soffit, fascia, door and window frames were SA&AP green, and the roof was red cement-asbestos tile. The brick was buff color, so the building was quite colorful." The quote is from Kathie Walker from the book "The San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway" by John W. Hedge and Geoffrey S. Dawson. The address is 615 Schreiner Street. It is half a block west of Sidney Baker (State Highway 16) near the center of downtown.

After the railroad left town, the depot was sold. It was used a restaurant and then left vacant. It was in use as a restaurant again as of June 1996.

In 2003, the depot was sold to Linda and Mark Stone, who restored the depot. They then leased the building to restaurant operators. The depot was reopened as "Rails - a Cafe at the Depot" during the summer of 2004. The restoration effort won the Texas Downtown Association's First Place Award for the Best Restoration Project in the State of Texas for 2004. The following photos were provided by Linda Stone.

A view from the east of the front of the depot.
The new kitchen is on the side (not part of the original building).
The larger arch was originally the open waiting area (arcade).
The smaller and larger arches were originally open.
The tracks ran along the front of depot were the street is now.

A view from the north west of the depot.
The doors originally went to the baggage room.

The bar area was the open waiting area (arcade).

The dining area was the general waiting room.

Behind the candles was the baggage room (the wall was opened).
The hallway on the right leads to the ticket office.
The room in the center was the smaller "negro waiting room".

Another view of the general waiting room with the now open baggage room in the back.
The big doors to the right are the main entry from the parking lot.