Plaque

Santa Fe Railway Depot

WEST & CENTRAL

1310 University Avenue Map View

CITY OF BERKELEY LANDMARK

designated in 2001

SANTA FE RAILWAY DEPOT

Charles Frederick Whittlesey, Architect, 1904

During the early 20th century, the Santa Fe Railroad provided three-day passenger and freight service between Chicago and the Bay Area. This station was one of three major rail stations in Berkeley. It was closed in 1964 and converted to a restaurant. In 2003, the Berkeley Montessori School renovated the building.

Charles Whittlesey, an innovator in reinforced concrete design, was chief architect for the Santa Fe Railroad and designer of the Grand Canyon’s El Tovar Lodge. Many of his buildings, including this depot, were designed in the Mission Revival style, reminiscent of southwestern pueblo adobe architecture.

Berkeley Historical Plaque Project
2004


  • Santa Fe promotional publication (1945), Wikipedia Commons.

  • Edgar Bergen and Mortimer Snerd on Santa Fe locomotive (1946), The Denver Public Library.

  • 1923 train ticket, Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad System.

  • Passenger Train of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (ca. 1895),Wikimedia Commons.

  • Tracks beside Santa Fe Depot (ca. 1885), Berkeley Public Library.

  • Santa Fe Depot, postcard, collection Sarah Wikander.

  • Santa Fe Depot (2010), photo R. Kehlmann.

Photo credit abbreviations:
BAHA: Berkeley Architectural Heritage Assn.
BHS: Berkeley Historical Society