Historic Montpelier Railroad Depot

Situated off Route 20 in Orange County on the outskirts of James Madison's Montpelier, this nicely preserved train station dates to 1911. Built by the Southern Railway, it provided transportation for William DuPont, who had purchased the Montpelier property in 1901. Rail service operated until 1967, after which the station was repurposed as a post office.

In an effort to shed light on the painful truths of the past, renovations were undertaken to restore the station to its appearance circa the 1910s. The project, begun in 2008 and completed in 2010, culminated with the exhibit “The Montpelier Train Depot: In the Time of Segregation.” The exhibit features interpretive displays explaining the Jim Crow era and the racial injustices that occurred. The station includes a freight room, an office, and separate waiting rooms labeled “colored” and “white,” accessible via exterior doors labeled accordingly.

Though trains no longer stop here, rail traffic still passes at regular intervals, echoing the past from the outside as the permanent exhibit recalls it inside.