MUSEUMS
PHOTO PROVIDED
The historic 1916 Sebastian train depot as it looked during the 50 years it
was in service.
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Cast aside and ignored for years, cut apart and left
in a citrus grove to serve as a storage building for
equipment, the historic Sebastian train depot was
rescued in December by Steam Locomotive Association
No. 253, a group of dedicated train-lovers who intend to
bring it back to life.
After 45 years away from the Florida East Coast Railway
for which it was originally built, the old station took a 25-
mile trip of its own — on wheels, behind a truck, down U.S.
1 from Sebastian to its new home near the FEC Railway
tracks in Fort Pierce.
“What’s so exciting about this is that it’s going to be
saved,” says Danny Nichoson, a Fort Pierce resident who
loves old trains.
He was an onlooker when the depot arrived in Fort
Pierce on Dec. 12, several hours ahead of schedule. He says
he wants to volunteer to help restore the building to its
former appearance.
The 18-by-70-foot depot, moved by Tom Youngblood and
Sons, left Sebastian at 7:30 a.m. and stopped traffic on U.S. 1
as it rolled by.
“It is completely taking up the highway,” reported Jerry
Groothouse, the director of acquisitions for Steam Locomotive
Association No. 253, as he drove his truck behind the
station during the journey. “People are out here waving and
taking pictures and blowing their horns. We averaged 15
mph and the trip has been very smooth.”
When the procession reached U.S. 1 and Avenue H the
movers had to wait for workers from the state Department
of Transportation to move a traffic signal, delaying the final ED DRONDOSKI
The historic Sebastian train depot has the characteristic curved roof supports
seen on stations built for the Florida East Coast Railway.