Photos and Story By: Ken Hulsey
A couple of weeks ago, my travels took me to the town of DeQueen, Arkansas and the railyard of the DeQueen & Eastern Railroad, a short line operating in western Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma. This railroad, which began service in 1900, is now under the ownership of Patriot Rail, the company I was there to inspect. As I drove onto the property, I noticed an intriguing structure that I quickly identified as an old steam engine house from the railroad's early days.
Although the engine house was not on my inspection list, my lifelong passion for railroads compelled me to take a closer look. What I discovered was a remarkably well-preserved historic railroad work building. It was as if I had traveled back in time, half-expecting to see an old locomotive pull in for maintenance.
While waiting for my coworker to finish some paperwork, I conducted a bit of research on the building. I learned that it was constructed in 1905 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
From the NRHP:
Built c. 1905 on the edge of the city of DeQueen, the DeQueen and Eastern Railroad Machine Shop was constructed by that railroad company as its principal machine shop and repair facility. As such it is associated with the historic context Railroad Era Resources of Southwest Arkansas (Lafayette, Little River, Miller and Sevier Counties), 1870-1945 by virtue of its direct associations with one of the smaller railroads that played such a crucial role in the growth and development of this region of the state. It is thus significant under Criterion A as one of the few surviving buildings constructed by this railroad during its early years of existence; it is also significant under Criterion C as the only known surviving example of a railroad machine shop in this region, and one of the finest examples locally of the Italianate style as applied to a large, functional industrial building.
From Patriot Rail:
The DeQueen & Eastern Railroad ("DQE") and Texas, Oklahoma & Eastern ("TOE") Railroad are two connecting railroads that operate as one over a total of 91 track miles in southeast Oklahoma and southwest Arkansas. The DQE/TOE interchanges with BNSF via the Kiamichi Railroad at Valliant, Oklahoma; the Kansas City Southern in DeQueen, Arkansas; and the Union Pacific at Perkins, Arkansas.
The company was incorporated September 22, 1900. It opened from De Queen to Provo, AR in 1903 and to Dierks, AR in September 1906. The entire line was opened by 1921 except for the final ten miles into Perkins which opened in 1957. Passenger service was discontinued in 1948. In 2011, the DQE was purchased by Patriot Rail from Weyerhaeuser.
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