Dickinson Depot

Dickinson, originally named Pleasant Valley Siding, was reached by the Northern Pacific Railroad crews in 1880. By 1881 the tracks had been laid, and trains were soon passing through on their way to the ever-progressing railhead. The Northern Pacific decided to place a division point at Pleasant Valley as it was halfway between Bismarck (then known as Edwinton) and Montana Territory.

As a division point, Pleasant Valley had a two-story railroad hotel, eating station, and roundhouse. The roundhouse was a machine shop to service and repair locomotives. Within a year the growing community had been re-named Dickinson after Wells Dickinson, a New York state senator and land agent for the Northern Pacific. By 1883 the final spike had been driven, connecting the Northern Pacific track line from Duluth, Minnesota, to Tacoma, in Washington Territory.

In 1908 a larger brick depot replaced the original frame structure. This depot was later used by the Northern Pacific's successor, the Burlington Northern Railroad. In the fall of 1979, the last passenger train pulled through Dickinson, but the rails continue to be used to move freight. (Information from Centennial Roundup).