It wasn’t until the Willmar & Sioux Falls railroad track was laid through Russell that permanent settlement and the establishment of the town began. The Willmar & Sioux Falls Railroad was built through what is now Russell in the fall of 1888. The railroad was built by E. A. Sherman and John Spicer, under the direction of James J. Hill of the Great Northern Railroad. The line was sold to the Great Northern Railroad on July 7, 1907.

Russell derives its name from Russell Spicer, the son of John Spicer, for whom the town of Spicer is named after. The plat for Russell was surveyed by C. L. Van Fleet and was dedicated by Henry M. Burchard on Jan. 19, 1889. The first building to serve as a depot for Russell was brought in by the railroad to be used in 1890. On Dec. 27, 1898, the depot burned down and a new one was built in 1899 and remained until it was torn down in 1981.

Former station agent, Merlyn Cadwell, who served at the depot from 1950-1976 wrote a detailed description of the depot building in the Russell Centennial book. The following is how he described the building:

“This building, with its pot-bellied stoves, high ceilings, kerosene lights for semaphore signaling and office lighting, wooden platform, coal bins for coal to fire the pot-bellied stoves, hardwood floors that developed wide cracks, and barrels of water stored in the waiting room for fire fighting purposes went through a number of changes over the years that it serviced the traveling and shipping public. Most notable would be the installation of electric lights about 1920 and telephones. In March of 1952, the building was completely remodeled. The entire interior of the building was removed and replaced with a new lower ceiling and wall material, and insulated throughout. The hardwood floors were replaced with inlaid linoleum and the pot-bellied stoves were replaced with oil burning space heater stoves supplied by underground tanks which did away the coal to be hauled in and ashes to be hauled out several times a day.”

The photograph featured this week from the Lyon County Museum’s collection is the Great Northern depot in Russell.

The Lyon County Historical Society (LCHS) is a non-profit, member-supported organization. LCHS operates the Lyon County Museum at 301 W Lyon St in Marshall. The Lyon County Museum is open to visitors. To contact us, visit our website: www.lyoncomuseum.org, call: 507-537-6580, email: director@lyoncomuseum.org, or on our Facebook page.