A two-story wood depot that once served the town of Grover in eastern Colorado is slated to undergo a range of foundation work because of a $229,081 grant.
Listed on the Colorado State Register of Historic Places, the Grover Depot was built in 1887 by the Burlington and Quincy Railroad Company. Located at 102 Railroad Avenue, it is thought to be one of the last surviving two-story depots in the West.
For decades the Grover depot served riders travelling on a 120-mile ride connecting Sterling, Colorado with Cheyenne, Wyoming.
Some fifty years ago, the depot was almost destroyed by heavy winds, with plans to demolish the structure entertained shortly afterwards. But a group called the Pawnee Historical Society rallied to save the structure.
Restoration work was supported by an $80,000 grant in 2024 to begin the process of stabilizing the structure’s brick foundation. Now the group History Colorado has announced a grant of exactly $229,081 to complete that stabilization effort.
The work will also include replacing deteriorating wood, rejoining the masonry grade beam, and attaching studs and floor framing to the new wood.
In a statement, Tanya Wahlert, president of the Pawnee Historical Society, said the cost of rehabilitating the depot has been “beyond the means of the community.”
The History Colorado grant, added Wahlert, will “sustain the momentum in preserving and teaching the history of Grover and other nearby small rural communities.”
The $229,081 Grover depot grant is part of more than $6 million in funding Colorado History is this year awarding for some 37 historical preservation projects across the state.
February 20, 2026
By Garry Boulard
Photo courtesy of History Colorado
