The History of The Brighton Depot
"Handsome New Union Pacific Depot at Brighton" May, 1907

Continued...

After the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads were joined in 1868 in Utah to complete the transcontinental railroad, surplus rails and supplies were used for laying track on the Denver Pacific roadbed south from Cheyenne to the present site of Brighton, CO.

When the tracks were extended to Denver, construction was begun on the line to the Erie coal mines, called the Denver Boulder Valley Railroad. The junction of the two lines was the first railroad station north of Denver.  It was called “Hughes” named after the first president of the railroad company, one Bela M. Hughes, who was a Civil War General and former stage coach company official. Later maps recorded the station as “Hughes Station” or “Hughes Junction”.

The growth of the settlement at Hughes Junction was slow.  On June 9, 1870, Denver newspapers reported that the town consisted only of a small depot, a water tank, a station master’s house and herds of cattle and horses scattered over the dry prairie.

The little depot at Hughes was a favorite gathering place for cowhands from the surrounding ranches. Early settlers remarked that the cowpokes liked to sit on the loading docks across from the little depot to watch the trains come and go. Railroad travel guides from the period stated that the chief industry around Hughes was cattle and horse raising, although farming grew steadily with the expansion of irrigation ditches in the area.

On February 27, 1882, the Union Pacific, which had taken over the Denver Pacific tracks, completed construction of a new depot at Brighton. The second depot looked much like the present building.  The depot served as a public meeting place for the growing town. The depot was a bustling place - a gathering place for visiting dignitaries and important events.  When Brighton became the permanent county seat for the newly formed Adams County in 1904, the first site chosen for the county courthouse was the present day Malcolm Park because it was close to the depot.

The present depot, the third in its line, was built in 1907. On May 3, 1907, the local Brighton Blade carried this headline: “Handsome New Union Pacific Depot at Brighton”, with a photo of the building.  The previous old depot was moved to Erie, CO, its final fate is undetermined.

Union Pacific agent Cliff Ownby retired in 1974 after 23 years as  an area railroad employee.  Ownby said then, “It’s nothing like it used to be”. Until a few years ago, six passenger trains stopped daily at Brighton.  “Those were busier times”.