Blackshear Depot
Why it's listed
Built in 1917 by the Savannah, Florida, and Western Railroad Company, this long, low brick depot sits one block south of Blackshear's business district, beside city hall and the city park. It follows the familiar Georgia small-town pattern, with passenger waiting rooms, offices and a freight room under a wide-eaved hipped roof with brackets. Walls are two-colored brick in Flemish bond, and the freight section keeps its elevated wooden loading platform, original scales, plank floors and exposed rafters. Blackshear and Pierce County grew directly from the railroad, which carried cotton, timber and other crops to distant markets. The depot replaced an earlier wooden station that burned, and the old building was reused for freight. Passenger trains stopped in the late 1950s and freight service ended in the mid-1970s. The city bought the property in 1978, and it now holds offices, including the county chamber of commerce. It is the town's only surviving railroad-related building.
Significance in brief: The depot is a good example of an early twentieth-century brick passenger and freight depot, with distinct passenger, office and freight sections typical of small-town Georgia. It is also the town's only railroad-related building and represents the railroad's central role in founding and sustaining Blackshear and its agricultural economy. Its freight warehouse interior survives unaltered.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 00000070, listed February 10, 2000. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 200 S. Central Ave., Blackshear |
|---|---|
| County | Pierce County |
| Listed | February 10, 2000 |
| Reference number | 00000070 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1917-1950 |
| Architect / builder | Savannah, Florida, and Western Railroad Company |
| Architectural style | OTHER: depot |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Transportation |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Freight service ended in the mid-1970s and the depot was vacated; later the City bought it in 1978, and it now serves government office use, including the Pierce County Chamber of Commerce. The freight area is used for storage and remains unaltered. |
| Acreage | 0.3 |
| Coordinates | 31.30274, -82.24111 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For an income-producing building, listing (individually or as a contributing building in a district) is the gateway to the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit on qualified rehabilitation costs, often stackable with state credits. Work claiming the credit must follow the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and be approved in advance.
Listing does not restrict a private owner acting without federal money or permits; where federal funding or licensing is involved, Section 106 review applies.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 00000070.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q39619004
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.