Historic Moline train depot to be razed, clock salvaged

MOLINE, Ill. (AP) - Preservationists have salvaged the clock and decorative stones from Moline's historic train depot before it was to be razed.

The Illinois Department of Transportation took ownership of the 115-year-old Davenport, Rock Island and Northwestern Depot on Monday. The Moline City Council sold the depot for $500 and IDOT plans to demolish the building. The depot must make way for new on- and off-ramps as part of the Interstate 74 bridge and corridor project.

The (Moline) Dispatch reports (http://bit.ly/1nKDFqK ) that an effort to move the depot to Western Illinois University's Moline riverfront campus failed.

Moline Preservation Society vice president Craig Sommers said the group was able to salvage the depot's clock and some of the decorative stone that surrounded it. He says the society hopes to work with demolition crews to salvage more items as well.

___

Information from: The Dispatch, http://www.qconline.com