Tenino Depot Museum

A project of the South Thurston County Historical Society

About

The museum is housed in the last railroad building that served Tenino. The structure was built in 1914 of Tenino Sandstone while most small-town depots in the West were of wood frame construction.

This depot replaced the town’s second station which was abandoned when the Northern Pacific Railroad rerouted the Tenino to Tacoma section of it’s track. It served passengers until the early 1950’s and was used for freight into the 1960’s. Burlington Northern released the building and local citizens raised $30,000 to move it to its present location. The move took place in 1975. The building was opened as a museum in 1979. It is on the Washington State Register of Historical Places and also on the National Register of Historic Places.

The museum is curated by the South Thurston County Historical Society. The building is owned and maintained by the City of Tenino.

The museum houses exhibits on:

  • Tenino Wooden Money & Printing Press
  • Sandstone Quarries
  • Local Tribal History
  • The Railroad
  • Bucoda & the Seatco Prison
  • Dr. Wichman’s Office
  • Tono Coal Mine
  • Area Businesses
  • Forestry and Small Lumber Mills
  • Homesteads and Farms
  • The Ticknor School House
  • Tenino’s 1923 Great Northern Caboose
  • Archives

Located At


399 West Park Ave Tenino, WA

PO Box 1313 Tenino, WA 98589

Ph. 360-264-4321