Historical Landmark #46

      The Kenwood Depot is Sonoma County Historic Landmark #46. It was once a working train station for both the Northern Pacific and the Southern Pacific railroad until 1947.   The depot opened in 1888 under the name of Guilicos. It takes its name from the land grant dated November 13, 1837. In 1859 the name Los Guilicos is shown on a surveyors plot of the Los Guilicos Rancho. Since Mr. Hood felt it would be confusing, as his rancho was named Los Guilicos, they used South Los Gulicos. In 1895 that name was changed to Kenwood.

        The first train that ran all the way to Santa Rosa was May 31, 1888.  “Santa Rosans organized a parade to the station on June 20, where a golden spike was driven. Bands played and whistles blew.

        The Kenwood Depot was built as a union station, with doors for baggage and passengers on both sides of the building. Those original archways can be seen, now leading to rest-rooms and a kitchen.

         On Jan. 15, 1934, Southern Pacific abandoned the route from Santa Rosa to Los Guilicos, 8.3 mi.  A switch was installed at Yulupa to connect with the line formerly owned by S.P. between Yulupa and Los Guilicos. With a continued drop in freight revenues, the line was cut back by NWP to Glen Ellen (SP Station) on Oct. 10, 1941. With a continued drop in freight revenue, and little traffic with pressure of war, the Glen Ellen to Sonoma 6.59 mi. was abandoned on Sept. 15, 1942, and the rails used through the Sonoma Valley were used to construct the Richmond Shipyard Railway between Oakland and Richmond Shipyards.

         The Depot is built of stone, rarely used for depots in California, and is a gem of Richardsonian Romanesque architecture. The stone is locally cut basalt, from two different quarries. The stonemasons used a basalt with a pink cast to contrast with a more ordinary charcoal gray basalt. The result is striking when the afternoon sun hits it.

         The Kenwood Improvement Club, whose origins go back to the 1890’s, built a hall in Kenwood in about 1912, which was sold to the Los Guilicos Grange in 1917 with a life interest. In November 1936 the hall burnt, and the insurance of $1,000 went to the Improvement Club, which held it in trust until 1940. One of the trustees, Agnes Morton, went to the Oakland office of Southern Pacific, and persuaded them to sell the Depot for $500, with agreement it be held by and used for the good of the community. The Women’s Club then rented and improved the building, the remainder of the $1,000 trust fund being used to roof, plumb, and improve the old depot when first purchased. It was used as a first aid station during World War II. It was called Los Guilicos House, and was used through the years by Los Guilicos Club (Fed. Women’s Club) Valley of the Moon Farm Bureau, the Teen-agers, Kenwood Dance Band, Camp Fire Girls, 4-H, square dancers, and the Kenwood Improvement Club, now called Kenwood Community Club. It is rented out for weddings, receptions and parties. It became a County Landmark by Commission November 6, 1979, Landmark #46.