A ribbon cutting ceremony will be held Friday, Jan. 23, 2026, to commemorate the placement of a National Register of Historic Places marker at the historic Missouri-Pacific Railroad Depot in Walnut Ridge.
The ceremony will take place from 1 to 2 p.m. at the depot, located at 109 SW Front Street. The marker was made possible through the generous support of the Ingram Family. The Missouri-Pacific Depot is one of 27 properties currently listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Lawrence County.
Following the ribbon cutting, visitors will have the opportunity to tour the interior of the depot.
Constructed circa 1909, the Missouri-Pacific Railroad Depot was built as part of the Missouri-Pacific Railroad’s early twentieth-century expansion throughout Arkansas and the nation. The depot is listed on the National Register under Criterion A for its association with railroad growth and development in Arkansas from 1870 to 1940, and under Criterion C as a well-preserved local example of Mediterranean-style railroad architecture.
The depot was officially listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 11, 1992, through certification by the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program under the provisions of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966.
Restoration of the depot to its 1909 appearance was completed in 1995 through a fundraising effort led by the Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce, then known as the Walnut Ridge Area Chamber of Commerce, with support from a grant from the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department. The restoration was designed by Mayes, Sudderth & Etheredge, Inc., and completed by Clark General Contractors, Inc.
Today, the depot is owned by the City of Walnut Ridge and leased to the Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce. Its lobby continues to serve as an active Amtrak passenger station for the Texas Eagle line, providing overnight service between midnight and 3 a.m.Walnut Ridge is the only Amtrak stop in eastern Arkansas and the only station between Poplar Bluff, Missouri, and Little Rock.
In 2025, the Walnut Ridge Amtrak station recorded 4,259 passenger boardings, an increase from 3,597 in 2024, making it the third-highest ridership station in Arkansas. The station is currently included in Amtrak’s ADA Stations Program, with a projected total investment of $4,420,959 toward long-term accessibility improvements.