Photos: Whistle Stop Depot along the RR tracks in Tucson
In 2008, Nancy Bender bought the old warehouse in the Dunbar/Spring Neighborhood now known as the Whistle Stop Depot.
As early as 1915, the building was advertised as having "public scales" at the Peoples Fuel Co., which advertised for "fuel, coal, wood, hay and grain" by 1918. In 1949, Ralph's Transfer Co. took over the warehouse and property until the sale to Bender in 2008.
The Whistle Stop Depot had been mostly used for private affairs, from weddings to corporate parties. The full-service venue at 127 W. Fifth St., which had hosted everything from BICAS (Bicycle Inter-Community Art and Salvage) events and art shows since 2013, has a bar and catering facilities, a half-acre of outdoor space dotted with Chinese jujube fruit trees and concrete bench seating and plenty of parking on the adjacent half-acre dirt lot abutting what will soon be the city’s Deck Plaza Park — part of the yearslong Downtown Links project. – Cathy Burch
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson, 2022
The front doors of Whistle Stop Depot are made out of a passenger plane fuselage.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson, 2022
Tables fill the Whistle Stop Depot, 127 W. 5th St., in Tucson. Nancy Bender spent a large amount of money on the warehouse in the historic Dunbar/Spring Neighborhood which was scheduled to be demolished. After a fire and 12 years of renovation, the Whistle Stop Depot is open as a community center.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson, 2022
Nancy Bender, owner of the Whistle Stop Depot, talks about the different items she recycled and used in the renovation, including airplane parts and old car doors as well as old restaurant materials.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson, 2022
The front entrance of the Whistle Stop Depot, 127 W. 5th St., features a large tower which was made using parts from the original warehouse.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson, 2022
A bar is made out of recycled restaurant materials and car doors from an old truck at Whistle Stop Depot, 127 W. 5th St.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson, 2022
The back entrance of the Whistle Stop Depot during renovations at the original warehouse, 127 W. 5th St.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson, 2022
A shaded seating area, which Nancy Bender's friend calls the "jellyfish," sits in front of the main entrance of the Whistle Stop Depot, 127 W. 5th St.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson, 2022
Old school lockers act as a divider between the main dinning room and the bathrooms as well as a place for people to safely stow away their items at Whistle Stop Depot, 127 W. 5th St.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson, 2022
A Dodge Ram tailgate sits in owner Nancy Bender's "morgue" for future use as a bench at Whistle Stop Depot, 127 W. 5th St.. Bender's "morgue" refers to an area at the depot where scraps rest until they are used for items such as benches.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson, 2022
Downtown Tucson as seen from the back patio of the Whistle Stop Depot, 127 W. 5th St. Owner Nancy Bender has plans to make the back patio a bar and the dirt lot a concert venue.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson, 2022
The Whistle Stop Depot after the 2008 fire.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson, 2022
The back entrance of the Whistle Stop Depot, 127 W. 5th St.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson
Framed by a prickly pear cactus sculpture made from bicycle gears, Ben Pawlowski labels some of the items up for bids for the preview of the 17th Annual BICAS Art Auction Fundraiser and Community Celebration at the Whistle Stop Depot, 127 W. 5th St., on Saturday, Dec. 1, 2012.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson
The crowd swirls around the raffle table for the preview of the 17th Annual BICAS Art Auction Fundraiser and Community Celebration at the Whistle Stop Depot 127 W. 5th St. in 2012.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson
A few dozen bikes parked outside the doors for the preview of the 17th Annual BICAS Art Auction Fundraiser and Community Celebration at the Whistle Stop Depot 127 W. 5th St. in 2012.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson
The creature from the movie Alien made from discarded CO2 canisters by Mark Doumas on display for the preview of the 17th Annual BICAS Art Auction Fundraiser and Community Celebration at the Whistle Stop Depot 127 W. 5th St. in 2012.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson
Recycled material make up the bulk of material used in the work at the Whistle Stop Depot, 127 W. 5th St. in 2013.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson
A visitor strolls by a wall of bicycle themed art up for bid for the preview of the 17th Annual BICAS Art Auction Fundraiser and Community Celebration at the Whistle Stop Depot in 2012.
Whistle Stop Depot, Tucson
Co-owner Carl White grinds some newly cut pieces as he works on the Whistle Stop Depot, 127 W. 5th St. in 2013.
Rebecca Sasnett
Photojournalist
Rick Wiley
Photo editor
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