Whitefish Depot and Stumptown Historical Society Museum

The Whitefish Depot is the half-timbered railway station at the north end of downtown Whitefish, and it is still a working station. The Great Northern Railway built it between September 1927 and June 1928, at a cost of $65,000. Thomas D'Arcy McMahon designed it in a Tudor Revival style to echo the railway's hotels in Glacier National Park, and the upper floors held the Great Northern's division offices. The depot was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on 11 July 2002 under its formal name, the Great Northern Railway Passenger and Freight Depot and Division Office.

The Stumptown Historical Society, founded in 1982 and named after the town's old nickname, bought the depot from Burlington Northern in 1990 and spent three years restoring it to its original chalet-like look. The society still owns the building. It leases the upper floors to the BNSF Railway and the ground floor to Amtrak, and runs its museum next to the waiting room. The museum displays railway and community objects on the history of Whitefish and the Flathead Valley.

Trains still stop here every day. The depot is served by Amtrak's Empire Builder between Chicago and the Pacific Northwest and is Montana's busiest Amtrak station: 42,767 passengers used it in fiscal year 2025, about 170 a day. A 1,200-foot heated platform, added in 2011, keeps it clear of snow in winter. It is the closest Empire Builder stop to Whitefish Mountain Resort, and the train continues along the southern edge of Glacier National Park.

The museum does not publish its hours or admission. Listings describe it as free, with donations welcome, but give different opening times, so phone 406-862-0067 before you go. Allow 30 to 45 minutes. The depot is at 500 Depot Street, at the top of Central Avenue, a short walk from the downtown shops and restaurants, with Depot Park next door. It sits beside an active rail yard, so stay on the platform and off the tracks.