By Alabama Public Radio
Huntsville, AL – The old Memphis and Charleston Freight Depot in downtown Huntsville is now the subject of restoration efforts. A fire damaged it badly last March. It was built between 1851 and 1857, and it's the oldest railroad building in the state. It was the second-oldest continually used freight depot in the world until 1996. The facility was nearly destroyed, but state and federal officials intervened. Norfolk Southern Railroad, which owns the depot, agreed to donate it and lease the site to the Alabama Historical Commission. The restoration project could cost an estimated 500-thousand dollars.