M K and T Depot

The Missouri, Kansas and Texas, nicknamed The Katy, built its own line from San Marcos to San Antonio in 1900. It had been using the I & GN's line from Taylor, north east of Austin since 1881. While the I & GN line heads directly south from Austin to San Marcos, the MKT's line comes from Lockhart, Smithville and, ultimately, Houston. The I & GN and the MKT were both owned by Jay Gould in 1881, and they were essentially the same company south of Taylor. Gould's control of the MK&T was broken in 1888 but he managed to retain the I & GN, despite the fact that it was legally leased to the MK&T. Trackage rights became a problem for a number of reasons, and the M-K-T decided to build its own line to San Antonio from San Marcos in 1900. In 1905, an agreement was reached that allowed the M-K-T to share the I & GN's line north from San Marcos and Austin, which allowed the M K & T to avoid building between the two cities. The Missouri-Kansas-Texas left the passenger business in 1964. At this point the depot became surplus to requirements. After some years of neglect, it was acquired by a local entrepreneur and moved a few blocks. It was restored and retains many of its original design features. At the time of writing in 2005, it is in use as a restaurant.