This building was a depot of the Chicago Great Western Railway until 1961, when passenger service was discontinued.

Before paved roads and automobiles became common, the railroad was a favorite means of transportation to and from Waterloo. The ticket agent in Hudson might sell as many as a hundred tickets to people going into the city for a Saturday night of shopping or fun. As with other small towns in the Midwest, this had all changed in Hudson by the time the trains stopped running.

The depot was moved to its present site in 1976 and made into a museum. Inside, the railway office has been preserved and a replica pioneer home has been built. This log cabin, which measures 14 by 16 feet, represents the home of the A. J. Ferris family, believed to be the first settlers in the Hudson area. Outside is a collection of vintage farm machinery.

As an Iowa Sesquicentennial Project 1995-1996, plantings of native Iowa flowers and grasses were established.