It was built by the San Francisco and San Joaquin Valley Railroad in 1897 and is one of only three SF&SJV stations left in existence. Service by the Santa Fe Railroad ended on May1, 1971; Amtrak service began in 1974.
In the early 1990s, the city sponsored a rehabilitation of the depot that included rebuilding the former freight section and enclosing the outdoor waiting room. A wide, curving canopy was added to the trackside façade to provide travelers with better protection from the sun and rain. Interior modifications resulted in a new layout that added office and commercial space.[3]
In 2006, the city moved forward with $1.5million in improvements to the adjacent bus bays that accommodate local and regional service provided by the Kings Area Regional Transit (KART) system. A c. 1880s Southern Pacific wooden freight depot was moved to the site to provide a waiting room and ticket desk for bus passengers.[3]
^ ab"Hanford, CA (HNF)". Great American Stations. Amtrak. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
^"DRAFT 2023 BUSINESS PLAN UPDATE"(PDF). SJRRA. p. 36. Retrieved October 25, 2023. To most efficiently integrate the San Joaquins and the interim HSR services, Merced will become the southern terminus for San Joaquins rail service once operations begin on the HSR infrastructure at the end of 2030.
