As the International and Great Northern Railroad (I&GN) extended from Austin to San Antonio, the Kyle and Moore families granted 200 acres for its roadbed, depot, and proposed townsite. On September 10, 1880, the I&GN tracks reached Kyle's makeshift canvas tent depot, and by the end of November the temporary depot was replaced with a permanent structure. As railroad activity grew, landowners quickly established businesses, and cattle, lumber, and cotton shipments increased dramatically, especially after Major Ezekiel Nance built a cotton gin; a cotton platform and stock pens were added nearby. Kyle's combination depot for passengers and freight became the center of activity, commerce, travel, and communications for local residents until the 1950s, when most people preferred train travel, used the Western Union office inside the depot to communicate by telegraph, and received U.S. Postal Service mailbags by train. The depot served all travelers and residents, but its waiting rooms, ticket counters, and entrances were segregated, reflecting the laws and practices of the Jim Crow era. On October 25, 1916, the original frame depot was destroyed by fire, old boxcars served as temporary offices, and a new I&GN depot opened on the same site in 1917. The end-gable frame building featured a pedimented passenger double doorway with a transom and fixed sidelights and a metal roof supported by prominent knee-brackets. After standing at the end of Center Street until 1951, it was repositioned to allow through traffic, closed in 1965, moved to private property in 1967, and returned in 2003.