In November 1887, the Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley Railroad reached Whitewood with the first passenger and freight trains to arrive in the Northern Black Hills from the East. Whitewood remained the end of the line for three years until Deadwood’s branch line and the main line to Belle Fourche were completed. Fourteen trains a day passed through Whitewood, making the town an active community and social center for celebrations. Lumber, cattle, horses, sheep, poultry, grain, and flour were shipped from the Whitewood Terminal. The Dust Bowl Days ended the productivity of the area’s ranching, farming, and Whitewood businesses, hurting railroad freight, and by the 1940s automobiles and highways began replacing passenger trains.