Devils Lake, ND (DVL)

Railroad Avenue and Third Street
Devils Lake, ND 58301

Station Hours

Annual Ticket Revenue (FY 2024): $352,266
Annual Station Ridership (FY 2024): 3,922

• Ownerships
• Routes Served
• Contact
• Local Community Links

• Facility Ownership: BNSF Railway
• Parking Lot Ownership: BNSF Railway
• Platform Ownership: BNSF Railway
• Track Ownership: BNSF Railway

• Empire Builder

Alex Khalfin
Regional Contact
governmentaffairsoak@amtrak.com
For information about Amtrak fares and schedules, please visit Amtrak.com or call 1-800-USA-RAIL (1-800-872-7245).

• City of Devils Lake

The Great Northern Railway (GN) built the Devils Lake depot in 1907 at a cost of approximately $50,000. In addition to a passenger waiting room, it also contains a BNSF Railway maintenance-of-way office. The station is especially popular in the winter, when hundreds of enthusiasts travel to Devils Lake for ice fishing on the largest natural body of water in North Dakota.

In October 2025, Amtrak and local officials gathered at the station to cut the ribbon on completion of a $4.5 million improvement project at the facility. The work was part of Amtrak’s Americans With Disabilities Act Stations Program – an ongoing effort to proactively provide all customers with an accessible and safe experience at stations.

Crews installed a new 300-foot-long concrete boarding platform with brick finish that provides accessible paths of travel to and from the depot. The platform is equipped with a snowmelt system to enhance safety and accessibility, with sloped walkways and safety barriers, energy efficient LED light fixtures, detectable warning systems and new signage. The designer of record for the project was Michael Baker International.

The GN is considered to have been America’s premier northern trans-continental railroad, running from St. Paul, Minn., to Seattle. It was formed in 1889 by James J. Hill, who orchestrated the merger of the St. Paul and Pacific Railroad with the St. Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba Railway. The latter had reached Devils Lake in 1885, and two years later the village was incorporated. Hill holds a special place in railroad history and lore, and is known as the “Empire Builder.” Whereas most transcontinental lines were built with federal assistance in the form of federal land grants, the GN did not utilize this method.

Hill’s business acumen guided the planning and construction of the GN. Much of the upper Midwest and West was sparsely settled, so instead of racing across the continent, the GN developed the regions through which it traveled as it steadily moved toward the Pacific. This action helped settle the land and created a customer base. Hill the businessman actively sought to establish trade links with Asia, and the railroad is credited with putting sleepy Seattle on the map and transforming it into an important and powerful Pacific Ocean port after the railroad reached the West Coast in 1893.

In addition to the depot, the GN made other improvements in Devils Lake in the early 20th century. The town, which served as a passenger and freight division point, gained new machine shops, a round house and a cattle yard.

Station Building (with waiting room)