In August 1890, the Nevada-California-Oregon Railroad (NCO) extended its line northward from Onieda, near the Nevada state line for some fifty miles to Lower Hot Springs, later to be renamed Amedee. The region was stunned as the railroad abandoned its original survey on the west side of Honey Lake, to the east side nearly barren of inhabitants. That is a long story, for another time.
What was also stunning was the size of the depot built there. The two-story structure was 168 feet in length, making it one of the largest buildings in Lassen County. The second story provided lodging for railroad employees. The south side was offices and the remainder of the building was for freight storage.
In its early years, it was a busy place. A quarter mile away the NCO constructed stock years. To understand the activity, during a two week period in April 1891 nearly 30,000 head to sheep were at the corrals. After shearing the sheep, 160,000 pounds of wool was shipped, along with forty carloads of cattle.
In 1900, when the railroad extended its line north to the Madeline Plains, Amedee lost its status as a major shipping point. On July 1, 1909 the depot was destroyed by fire, origin unknown.