The Santa Fe Railway obtained the rights to develop the South Rim of the Grand Canyon as a destination resort at the beginning of the twentieth century before the area had been designated a national park.

The Grand Canyon Railway, a subsidiary of the Santa Fe, bought the project and completed tracks to the South Rim in 1901, and developed a rail yard at the terminus with a small frame terminal building.

Wilson designed the only log structure of his career, using materials that echoed and complemented the El Tovar across the street, only with superior attention to construction and detail.

[7] The Grand Canyon Depot is a 2-½ story wood structure of about 3,000 square feet (280 m2), built primarily of logs with frame construction for the second floor.

The log structure is primarily a one-story building with a broad, moderately-pitched gable roof with the ridge running on the long axis, parallel to the train tracks.

An extension of the main roof to the west at a slightly lower elevation shelters a large two-bay porch supported on vertical log posts.