The depot was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2006 for having local significance under the themes of commerce, exploration/settlement, and transportation.

[3] It was nominated for its associations with the expansion of rail lines and European settlement into the region, and the growth of Starbuck as an agricultural trade center.

[5] East–west rail lines had been laid across Minnesota by the early 1870s, but they did not cross Pope County and settlement remained low.

[6] However the Little Falls and Dakota, secretly backed by Northern Pacific, reached Starbuck first, securing the critical mail franchise for the town, and then continuing on to Morris.

[4] For Starbuck's centennial celebration on July 1, 1983, the world's largest lefse was cooked on the depot grounds.