According to a long-time station agent, before World War II, freight cars left the Inglewood depot carrying beans, bean straw and “loads of stoves, chemicals and fertilizers.”[5]
During World War II, the depot handled war matériel and enabled transportation of personnel.[5] A 1943 Associated Press story noted that rail transport was used so extensively during the war that it was affecting the local film industry: "In spite of wartime obstacles, all studios are making train scenes whenever it is necessary to the film plot. Now, it’s no longer possible to take a troupe over to Glendale, Pasadena, Inglewood or Alhambra for that purpose. Station platforms and trains are full. Once quiet spots along the main line are now seeing a train pass every 15 minutes, whether a film director likes it or not."[7]
Post-war, the station handled household goods, missile parts, toys, furniture and “tank car products.”[5]
The depot survived until the 1970s when it was irreparably damaged in an arson fire and demolished in 1972.[6] (Another source says the fire was in 1972 and the demolition was 1974.[1])
^Bengtson, John; Brownlow, Kevin (2000). Silent echoes: discovering early Hollywood through the films of Buster Keaton. Santa Monica, Calif: Santa Monica Press. p. 26. ISBN978-1-891661-06-8.