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* 1899 - Renamed to the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad of North Carolina. | |||||
+ 1899 - Acquired the southern half of the Cape Fear & Yadkin Valley Railroad. Named it the Atlantic & Yadkin Branch. | |||||
+ 1898 - Built/Owned the Southeastern Railroad. | |||||
+ 1893 - Built/Owned the Wilmington, Newbern & Norfolk Railroad. | |||||
+ 1892 - Built/Owned the Washington Branch, from Washington to Parmele. | |||||
+ 1892 - Built/Owned the Fayetteville Cutoff. | |||||
+ 1891 - Built/Owned the Wilmington, Onslow & East Carolina Railroad. | |||||
+ 1887 - Built/Owned the Nashville Branch, from Rocky Mount to Spring Hope. | |||||
+ 1887 - Built/Owned the Clinton & Warsaw Railroad, eliminating the road to Faison. | |||||
+ 1886 - Built/Owned the Wilson & Fayetteville Railroad. | |||||
+ 1885 - Built/Owned the Clinton & Faison Railroad. | |||||
+ 1885 - Acquired the Albemarle & Raleigh Railroad, which retained its name until merged into ACL 1900. | |||||
+ 1885 - Acquired the Midland North Carolina Railroad, which added the line from Smithfield to Goldsboro. | |||||
+ 1883 - Acquired the Scotland Neck Railroad, extending its Halifax service to Scotland Neck. | |||||
+ 1849 - Built/Owned the Tarboro Branch in August, from Rocky Mount to Tarboro. | |||||
Was the Wilmington & Raleigh Railroad. | |||||
![]() First Wilmington & Weldon Railroad Office - Weldon, NC On February 15, 1855, the state of North Carolina General Assembly finally agreed to grant a new charter and the line's name was formally changed from the Wilmington & Raleigh Railroad to the Wilmington & Weldon Railroad. The line never went to Raleigh, as originally intended in 1834. The company relaid its entire track in the 1850s with T-rail. In 1850, the company (as the Wilmington & Raleigh Railroad) began constructing a nineteen (19) mile branch line from Rocky Mount to Tarboro, which was completed in August of 1860. When the U.S. Civil War came in 1861, "all minor matters were dropped from consideration and the company began to serve the Confederate government in the transportation of troops and munitions of war." Company President Ashe reported on November 14, 1861 that he had the "gratification of feeling just and patriotic pride tha the company has been able to render to our beloved country inappreciable assistance in repelling from our soil ruthless invaders." However, throughout the four years of the war there was little harmony between the railroad company and the Condederate Army officials. The new government kept insisting on lower and lower rates, and the government consistently broke up the regular schedule of the trains and began running them to suit their convenience. This was no doubt necessary, but was a constant source of complaint of the railroad's management. The biggest challenge, like the rest of the Southern railroads, was in replacing the worn-out rails. The road was furnished iron which was taken from other lines, and the old rails were turned over to the Confederate government for use in the making of munitions. On December 16, 1862, the road was attacked for the first time, and the Federals burned the bridge over the Neuse River, the trestle at Goshen, the water station and a number of cars at Dudley's Station. By the summer of 1864, the condition of the road was alarming. It rails were wearing out and no material for repair could be acquired from any source. The rolling stock was taxed severely and it was impossible to get labor except for an inferior class of workmen. Events during the latter part of 1864 and early 1865 moved in rapid succession and the railroad was damaged alternately by the Federal and Confederate armies. Wilmington fell on February 22, 1865 and Goldsboro a month later, and operations of the road ceased altogether. The road south of Goldsboro was operated by the Federal authorities until it was turned back over to the company by mid-Summer. The road north of Goldsboro was practically dismantled by the Federal troops, with the destruction of most of the rolling stock, bridges, and warehouses. One of the first tasks which the company undertook after the war was the forming of physical connections back with the other railroads in the area, which were also rebuilding. The biggest challenge that the company now faced was that it would have to rebuild with an entirely different labor situation. In 1866, a new bridge was constructed over the Cape Fear River at Wilmington by the Wilmington Railway Bridge Company, the stock being owned jointly by the Wilmington & Weldon Railroad and the Wilmington & Manchester Railroad. The bridge with a few miles of new road established the connection of both lines at Wilmington. With better connections now in place, the Wilmington & Weldon Railroad was in position to profit greatly from increased traffic. In 1892, the North Carolina State Supreme Court ruled that all the branch roads of the Wilmington & Weldon Railroad Company were liable for taxation. The original charter exempted the company from taxation as long as the profits did not reach eight percent of the capital stock. In 1899, the railroad was merged into the rapidly growing Atlantic Coast Line Railroad of North Carolina. |
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From the 1st Annual Report of the North Carolina Railroad Commission, dated December 31, 1891: The Wilmington and Weldon Railroad Company was organized March
14th, 1836, under the laws of North Carolina, Acts of General
Assembly 18333536 (amendatory Acts 18512567).
January, 1833, chartered as Wilmington & Raleigh Railroad
Company; main line opened March 9th, 1840. Name changed in February,
1855. President ------------------------------ W. G. Elliott----------------------------
Wilmington, NC. |
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Towns on Route: Line #1 - Wilmington to Weldon: Weldon Halifax Pender (1890s) Ruggles (1890s) Enfield Bricks (1912) Whitakers Station (1866) > Whitakers (1869) > Mayonia (1886) > Whitakers (1886) Battleboro Rocky Mount Sharpesburg (1872) Joyners Depot > Toisnot (1873) > Elm City (1891) Wilson Contentnea (1890s) Black Creek Bardens Nahunta > Fremont (1872) Pikeville (1856) Goldsboro Genoa (1893) Everittsville Dudley #2 (1860) Calypso (1898) Mount Olive Faisons Depot > Faison (1883) Bowdens (1860s) Warsaw Carroll (1899) Stricklands Depot > Magnolia (1857) Rose Hill (1860s) Teachey Wallace (1866) Leesburg Sills Creek > Camera (1865) > Willard (1883) South Washington #2 (1870) > Watha (1905) Washington Depot Cypress Grove > Burgaw Depot (1871) > Burgaw (1879) Ashton (1874) Rocky Point (1860) Marlboro (1860s) Northeast Castle Hayne (1869) Wilmington Line #2 - Tarboro Branch (1849 & 1894): Rocky Mount Medora (1898) Kingsborough (1866) > Hartsborough (1876) > Kingsboro (1883) > Penelo (1888) > Kingsboro #2 (1919) Hartsboro Tarboro - the following were merged in during 1894: Mildred Conetoe Bethel Parmele Robertsonville Everett Williamston Johnson Jamesville Plymouth Line #3 - Scotland Neck Branch (1882): Halifax Polenta (1880s) Tillery (1882) Looking Glass (1880s) Spring Hill (1886) Scotland Neck Hobgood Conoho Hassell Parmele Grindool House Greenville Ayden Grifton Graingers Kinston Line #4 - Midland Branch (1885): Smithfield Oliver Holt's Mill Joyner Copeland Goldsborough > Goldsboro (1893) Line #5 - Wilson & Fayetteville Branch (1886): South Rocky Mount Sharpsburg Elm City Wilson Contentnea Lucama Kenly Jerome Selma Smithfield Four Oaks Benson Dunn Godwin Wade Luray Fayetteville Hope Mills Parkton Bennett Buies Pembroke Elrod Rowland Line #6 - Clinton Branch (1887): Warsaw Elliott Clinton Line #7 - Nashville Branch (1887): Rocky Mount Nashville Spring Hope Line #8 - Washington Branch (1892): Washington Wharton Pactolus Whichards Parmele Line #9 - Wilmington & Newbern Branch (1893): Wilmington Scotts Hill Topsail Sound > Topsail (1907) Holly Ridge Peanut (1881-1897) Stump Sound > Folkston (1902) Dixon (1895) Amans Store > Verona (1894) Jacksonville Kellum (1901) Maysville Polloksville > Pollocksville (1947) Debruhls (1888-1896) New Berne > Newbern (1892) > New Bern (1918) Line #10 - Wilmington Railway Bridge (1866): Wilmington Mears Bluff Line #11 - Atlantic & Yadkin Branch #1: Fayetteville Vander (1890) Blockers > Stedman (1890) Shepard > Autryville (1890) Hayne Roseboro (1890) Hives (faded 1902) Mints (1900) Parkersburg (1890) Garland (1890) Tomahawk (1890) Kerr (1890) Ivanhoe (1890) Atkinson (1890) Odessa (1891-1895) Rooks (1901) Cedar Dale > Currie (1890) Montague (1891) Richards (1914) Wilmington Line #12 - Atlantic & Yadkin Branch #2: Hope Mills Parkton (1892) McNatt (1884) Lumber Bridge (1877) Shannon (1884) Dora > Red Springs (1884) Wakulla Floral College (1886) Shoe Hill > Maxton (1886) Stewarts Station (1885-1888) Johns Station (1886) > Johns (1912) Skye > Hasty (1885) NC/SC State Line |
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