Branch Line Built
To Williamston In
1883 From Tarboro
???
(Continued from page one) |
road Company in February, 1883. I
This Company then completed the
construction of the road from Tar
boro to Williamston anjl placed it
in operation in that year.
The line from Williamston to
Plymouth, N. C., a distance of twcn
tv-two miles, was constructed by
the Albemarle & Raleigh Railroad
Company in 1888 and 1888 and plac
ed in operation during the latter
year.
The Wilmington & Weldon Rail
road Company absorbed the Allio
marle & Raleigh Railroad Company
January 10, 1894. thereby acquiring
the line from Tarboro to Plymouth
These litres became a constituent
part of the Atlantic Coast tVuu
r.ailioad-Company in 1900.
During the War between tin Stales
the Wilmington & Weldon, the Pel
i isburg. and the Richmond <S; Peters
. burg Railroads connected Richmond]
with a section that furnished large
quant Hies ?f supplies for Lee's arm
ies and were, in effect, the ? Bread
Line of the Confederacy." Their im
portance was further emphasized b>
the fact that Wilmington was the
principal, and for a long finit the
only open port that could be used
by blockade runners bringing essen
tial supplies for the forces of the;
Confederacy Fort Fisher, command
ing the m><u.(h of the Cape Fear riv
er below Wilmington, was of utmost
importance to the Confederal, plan J
of strategy, and the railroads eon
necting W ilmington and Richmond
enabled the quick transport of troops
and supplies
Considerable sections of the three
railroads w ere torn up and dismantl
ed by the opposing forces during the
latter part of the war. Much of the
equipment wa^ destroyed, bridges
and buildings were burnedemdmawv
early and important records were
lost This same situation dSjttted even
bTrmgnrrtT-r-r-rtrfn in (j. eigia mid
parts of South Carolina, where little
was left of the railroads but their
rights uf way
Tins situation brought about the
necessity tor a complete reorganiza
tion of these roads at the end of the
war In 1889, a group of far-sighted
Baltimore capitalists acquired an in
terest in the Wilmington & Weldon
Railroad Company, .-.pent large sums i
in its * t ehabilitation, and Were sue
eessfu) jn restoring its, earning cu
pacity. Later-cbntrolling interests
were secured on connecting toads to
the north and south, thus establish
ing a unified policy of management1
for the affiliated roads, . although
they retained then corporal, idem
tity. .'
for many years prior to this time
the route comprised by these rail- ]
rcmou bad b'???" i?? ? ? vii, j|1(J ? \ycl
don Route." About 1871 the term
Atlantic Coast Line" was adopted
because the roads closely paralleled
the Atlantic Ocean At first this
was merely a designation of a route
All of the earlier reports of the
Wilmington and Weldon Railroad
stressed the advantage that this si c- '
Hon offered for the production of
early vegetables, and in 1887 the
management undertook t.. provide a
route that would mak. il possible
pel 1- ll.-t 1.1.. |,r,?h|| | !
in the large'Eastern cities As a re
sub the lines making up the all rail
^'tween 9harU'sll>n' Wilming
ton and New Vork established fast
rail serrfce known as the "Atlantic |
Coast Despatch' between South At
p??'ts and New York. Special
cars were built for this unJ
^hc 7nMg7u.r ^,ni7c^f
" 1 ,. I?ig,. ettvle has
Mayor Extends Cordial Welcome
Another marketing season for the Brirfit Tobacco Belt opens on August 26th, and marks
the 40th annual opening of the Williamston Tobacco Market, and as thousands of farmers in this
section make ready for the great event, it gives me great pleasure to
extend a cordial welcome to everyone to visit Williamston. ?
11Vf & " I
Every preparation has been made by the Warehousemen and
the citizens of the town to make your visit not only profitable, but
a pleasant one.
The Warehousemen, operating the four warehouses with ample
spare and good light, are men of long experience in tl.eir line and
each warehouse is equipped with an operating staff that will ren
der a service to each individual fanner that carries with it person
al interest.
Williamston is Imalcd in the very center of the Bright I-eaf To
bacco Belt and is easily reached from every direction by a system
of hard-surfaced roads which makes it the gateway and center of
things in Eastern North Carolina.
Tlir merchants, having returned from the markets, have their
stores filled with things for every member of the family and you
will find in our stores from the merchants and their employees that
friendly atmosphere which counts lor so much in dealing with one
another
Again, on behalf of the citizens of Williamston, I extend to ev
ery one a most cordial welcome to visit our town not only during
the tobacco season hut at all times, where you will find the air of
warm hospitality always prevails in the fastest growing town in
eastern North Carolina
J. L. HASSELL, Mayor of Wiiiiamston
I become familiar t??thousand.' of peo
! pie through 'it: continued appear |
a no mi Atlanta Coast Line ? quip- |
met it.
Until 1880 the lines south of Wilm
ington had tracks five feet wide,
while those to tile north were stan
daid gauge. When through sleeping
car.' to and from Florida were inaug
urated it was necessary to change j
truck,* under the cars at Wilmington
and all freight had to be transferred
at that point. As a matter of fact,
then was no physical connection be
tween the Wilmington & Weldon
ho... n,.rth to Richmond un
Ltil during the Civil War On a given
day in 1888 the tracks of the lines
I south of Wilmington were changed
to standard gauge without accident
or interference with business. Tliis
removed the last obstacle to through
I rail transportation between the
Southeast and other parts of ' the
country.
1 iv 1885 the Wilmington tS; Weldon
undertook the construction of the so
called ' Fayetteville Cut-Off', from
Contentnea, N. C. to Fayetteville, N.
C and thence later to Pee Dee, S.
C . on the Wilmington, Columbia &
| Augusta Railroad. This new line ma
terially shortened the distance anil
running time and has been an im
portant factor irt the development of
the fruit and vegetable industry in
the- Southeast, as well as the devel
opment?ui?passenger?business in
Florida.
The Wilmington & Weldon. the
Petersburg, and the Richmond and
Petersburg Railroads were the earl
iest of more than one hundred short,
disconnected railroads that were la
tei brought together into the Atlan
tic Coast Line Railroad to form a
single unified system between the
North and the South, with a network
of lines serving the six Southeast
ei n states throughwhich the roads
ran The period of consolation be
gan in 1898. and in 1902, the "Plant
System.' comprising a number of
lines running from Charleston, South
Carolina, to Tampa and other points
in Florida, arid to cities in Georgia I
and Alabama, was acquired by the I
Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, this
purchase rounding out the Atlantic
Coast Line Railroad, this purchase
rounding out the Atlantic Coast Line
IIAI'PV
iubilanl over high tobacco
prices, Georgia farmers are rut
ting all kinds of rapers. Accord
ing to Jack Ilardison, local man
who was on one of the markets,
a farmer just outside of Pelliam.
Ga., stopped and stood on his
head in the middle of the load.
Prries have been firm on the
markets since the opening.
system in substantially its present
don Railroad, with its 161 miles of
track, more than one hundred years
ago became the nucleus of one of
!the most important railroad systems
serving this section of the country,
with 5.103 miles of track owned and
| operated.
It is a far cry from those pioneer
days to" the present. From the be
ginning it haS been fhe policy of the
management to provide railroad fa
cilities to meet every transportation
I need of the territory and thus con
tribute most to its growth and pros
perity. Millions of dollars have been
spent for double track, heavy rail,
rock ballast, new motive power, and
| other equipment that go to make up
an efficient railroad. Thus, the At
lantic Coast Line has steadily im
proved its service.
Prior to the Fallot iy3u perishable
traffic, mainly consisting of citrus
fruit and vegetables, moving from
Florida to Eastern cities was handled
on a schedule which provided for
fifth morning delivery after date of
loading. In other words, cars of such
.traffic loaded in Florida on Monday
w ere available for sale in New York
markets Saturday morning. In 1930
this schedule was shortened 24 hours
which made it possible for perishable
freight loaded in Florida on Mon
In plnnnrj mPrketS ill
New York Friday morning instead
of Saturday morning Due to chang
ing conditions and necessity for fast
er transportation, the Atlantic Coast
Line inaugurated in the winter of
11938-39 a schedule which made it
possible to accomplish third morn
ing the previous example to make
this clearer, cars loaded in Florida
on Monday were available for sale
on New York markets Thursday
i morning instead of Friday or Satur
day morning as under the old sched
ule.
For movement of general freight
traffic, th i' schedules of the Atlantic
[Coast Line iiave been greatly im
proved during the past few years so
that traffic of every description is
transported distances of from 250 to ,
300 miles overnight, and made avail
able for delivery the following day.
There has also been inaugurated a
plan of .store-door pickup and deliv
civ f..i freight traffic, with no ex
tra charge, winch furnishes a com
plete and expedited service.
The Atlantic Coast Line lias con
tributed significantly to the history
of passenger transportation. For ex
ample, the all Pullman deluxe Flor
ida Special, which has just complet
ed its 04th consecutive year, was the
first train that ever operated be
tween the East and Florida; it was
the first vestibule train in the world,
and among the first electric lighted
trains in the world? the second in
the United States.
changing travel conditions, full
length Pullman Recreation-Enter
tainment cars, complete with hostess,
an accomplished accordion player
and equipment for various kinds of
games for the amusement of our pa
trons, were added as permanent part
of the Florida Special equipment a
few years ago. The popular appeal
of these features has been so pro
hqunced that the Florida Special has
been operated in as many as eight
sections. Incidentally, the Florida
Special is the only train in the world
carrying Recreation-Entertainment
cars.
Again, in the spirit of progress and
with a view to meeting the demand
for modern, low-cost transportation,
the Atlantic Coast Line in December,
193!), inaugurated a Diesel powered
all-coach, stainless steel streamliner
between the East and Florida. This
train was appropriately named "The
Champion." It speeds from New
York to Miann 111 only 25 hours.
So it can be seen that the consist
ent poljcy of the Atlantic Coast Line
has been to keep in stride with prog
ress and to provide for the traveling
public facilities both pleasing and
modern.
Atlantic Coast Lille employees
have, throughout the years, contrib
uted their part to the religious, social
and economic welfare of the com
munities they have served and of
which they are a part. The payrolls
of the railroad also make a substan
tial contribution to the business com
munities and the taxes it pays arc a
big factor in supporting the schools,
as well as governmental agencies.
The fortunes of the Atlantic Coast
Line are those of the people it serves.
It has prospered with them when
times were good, it has suffered with
them when times were bad. It has
grown with the Southeast because
its management has conscientiously
devoU'd its efforts and the company's
resources to anticipate and meet the
transportation needs of its patrons.
The railroad industry, like a great
many other lines of business, has
fallen upon evil days during the last
eight or ten years. It is sincerely
hoped that when more normal con
ditions have been restored that the
Step up. folks.
And drink it dow n- ?
The tow n's^one nuts h
On Roval Crown
It's a honey for your money
-ROYAL CROWN
RIGHT YOU ARE ? iq town after town, in blind,
impartial Certified Taste Tests of leading cola drinks ?
the big vote goes to Royal Crown! It's sweeping the
country ?the coladtink that has aip, sparlda, punch and
snap?and that gives you two big glasses for your nickel!
6 big bottles for 25^! Try one today !
LOCAL BOTTLER'S NAME AND ADDRESS HERE
CROity
COLA
2 FULL GLASSES
NEHI BOTTLING COMPANY
Legumes Are Worth
More in High Yields
If handled properly, every acre of
winter legumes should be worth $10
to $20 annually to a farmer in in
creased crop yields, says E. C. Blair,
Extension agronomist of N. C. State
College. The effect of a legume on
other crops, such as corn and pea
nuts, will be noticeable the first
railroads will come into their own
and continue to be an important fac
tor inrthe development and prosper
01
ity or this country. The Atlantic
Coast Line solicits the good will, the
friendship and the cooperation of!
the communities it serves.
year, and will continue for two or
three years.
Crimson clover, vetch and Aus
trian winter pea seed are being
furnished to farmers aa a grant-of
aid under the Agricultural Conser
vation Program. Blair says there are
a few important points about winter
legumes that spell the difference
between success and failure in grow
ing them.
"Earliness of planting has a great
deal to do with getting these crops
large enough to turn under early,"
the agronomist said. "Sow seed in
August in the mountains, and in
September elsewhere in the State."
"It is imperative that the soil or
seed be inoculated with nitrogen
gathering bacteria. It is wise to sow
a liberal amount of seed. It pays to
fertilize with 200 pound* per acre
of 0-8-6 on good soil or 200 pounds
of 4-8-6 on poor soil in the Coastal
Plain, and 200 pounds of 0-10-4 on
good soil or 200 pounds of 4-10-4 on
poor soil in the Piedmont and moun
tains. Fertilizer so applied may be
deducted from the amount used on
the crop that follows the winter le
gume."
Blair also pointed out the range
of soil adaptation of the different
winter legumes] Crimson clover is
adapted to heavy to medium soils,
Austrian winter peas to medium
heavy to medium light soils, and
vetch to medium heavy to very light
soils.
"Winter legumes respond well to
lime, if the soil is very add," the
agronomist concluded.
B.
F.
H.
Exclusive
Ambulance
Service
DAY OR
NIGHT
Telephone
79
Biggs Funeral Home
Williamston, N. C.
^completeL.
uo the Last Detail j
* /Economical,
Funeral Servlc*
SHIP BY WATER!
Patronize
Your
Ix>eal
Tobacco
Market
Opens
August
26th
Tuesday
WATER GIVES YOU QUICK, SAFE ZZ
And SURE TRANSPORTATION?
Two service* out of Williamston every week to Norfolk, Baltimore and Philadelphia
with through rates into and from all points in North Carolina to practieally all points on
the Atluntic Seaboard.
Differential in rates gives North Carolina water rates to big Eastern Markets. When we
wi> quiek. safe and sure transportation, we mean just that and a lot more. If you are
not familiar with the many advantages of shipping over our line, communicate with u
s. Transportation over our fleet of boats iseconomieal and cheaper.
Patronise
Your
BOAT
LINE
IP*
Cheaper
To Ship
Boat
Norfolk, Baltimore and Carolina Line
MAIN OFFICE i NORFOLK, VA. W. H. CARSTARPHEN, Agent, Williamson