Railroad, Lexington, Virginia CD and photo prints, 1913/1937

Containers:

Box 10, Folder 19

Scope and content:

The CD and photos in this folder include as follows:

East Lexington, 1913 Sanborn map Moses Mill at Jordan's Point, circa 1930 Jordan's Point, 1935 and 1937 Railroad tracks on the Washington and Lee University back campus, circa 1950s. Old railroad bridge over Route 60 West, railroad tracks in the area of the Lexington Train Station and Higgins and Irvine, circa 1950s. Railroad tracks and buildngs at East Lexington, circa 1950s.

Biographical / historical:

The Railroad history in Lexington, Virginia, is defined by late 19th century competition, geographic challenges, and the eventual conversion of the town's primary railway line into a popular rail trail. Passenger and freight train operations were entirely wiped out by severe flooding from Hurricane Camille in August 1969.

Prior to the coming of trains, the Lexington area heavily relied on the James River and Kanawha Canal and the North River Canal, now the Maury River. By the early 1880s, the railroad boom finally made its way to the city, introducing two competing lines:

The Chesapeake & Ohio (C&O), originating from the east, and the Richmond & Allegheny Railroad (later acquired by the C&O) built a line along the old canal towpath, terminating at Jordan's Point in Lexington by 1881. Because town space was tight, trains turned around before the point and backed into the station.

The Valley Railroad Company (later the B&O) built a line stretching south from Staunton, terminating in Lexington in 1883.

The two lines joined up northeast of the city and shared a single station on a site just west of downtown.

The Lexington Train Station was built in 1883. The historic station originally sat where Washington and Lee University's Wilson Hall is today. To save the depot from demolition, it was moved across the street in 2004. It was restored and made the O D K Headquarters.

Higgins and Irvine was a prominent retail lumber, planing mill, and builder's supply company that operated in Lexington, Virginia during the mid-20th century. The company served the Rockbridge County region as a primary supplier of retail lumber, general building materials, and millwork.

Jordan's Point Park is a scenic public park and registered historic district located at Stono Lane in East Lexington, Virginia, situated along the banks of the Maury River. Historically functioning as Lexington's bustling industrial and transportation hub during the 1800s, the site now serves as a peaceful community park combining outdoor recreation with deep local history.

In the 1950s, a Baltimore and Ohio (B&O) Railroad spur ran directly through the back campus of Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, passing near the current Woods Creek area. The trains that serviced the town during that era were typically steam or early diesel locomotives hauling freight and coal. The tracks through the back campus of W&L ultimately ceased operations, and the rails were completely removed after the B&O/C&O (Chesapeake & Ohio) lines were retired and the trestle over the Maury River was destroyed by flooding from Hurricane Camille in 1969. Today, parts of the old railbed are preserved as part of the W&L Back Campus trail system and The Chessie Trail which runs to Buena Vista, Virginia.

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