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Newspaper
Norfolk Virginian
Location
Norfolk, Virginia, United States of America
Date
Jul 14, 1897
Page
4
A long tribute to Norfolk and Portsmouth, detailing the Harbor and river entrances, and outlining the Seaboard Airline’s expansion. The article praises rapid growth, rail connections, and planned systems from Port Norfolk to Wilmington, with extensive agricultural and industrial development aims. It highlights experimental farms, climate diversity, and incentives to attract settlers and investors to the Virginia region.
Twenty years ago only two railroads with a total of 400 miles connected the region. Today the center of nine railroads spans 18 000 miles, signaling vast expansion in transportation capacity and economic reach.
The article extols Norfolk as a premier commercial center due to its unmatched harbor on the Atlantic, year round access, and deep draft. It notes the concentration of trunk rail lines, expanded steel rail mileage, and growing foreign and coastwise steamship traffic connecting to the South, Southwest, and West, with multiple large transportation companies and vessels serving global ports.
The coastwise and steambant nes have greatly increased in the number of splendid vessels and tonnage, and all have added handsome additions to their storage, wharfage and terminal facilities.
The enterprise of Norfolk and Western and its ports pioneers reshaping the cotton trade and grain export. Extensive rail growth linked Columbus to Norfolk and Kentucky to the Northwest, with new lines to Paceholder coal fields and Shenandoah Valley acquisitions expanding to 1,567 miles. Upgrades include lamps, warehouses, and a floating elevator, boosting capacity at Lambert's Point and Norfolk terminals. The Old Dominion Line and others push through schedules while the Cannon Ball train links Norfolk, Petersburg, and Williamsburg.
Seaboard Air Line presents itself as a modern trunk line linking Portsmouth and Norfolk to Atlanta with branches feeding interior points. The system emphasizes its role as a feeder for business, collecting products from plantations, mines, and mills to move along the main line.
Chesapeake and Ohio outlines its trunk line from Widlewater Virginia to Weert with through trains from Od Point and Newport News and connections from Norfolk. New observation cars on routes to Cincinnati offer scenic views of the New River, while 10% pound rail on mountain sections and 7th-pound for light grades mark safety standards.
The Southern Railway, described as the greatest Southern system, entered Norfolk and fueled the city's growth. Spanning about 1,200 miles, its lines extend in all directions, opening new territory for local merchants and expanding regional reach from this central hub.
The Southern Railway serves much of the South east of the Mississippi with extensive coal, timber, cotton, and mineral regions reached by branches and main lines. It operates premier passenger trains including the Washington and Southwestern Limited and Sunset Limited, offers through service to the South and to New Orleans, and promotes travel to the Tennessee Centennial via the Nashville route known as The Land of the Sky. The Baltimore, Chesapeake and Richmond Steamboat Company provides a direct link to Baltimore and regional points, with steamboat amenities aboard the Charlotte and Atlanta. James H. M. Whefield became local passenger agent February 1 1907 after eleven years with the company in multiple cities.
The Norfolk and Southern Railroad remains a key feeder citywide, fostering trade with rich regions and expediting transport for truck and vegetable markets. It has built a daily steamship network to support the fresh fish and oyster industries, linking Elizabeth City and other stations. The line runs from Norfolk to the Pamlico River in North Carolina, reaching Berkley to Helenan in 1881 and Belhaven in 1891 after absorbing the Albemarle and Pamlico Railroad.
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