The Union Station of Weldon, North Carolina, holds a unique position in Southeastern railroading history. Aside from being one of the first railroad "hubs" in the US, it was one of just a few facilities jointly owned and operated by both the Atlantic Coast Line and Seaboard Air Line Railroads. This article, the first in a two part series, will review history and geography of the Weldon area as it pertains to railroad activity. In addition, we will chart the development and changes to the SAL dominated part of the station, from its construction in 1912 to the present day. In part two, to be published in the next issue of Lines South, we will examine the ACL portion of the facility, including the elevated platforms and viaduct.

Lying on a plateau above the fall line, the Roanoke River and at the edge of the Coastal Plain and the Piedmont, Weldon's Apple Orchard was a strategic location for transportation in the early and mid-1800's for North Carolina as well as the South. With its name changed! in the mid-1800's, Weldon was home to five railroads. These included the Petersburg & Roanoke (later ACL), Seaboard & Roanoke (SAL, successor of the Portsmouth & Roanoke), Raleigh & Gaston (SAL), Wilmington & Weldon (ACL), and the Weldon Mill Railroad. The Weldon Mill Railroad was a narrow gauge logging line which ran from South Weldon extensively into the southwestern areas of Halifax County.

The first railroad tracks into Weldon were from the South, the Wilmington & Weldon Railroad, which at the time of its completion in 1841 was the longest railroad in the world. The Seaboard & Roanoke am! the Petersburg & Roanoke arrived next. In 1853, the Raleigh & Gaston Railroad followed these two into Weldon. The Petersburg & Roanoke originally stopped on the north bank of the Roanoke at Blakely, just south of Weldon downstream about 1/2 mile, then ferried! its cargo across the river to Weldon. In the 1840's, the Petersburg & Roanoke built a bridge across this area and came into Weldon on what is now Mush Island Road and Second Street to connect with the Wilmington & Weldon. The Seaboard & Roanoke built their bridge just above the first falls of the Roanoke River, cutting through an embankment on the north side.

In 1853, the Raleigh & Gaston was looking for a better connection than the one they had at Old Gaston (across the River from Thelma, N.C.) with the ports of Virginia and the East Coast. They cut a two mile right-of-way through granite rocks and ledges along the southern shore of the Roanoke River, then another ten miles to reach Roanoke Junction. This line continued four more miles to Weldon, terminating just west of the Wilmington & Weldon and the Seaboard & Roanoke.

The Seaboard & Roanoke and the Wilmington & Weldon Railroads joined at the site of the Weldon Terminal. a large structure built over several acres, in the area that now runs from near Third Street to First Street. This structure covered eight tracks and was connected to the Wilmington & Weldon hotel. which later became the Atlantic Coast Line Hotel. The Seaboard & Roanoke had their office between the hotel and First Street. After the Petersburg & Roanoke built their bridge from Blakely across the River to Mush Island Road and on into town, it connected to the Wilmington & Weldon, just south of the Terminal Building. Later the Raleigh & Gaston ran track into a curve to the north to connect with the Seaboard & Roanoke (this layout can still be seen today, although no tracks are here).

After the War Between the States, the only bridge rebuilt was that of the Seaboard & Roanoke. The Petersburg & Roanoke opted to connect with the Seaboard & Roanoke at Garysburg, just east of the present location of the Garysburg Methodist Church, which during the war was the site of a Confederate hospital. The Petersburg & Roanoke's right-of­way is still being used in transportation today, as highway U.S. 301 travels from the point of the new line built in 1911-12, to connect with the new bridge across the Roanoke River, to the intersection of highway N.C.46. The Petersburg & Roanoke used the Seaboard & Roanoke's bridge from 1867 until the new bridge was built in 1910-12. There are several piers which we have seen with dates cut into them; one that stands out is that of 3/18/12, the first pier we found with a date.

By now, affiliations were formed and eventually the Petersburg & Roanoke and the Wilmington & Weldon were joined, as the Seaboard & Roanoke aligned with the Raleigh & Gaston. Weldon was now a regional railroad hub during the 1870's and until the early 1900's. Only the citizens of Weldon and the surrounding area prevented it from becoming one of the biggest railroad junctions in the southeast. The railroads were constantly chastised for blocking crossings, making animals bolt, and just making too much noise for the people. The land owners outside Weldon did not help either, as the railroads could find no land at a price they could afford to build larger yards and support facilities.

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