Maxton Railroad History

 

 

Wilmington, Charlotte and Rutherford Railroad

When plans were being made for the Wilmington, Charlotte and Rutherford Railroad to come through Robeson County, two communities. Lumberton and Floral College were set up to sell stock for the railroad. Those in charge of the books at Floral were John Gilchrist, William Sellers, Dr. Neil McNair, Archibald Smith and Malcolm Purcell. It seems strange that the line was run through what became Shoe Heel versus Floral College. It was chartered as the Wilmington and Charlotte in February 1855, with construction beginning in January 1857. The rails reached Shoe Heel on April 17, 1861 but rail construction was stopped due to the War of Northern Aggression in August 1861. At that time the rails stretched 112 miles from Navassa to Rockingham and include 78.86 miles of straight track, the longest in the United States.

During the War travel was slow, often less than 5 mile per hour. They had been permitted to retain only one of its pre-war locomotives and a few cars. Service was completely stopped in early to mid 1865 but resumed on a limited basis in late 1865.

The Postal Service granted a mail contract for the first mail by rail in 1866. The company was forced into receivership but was reorganized as the Carolina Central Railway Company in April 1873. Construction was resumed on the line from Wilmington to Charlotte and was finished on December 15, 1874. A special train carrying 600 passengers from all the stations arrived in Wilmington on December 16th.

The Carolina Central operated the first sleeper cars through Maxton in May 1875 and they continued until 1930 when they were taken off the line. The Carolina Central merged into Seaboard Air Line in 1900.

Special Passenger trains were operated in and out of the Laurinburg-Maxton Air Base over the Seaboard. With the return of peace in 1946, the local passenger business dropped dramatically. The last Hamlet-Wilmington passenger train service was terminated in late 1958. With the merger of the Seaboard Air Line and Atlantic Coast Line in 1967, freight traffic on the old Seaboard line was increased greatly, while the old Coast Line Tracks from Red Springs to Bennettsville were taken up.

Maxton, Alma & Southbound Railroad

The Maxton, Alma & Southbound Railroad Company history extends back to 1881, when in March of that year the North Carolina legislature incorporated the Alma and Little Rock Railroad Company. The charter was issued to Messrs. J.B. Wilkinson and P.A. Fore of Alma who proposed to build a railroad from Alma to Little Rock, S.C., to bring timber to their mills in Alma.

Construction was begun later in 1881 and by that December the railroad extended from Alma to Alfordsville. Apparently construction was not resumed the following year and the railroad was essentially a logging road bringing timer into Alma.

Apparently no further construction took place until 1889 when the railroad, which was by then renamed the Maxton, Alma and Rowland Railroad, began work early in the year to extend the railroad to Rowland. Track lying to Rowland was finished around the end of May 1899. Arrangements were made to run trains into Maxton over the Carolina Central tracks from Alma to Maxton.

On October 1, 1889, the Maxton Union reported the Maxton, Alma and Rowland Railroad carried its first freight from Maxton, 25 bales of cotton shipped from McNatt & Co. The Maxton agent for the MA&RRR at that time was Mr. J.S. McRae. In the next issue of the Union, an article advised that the MA&RRR freight was leaving Maxton daily at 4:00 p.m. for Rowland and Wilmington and all points north and south and that Maxton merchants were shipping most of their cotton over the MA&RRR. Also, in October 1889 MA&R advised they would put on a passenger coach and that the Carolina Central would close its office in Alma, moving their agent to Maxton. All exchange of mail, express and passengers between the two railroads would take place in Maxton.

In February 1890, the MA&R telegraph line was in operation and the Maxton agent was very busy handling freight and sending messages. The depot was apparently located a few blocks east of Main Street, between the Carolina Central Line and Wilmington Street. Later in 1890, the MA&R acquired a passenger coach and the railroad was reported doing a good passenger business. The line prospered until the panic of 1893, around 1900, the MA&R ceased operating into Maxton and ran only from Alma to Rowland

In 1911, the Maxton, Alma & Southbound Railroad Company was chartered with an authorized capital of $125,000.00. The MA&S purchased the railroad from the Alma to Midway from the Alma Lumber Company. Late in that year the line was extended to Bracy. The MA&S officers were: A.J. McKinnon, President; R.M. Williams, Vice President; A.J. Steed, Treasurer and Purchasing Agent; C.J. Lenair, Chief Engineer.

In April 1912, the MA&S announced plans to build the railroad three miles from Bracey to Rowland. Business was good and there were two scheduled trains in each direction between Alma and Rowland each day except Sunday. The railroad owned two standard passenger coaches, about ten freight cars and two steam locomotives. Business went along good until the postwar depression in 1922. From late 1922 until mid 1923 train service was reduced to one train per day in each direction. In 1925 passenger service dropped and the schedule went to one train per day. During the 1020s the production of watermelons was promoted along the MA&S and as many as forty cars per day were shipped out.

In the early 1930s, both freight and passenger traffic fell further. Often the need for a train was only to carry the mail. The MA&S purchased a 1922 gasoline motor car which could carry mail and passengers when there were no freight cars to move.

An application for abandonment was made and approved in 1937. The entire remaining track was taken up and sold for scrap along with the locomotives and other remaining items.

Cape Fear and Yadkin Valley Railroad

In 1877 a proposal to extend the Cape Fear and Yadkin Valley Railroad from Fayetteville to Shoe Heel was made. We were the first town in Robeson County to have two train lines. It was completed and opened for service in 1884 and by December 1884 the line was complete all the way to Bennettsville, SC. The line did a good business until the panic of 1893 forced it in to receivership. In 1898, the eastern portion of the Cape Fear and Yadkin Valley was purchased and became part of the Atlantic Coast Line.

Damage Along the Tracks

During March 7-10, 1865, General Sherman's troops destroyed warehouses, depots, rails, freight cars and trestles of the WC&R in Robeson County from Old Hundred through Shoe Heel to Lumberton

Apparently a big fire hit Shoe Heel in 1876. The Wilmington Journal of May 15, 1877, reported:

"Shoe Heel is improving, and is recovering fast from the disastrous fire of last year." The Journal also reported that B.F. McLean was elected mayor; A.J. Cottingham, J.M. Jackson and W.J. Currie, Commissioners; and J.B. Weatherly, Constable.

In May 1891 a disastrous fire broke out in the Maxton business district and destroyed the entire business block north of the Carolina Central Railroad.

The March 4, 1896 Wilmington Star reported:

"A fire started from locomotive sparks burned Mr. W.S. McNair's turpentine still and three loaded box cars. For a time the whole business section was in danger but was saved by hard work by the citizens.