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Train Leaving Station, Southport, N.C. (WB&S Railroad)

Train Leaving Station, Southport, N.C. (WB&S Railroad)

Availability: Scarce (See Definition Below)

Approximate Value: $10-$15 (Due To Poor Condition)

Year of Publication (Approximate): 1910s

Preprinted Postcard Text (Front): Train Leaving Station, Southport, N.C.

Preprinted Postcard Text (Back): None

Published By: Unknown

Postmark: Not Postally Used

Postage: Not Postally Used

Sent/Addressed To: Not Postally Use

Postcard Acquired: July 29, 2011 from Bangor, Maine

Editor's Notes: This is a scarce postcard view of a train station that was once located in Southport, NC at the corner of Nash and Rhett Streets (See Map Below). In the late 19th century and early 20th century there was a movement to connect Southport with larger interior cities, thus opening new trade routes, and hopefully, bypassing the port of Wilmington. After many false starts and failed attempts, the Wilmington, Brunswick & Southern Railroad (WB&S) succeeded in 1911.

According to an historical marker located where the station once stood...

“On November 23, 1911, a huge celebration marked the train’s arrival, with bands, speeches, boat races and picnics. The trip from Wilmington took 2 hours and 36 minutes. The first depot was at Nash and Rhett but it was moved one block south to Moore Street, on the west side of Rhett Street. Although the WB&S was nicknamed 'Willing, But Slow' by locals, passenger service continued until 1931 and freight service until 1938. The passenger station burned in 1940, never to be rebuilt."

Here is a poem by local resident, Miss Kate Stuart, as published in the Southport Herald and Wilmington Dispatch on the opening of passenger rail service to Southport:

“The Railroad’s Come to Town”

On old Rhett Street each one you meet
Just shakes hands all around,
For don’t you see, they say with glee,
The railroad’s come to town.

From far Supply to Calabash,
See how they cover ground.
They’ve come to help us celebrate,
The railroad’s come to town.

Good farmer Pyke, just from the “pole,”
Who often used to frown,
Now wears a vast substantial smile,
The railroad’s come to town.

Bring out your flags, let’s all hurrah!
And do the thing up brown,
It’s been coming forty years,
By jinks, it’s got to town!


Location of Former Station:


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Availability Scale: We have loosely defined 4 categories of availability for classifying postcards in our collection. There are many degrees of availability within each main category and the opinion of availability is subjective. These 4 main categories have been created to convey to the reader the approximate availability of a postcard within our collection. The availability is subject to change as new research comes to light.

  • Common - A common postcard is one where many examples are known to exist. Most modern postcards are considered common due to the large numbers of cards published and distributed.
  • Uncommon - An uncommon postcard is one that does not surface often. There may be many examples of an uncommon card in circulation, but just not as readily available as a common card.
  • Scarce - A scarce postcard is one that is hardly ever seen outside of a few well known postcard collections such as The Southport Times' Collection, the New Hanover County Public Library's North Carolina Collection or the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's North Carolina Collection.
  • Rare - A rare postcard is a postcard where only 1 or 2 examples are known to exist. Cards in this category may not even exist in the largest and most complete collections. Cards in this category have extremely low publication rates and extremely low distribution rates, adding to the rarity of the card.

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