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:
View Larger Map
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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