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(rshsdepot) Roanoke, VA: VGN depot
From WSET-TV
Trying to Save Historic Railroad Station
Reporter: Ray Daudani
Roanoke, VA - Several Roanoke organizations are teaming up to hold onto a
piece of the city's history=2E Two years ago a historic railway station wa=
s
badly damaged in a fire=2E Now supporters are working to save the monument=
=2E
Roanoke has such a deep history as a railroad town=2E These groups are hop=
ing
to keep that history from slipping away=2E
Rufus Wingfield, Retired Virginian employee, "I started here when I was 16=
years old=2E On my 60th birthday I retired=2E The super then says, 'What a=
re
you doing in my office?' I says, 'I'm quitting=2E I've had enough=2E'"
All these men spent more than 40 years working in this building and it
means a lot to them=2E
Wingfield, "It's in my blood you know=2E"
When the Virginian Railway Station was built back in 1909, this building
stood as a symbol of the Virginian Railway's commitment of the city=2E Coa=
l
cars passed through the terminal on the way from West Virginia to the
Tidewater region=2E Despite the caved roof, boarded windows and singed wal=
ls,
this building is a part of Roanoke's history=2E
Ken Miller, Pres=2E Roanoke NRHS - "The Railroad built this town, provided=
jobs, provided the impetus for a lot of things that this town did=2E"
January 29th hasn't been a good day for this building=2E It was January 29=
th,
1956 when the final passenger train pulled out of this station=2E It was
January 29th, 2001 when this building went up in flames, but now they're
hoping January 29th will have a new significance=2E Miller - "We certainly=
want to see it restored=2E We think it's a great historic property=2E It's=
significant from it's being the only station Virginian ever built of this
nature, the largest public structure they ever had=2E"
The local chapter of the National Railway Historical Society knows they
have their work cut out for them=2E
Miller - "It'll take a tremendous amount of money and we're going to be
doing a lot of fundraising for that=2E So we'll need every bit of help we =
can
get from every source we can get=2E"
The first source of help was Norfolk Southern=2E They've donated the land =
and
building to the Railway Historical Society so it can be saved=2E The Stati=
on
was leased to a feed and seed store for more than 40 years until the fire
two years ago=2E=20
- --------------------------------------------------------------------
mail2web - Check your email from the web at
http://mail2web=2Ecom/ =2E
=================================
The Railroad Station Historical Society maintains a database of existing
railroad structures at: http://www.rrshs.org
------------------------------