I just discovered a great webpage about the history of the C&O Railroad in Charlottesville, run by a fellow named Larry Daily. Most Charlottesvillians don’t appreciate how essential that the rail lines were to the development of and early success of Charlottesville. Nor are most people aware that the offices on Water Street, near the corner of 5th, used to be Charlottesville’s train station before the current station opened near the intersection of the north/south and east/west lines, on West Main Street.
At left is an image from a 1907 postcard of how the train station appeared at that time. This out-of-copyright image has been shamelessly stolen from C&O Piedmont Subdivision.