The Rail Connection

The Rail Connection. Lafayette. , Robert Rodman had been making fabric here in Lafayette or more than two decades at the time that the most advantageous set of circumstances he might have imagined occurred. the nation's elite, led by the Vanderbilt, Berwind and Astor families and their compatriots, desired to have an easier way to get from the main rail line to their "Summer Cottages" in Newport. Departing their private railcars in a very industrial Providence for a long carriage ride to the "City by the Sea" was not pleasant in their minds., In 1870, a group of investors spearheaded by Cornelius Vanderbilt II sought to fix this problem by setting up a short rail line run from Wickford Junction down to Poplar Point in Wickford Village, where an elegant ferryboat would whisk them all to Newport. The track infrastructure was designed and built to allow for the private railcars of these captains of industry to be shifted off the main line and hauled down to Poplar Point, where an additional siding track had been lain so that the railcars could remain there while their owners took advantage of the summer social life in Newport., Vanderbilt and his investors wanted to be certain, though, that this rail line company, named the Newport and Wickford Rail and Steamship Line, would be financially viable. As such, they used their connections to secure the contracts for the U.S. Postal Service mail and freight going through to all of Aquidneck Island and southeastern Massachusetts. They also actively sought out other income-producing business contracts for the line; this is where Rodman Manufacturing and the Vanderbilt consortium running the Newport and Wickford line intersect. Prior to this, Rodman had to haul everything, coal, raw materials, finished fabric and the like, into and out of his Lafayette mill utilizing local teamsters and their draft horses and oxen. This was costly and inefficient. In his mind, the rail connection would be one more way that Rodman could be more competitive in the fabric markets of the late 19th century. Although negotiations took some time, this business arrangement was advantageous for all involved, and before long, Rodman Manufacturing had a dedicated spur line running from the Newport and Wickford tracks right into the mill property., [Captions:] , Wickford Junction train station in the late 19th century. The Newport and Wickford Railroad office can be seen just right of center. All of the construction materials for the new mill buildings were delivered here and later deliveries of coal, wool, and cotton would have been held here until they could be hauled down the line to the mill in between passenger runs on the Newport and Wickford spur line., This small, manually operated Armstrong-powered turntable was utilized to turn the engine around after each run back up to Wickford Junction from the ferry terminal. Unsuspecting summer visitors who asked how it operated were told that it was an "Armstrong-powered" turntable. When they inquired as to what that meant, railyard crew members would reply, "It's our strong arms that turn the engine around.", This is a close-up photograph of the Newport and Wickford Railroad engine as it was preparing to depart the steamboat landing at Poplar Point., This 1895 poster spells out a typical summer schedule for the Newport and Wickford Railroad. Freight runs into the mill site carrying coal, wool, and cotton in and finished products out, were fit in where the schedule would allow., This early 20th century image shows a passenger run as it picks up speed heading east out of Wickford Junction towards its ultimate destination at the ferry terminal at Poplar Point. Along the way it would stop at Belleville Station and Wickford Junction., A southern view of the Rodman property in Lafayette. The rail loading dock on the back of the warehouse, a building constructed specifically to handle incoming and outgoing rail freight, can be seen right of center., This image shows both of the locations behind the main mill building where coal was offloaded and stored for eventual use as fuel for the Corliss Steam Engine that powered the entire complex.