Railroad Lays Track from Richmond to Washington

Railroad Lays Track from Richmond to Washington. . , Early railroads were primarily east-west routes to transport freight between ports on the coast and developing western communities. Chartered in February 1834, the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad Company (RF&P) would run north and south connecting Richmond north through Fredericksburg to a steamboat landing on the Potomac River. At that time, the company could not envision an all-rail line running into Washington. It became the sixth railroad in Virginia and the third to have steam-powered locomotives., On February 13, 1836, the first train left Richmond for a spot in rural Hanover County known among hunters for its pigeon roost. While not impressed with the pigeons, the RF&P was interested in the white oak and slash pine there and purchased 457 acres in what is the present-day Town of Ashland., The RF&P quickly developed the area with cottages and a hotel before expanding to include residences. From the start, the company nurtured Ashland, and more than any other community along the line, it became identified with the RF&P railroad., The RF&P used steam engines on its 113 miles of track until 1954 when it converted to diesel., Captain Blair Bolling was among the first guests on the inaugural run of the RF&P in 1836., “... [We] assembled and embarked on board the cars propelled by a Locomotive Engine about eleven oclock A.M. [and] arrived about one oclock at our place of destiny within three quarters of a mile of the South Anna River where we found ... a table spread, and loaded with ... wines and liquors, ...", (captions) Randolph-Macon College freshmen on the cow-catcher of a steam engine, September 1942. , RF&P Ashland Accommodation Train, January 1925, Train Mural Honors Philanthropist's Vision, Surveying the landscape from the window of the steam engine is Art McKinney (1943-2016). He envisioned a train mural painted on the side of his building at 108 S. Railroad Ave. Well-known for his philanthropy and commitment to historic preservation, a group of McKinney's friends got together to carry out his vision after his death., The group commissioned Ed Trask, a Richmond mural artist, to do the project costing $25,000. As lots of interested people watched, the mural took about two months to complete. At 250 feet long, it is the longest piece of artwork Trask has undertaken., (captions) Arthur W. McKinney , Ed Trask