Belton in Anderson County, South Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)

Greenville & Columbia RR / Belton

Greenville & Columbia RR Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Brian Scott, September 10, 2010

1. Greenville & Columbia RR Marker

Inscription. Click to hear the inscription.

Greenville & Columbia RR The Greenville & Columbia Railroad, founded in 1845, began construction in 1849. It reached Greenville in 1853, with a branch at this point to Anderson - the Blue Ridge Railroad. The town of Belton grew up around the junction of the two railroads, which later merged after the Civil War. The two rail lines made Belton the hub of passenger and freight service for Anderson District.

Belton Belton, incorporated in 1855, was named for Judge John Belton O'Neall, president of the G&C RR. Its square was laid out around the first depot. The Blue Ridge RR was acquired by the Southern Railway in the 1890s, and this depot was built in 1908-09. With an electric rail line added in 1902 and the arrival of the Piedmont & Northern RR in 1912, as many as 85 trains passed through Belton daily.

Erected 2009 by Belton Area Museum Association. (Marker Number 4-36.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Railroads & Streetcars. A significant historical year for this entry is 1845.

Location. 34° 31.317′

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N, 82° 29.617′ W. Marker is in Belton, South Carolina, in Anderson County. Marker is at the intersection of North Main Street (State Highway 20) and Anderson Street (U.S. 178), on the right when traveling south on North Main Street. Marker is located near the south parking lot of the Belton Depot. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Belton SC 29627, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 10 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Belton Depot (within shouting distance of this marker); Belton / Historic Belton (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Belton Standpipe (about 600 feet away); Belton Academy / Central School (approx. 0.2 miles away); Chamberlain-Kay House (approx. ¼ mile away); First Baptist Church of Belton (approx. 0.3 miles away); Belton Veterans Memorial (approx. half a mile away); Rocky River Baptist Association Headquarters (approx. 1½ miles away); Dorchester Baptist Church World War II Veterans Plaque (approx. 2.2 miles away); Cooley's Bridge (approx. 5 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Belton.

Also see . . . Greenville & Columbia. This road was chartered in 1845, construction began in 1849 and was completed in 1854. (Submitted on September 10, 2010, by Brian Scott of Anderson, South Carolina.)

Additional commentary.
1. Proposed

Photographed By Brian Scott, September 10, 2010

2. Greenville & Columbia RR Marker

Marker Text - Final Shows on Marker
The following text was originally proposed by the museum. It was altered to what appears on the marker.

Side One:
In order to access the agricultural bounty of the upstate, in 1845 a route was proposed connecting the Piedmont Region to the existing rail system from Columbia to Charleston. At this point on the tracks, a spur line was laid toward Anderson, and the city of Belton developed at this rail junction. By 1853 the Greenville-Columbia RR (later the Southern RR) and the Blue Ridge RR (the spur line) offered passenger and freight service.

Side Two:
At the railroad junction, the city square formed around the original depot. Incorporated in 1855, the city was named after Judge John Belton O’Neall, the President of the G&C RR. An electric rail system was added in 1902 and by 1912 the Piedmont and Northern line was completed. In 1914 the city could boast that 85 trains or trolleys of the Southern, Blue Ridge or P&N rail lines passed through Belton daily. The Historic Belton Train Depot was built in 1909.

— Submitted October 7, 2010, by Brian Scott of Anderson, South Carolina.

Belton Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Brian Scott, September 10, 2010

3. Belton Marker

Photographed By Brian Scott, September 10, 2010

4. Belton Marker

Photographed By Brian Scott

5. Greenville & Columbia RR Marker

Judge John Belton O'Neall<br>1793-1863 image. Click for full size.

Photographed By University of South Carolina, School of Law

6. Judge John Belton O'Neall
1793-1863

S.C. House of Representatives 1816-1828
Associate Justice of S.C. Supreme Court 1828-1830 Court of Appeals Judge 1830-1835
Chief Justice of South Carolina
President of the Southern Baptist Convention 1858-1863

The Piedmont and Northern Depot image. Click for full size.

Belton by Alison A. Darby (2004), circa 1914

7. The Piedmont and Northern Depot

The Greenville, Spartanburg, and Anderson Railway, predecessor of the P&N, completed its main line from Greenwood to Belton terminal by 1912. By 1914, the section between Greenville and Spartanburg was constructed, and final consolidation of the railway system occurred in June of that year. The railway was renamed the Piedmont and Northern. This depot was torn down in the 1980s.