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Tidewater Railway Comes to Norfolk
(For more Norfolk geography tidbits, click here.)
“Whereas, it is publicly known that the Tidewater Railway company is now engaged in building a line of road through the coal fields of West Virginia to Tidewater Virginia, which it is confidently believed will be a part of a western system and most of necessity, if its terminal is near Norfolk, be of untold benefit in the general development and upbuilding of our city, bringing great increase of business, population and capital, at the same time accomplishing for us what is probably most needed in our commercial development, viz., the  establishment of a direct line of ocean steamers to European Ports, and
Whereas, a joint committee of the commercial organizations of the city has been in constant and active negotiation with the authorities of said railway for a number of months past, using every argument possible to induce them to locate their terminals on the Norfolk side of the river at Sewall’s Point, said committee having made known to the councils that they have been successful in their efforts, to the extent that the railway authorities are ready to purchase 500 acres of land at Sewall’s Point for its terminals and proceed at once to build the said railway to that point, letting immediately contracts for construction from each end of the road, provided that the city of Norfolk will pay the price of the land required for the rights of way for the road from the Southern Branch of the Elizabeth river to Sewall’s Point, a distance of about thirteen miles. The land for which said rights of way it is believed can be purchased by the said railway for the price of $95,000, and, as it appears to be the consensus of opinion of the business men and taxpayers of our city that the advantages to accrue from securing this additional railway at Norfolk far outweigh the amount involved; therefore,
Be it ordained by the common and select councils of the city of Norfolk–a majority of the members elected to each council concurring–that the sum of $95,000 be, and same is hereby appropriated in consideration of the premises, as a donation to the Tidewater Railway company, and the treasurer of the city of Norfolk is hereby directed to pay forthwith the said sum of $95,000 without further reference to the councils to the treasurer of said Tidewater Railway company, provided the said railway company deliver to the city of Norfolk a bond with surety to be approved by the finance committee in penalty of $100,000, conditioned on the return of said $95,000 to the city of Norfolk if the road now known as the Tidewater railway is not built and regularly operated from West Virginia to Sewall’s Point within four years.”
(quoted in Virginian-Pilot, Feb. 24, 1905)
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