Taking the Train - 1910s
By the mid-1910s the railroad had been a feature of the western North Carolina landscape for three decades, and helped offset – to a degree – the lack of improved roads that still prevailed in many areas.
This geographically-based timeline of western North Carolina focuses on the period from 1905 to 1919. The introductory text for each railway stop on the Murphy Branch of the Southern Railway from Murphy to Asheville is taken from the 1912 travel guide The Western North Carolina Section at a Glance (Issued by the Passenger Traffic Department, Southern Railway, Premier Carrier of the South, Washington, D.C., 1912). Each stop provides a brief description of the community, along with the mile markers noting the distance from Murphy and Asheville respectively.
| 1. Murphy 2. Regal 3. Andrews 4. Topton 5. Nantahala 6. Hewitt 7. Almond |
8. Whiting 9. Bushnell 10. Forney 11. Bryson 12. Whittier 13. Wilmot 14. Dillsboro |
15. Sylva 16. Beta 17. Addie 18. Willits 19. Balsam 20. Hazelwood 21. Waynesville |
22. Tuscola |
Want to travel more? Follow wagon trails through western North Carolina in the 1890s.
Map excerpted from Railroad map of North Carolina, 1900, examined and authorized by the North Carolina corporation commission. Courtesy of Library of Congress Geography and Map Division.