Walnut Cove (Milepost CF 40.1)
History
Walnut Cove is a town in south Stokes County. It was settled in 1883 and known as
Lash until 1889 when it was incorporated under its present name. It was named for a grove of
walnut trees. Stokesburg, formerly a separate community just south of Walnut Cove,
is now within the corporate limits. It is at an altitude of 634 feet.
I do not have a photo of the A&Y station at Walnut Cove. From the ICC
engineering field notes, I know it was a "Type 3" combination station
built in 1887 for the CF&YV. It was 50'x30' with a passenger platform
surrounding it entirely. The platform was 6' wide along the front and back sides
and 8' wide along the two ends. The platform was 4' high and boarded up with
1" boards applied vertically. The interior of the combination station was
divided into a baggage area 29'6" long by 30' wide and a passenger area
with office was 20' 6" long and 30' wide. The station walls were a board
and batten type, measuring 13' 3" tall. The gable roof peaked 19' 9"
above the ground but extended over the platform. The roof was made of metal
shingles at that time. Two Dietz pioneer oil lamps on 10' high 4x4 posts
were used to light the exterior.
The depot area also contained an oil house and privy. The track section also
contained two section dwellings, a barn, a toolhouse and several material bins.
The section houses were identical to those at Dalton.
Track Diagram
In 1943, the A&Y had a crossing at grade (interlocked) with the Norfolk &
Western Railway (the railroad that served most of the town's industries). The A&Y had
a yard with a capacity of 90 cars, a wye, and a phone in Walnut Cove. Today, the N&W
tracks are part of the Norfolk Southern line, but the crossing and the A&Y tracks are
long gone. Not much to see today, and I didn't take any photos. Hopefully, I
can find some images when the tracks did exist there.
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