Stokesdale and Madison Branch
Stokesdale (Milepost CF 51.3)
History
The town of Stokesdale was incorporated in 1907. It was known earlier as Pine or Pond, but was renamed perhaps for Governor Montford Stokes (1762-1842), or a surveyor, conductor, or executive of the railroad. In 1886 the Cape Fear and Yadkin Valley Railroad was built from Greensboro to Mount Airy. The railroad passed through Pond and a railroad station was built to service the area. The post office was moved at this time and the name was changed to Stokesdale.
Stokesdale is located in the northwest corner of Guilford County, and is a rural community with a mixture of agricultural and farming areas, businesses, industries, and residential areas. A small business district provides services for the citizens of the area. It is at an altitude of 950 feet. The A&Y had a telephone there and a capacity for 22 cars on sidings and spurs. For more information, visit the Stokesdale web page, look for the link on town history especially.
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Here is an image of the station from the North Carolina State Library Photographic Archives (click on thumbnail for 800x600 image). If you look carefully to the left behind the station you can see what I believe to be a pulpwood truck and to the right behind the station is a cut of pulpwood flatcars a.k.a. pulp racks. Looks like Stokesdale was a pulpwood loading point at the time the photo was taken (which is unfortunately unknown). | |
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Here are two more images of the depot (circa 1908 before it burned and the replacement in 1910) courtesy of Steven Shelton. |  |
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The depot was sold first to Mr. Sam Heffinger who had it moved to Madison in 1977. It became Mr. Heffinger's home after he remodeled it. Later it was sold to Bob Hunter (deceased) and he also had it refurbished and lived in it. Here is acontemporary image of the depot taken by Bob, who also provided the blueprint and contract files below too. | |
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The depot blueprint to the left and the construction
contract to the right. The contract is a 2MB pdf.
Click on thumbnail to obtain larger size document in new window. |
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Track Diagram
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An image from the ICC valuation maps gives a fair idea of how the track and depot were laid out. Click on the thumbnail to view a larger image. |
Industries
A Southern Railway Shippers Guide from 1916 indicates the following industries were located in Belews Creek and using the A&Y for delivering and receiving products by rail (although some may have used the station or team track rather than having a dedicated siding). I will add other industries as I receive information about them, for example, A.W. Preston & Son:
| Industry | Goods Shipped/Rec'd |
Company Name |
| cotton mill | Yarns, No. 8, Skeins, Cones and Tubes | Enterprise Manunfacturing Co. |
| cotton mill | 36" 4 yard 4x4 Sheetings | Columbia Manufacturing Co. |
| flour and grist mill | flour and feed | Ramseur Milling Co. |
| flour and grist mill | flour and feed | Enterprise Milling Co. |
| flour and grist mill | flour and feed | Richland Roller Mills |
| furniture factory | case goods, chiffoniers, bureaus, and wash stands | Ramseur Furniture Co. |
| planing mill | miscellaneous | Fleta Lumber Co. |
| planing mill | miscellaneous | Coleridge Mfg. Co. |
| sawmill | oak lumber | Hurly C. Parks |
| sawmill | oak lumber | W. T. Foushee & Co. |
| sawmill | oak lumber | Staley Lumber Co. |
| sawmill | oak lumber | John Bray & Son |
| sawmill | oak lumber | J. C. Craven |
| sawmill | oak lumber | T. A. Cox |
| woodworking factory | cotton mill supplies | Novelty Wood Works |
Odds and Ends
I will include any information that is non-railroad in nature that helps provide a hint as to the character of the people and industries who lived and worked in Stokesdale.
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