Siler City (milepost CF 104.7)
History
Siler City is located at 598 feet above sea level in west Chatham County and named after a family of settlers who came from Germany around 1750. Known first as Matthews Cross Roads (after Captain Billy Matthews) at the junction of the Raleigh-Salisbury and Fayetteville-Greensboro plank roads, later with the coming of the CF&YV Samuel Siler was honored when the depot was named Siler's Station. The post office established in Samuel Siler's store on July 13, 1880 was named Energy. The name was changed to Siler Station in 1884 and to Siler City in 1886. The town was incorporated March 7, 1887. Read more about the history of this town at the official Siler City web site. This town produces furniture, textiles, processed grain and poultry according to the North Carolina Gazetteer.
Track Diagram
In 1943, the Siler City yard had a capacity for 54 cars. Today, it is a very small part of the new NS system. I did not spend much time in Siler City. The yard was a "typical" small yard in the industrial section of the City. The currently existing industrial buildings probably did not exist or were differently configured during the A&Y era.
Industries
A Southern Railway Shippers Guide from 1916 listed fifteen industries in Siler City 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). The ICC valuation map depicts the location of several of these industries. I will add others as I receive information about them.
Industry Goods Shipped/Rec'd Company Name brick factory machine-made bricks Bray Bros. cotton gin cotton Edwards & Lane cotton gin cotton Lambe Mfg. Co. cotton mill Yarns, 12s, 16s, and 20s, 2 ply skeins and tubes Hadley-Peoples Mfg. Co. flour and grist mill shipstuff, meal, bran Siler City Milling Co. (see link to history below) flour and grist mill flour, shipstuff, meal Electric Milling Co. furniture factory chairs, rockers, porch and lawn furniture, brace arms, goose necks, chair stock in rough High Point Bending and Chair Co. grain and hay dealer meal and crushings Siler City Light & Telephone Co. planing mill pine roofers & building material Stout Bros. Lumber Co. sawmill oak, pine, poplar H. H. Elder sawmill oak, pine, poplar Ed. T. Jordan spoke and handle factory ax, pick, hammer, canthook handles D. C. Kidd (P.O. Ore Hill, NC) spoke and handle factory spoke billets P. A. Smith (P.O. Kimbolton, NC) steel and iron works, foundries, machine shops general machine work A. A. Lambe woodworking factory rough chair stock Piedmont Hardwood Co.
Odds and Ends
Here 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 Siler City. I welcome any and all information about this former A&Y community!
This image (click on thumbnail for full size) was posted on the A&Y Facebook page by Doug Nixon. The date can be guessed from the automobiles. This is likely taken from the Siler City (Chatham) Mills. It shows the original depot in the center. The Siler City Mills was a prominent industry in town. I have linked a PDF by Jerry Stone with historic information about the last years and the fire that destroyed the mills. I also have a PDF of "The First 75 Years" booklet published by the company.
A greased pig contest photo courtesy of "The Siler City Grit" newspaper circa 1924. I found this postcard image on eBay. This image is of the Siler City High School, circa 1939. This image is of Elkins Pharmacy, Siler City, NC. The Siler City Post Office circa 1940. Siler City Drug Store, circa 1915. An oak chair from the Boling Chair Company of Siler City, NC. The only photograph I took is this one to the left. The image is probably of more interest to N&W historians and NS modelers than to those interested in the A&Y. Click on the thumbnail for a larger photo. Why a soda poster? I found this poster on EBAY and the story told by the seller was that POP KOLA was a Coca ColaŽ imitation circa WWII that was too close to the real thing...because someone had gotten the actual Coke formula! The lawyers had it out and POP KOLA ceased production. Why is this on the Siler City page? According to the EBAY seller, POP KOLA was bottled by Reitz Bottling Company of Siler City, NC! I have now verified this story from another source. However, Jack Allred states that the name of the company was Reitzel Beverage Company. According to Jack, POP KOLA was short lived. The Reitzel's most popular drink was probably "3 Cent Copper", it also tasted a lot like Coca Cola. Another product, Gold Dot soda, was also bottled by Reitzel Beverage Company. More information on Siler City to come. Stay tuned.
