Southern - Telford Depot
Telford, located between Limestone and Jonesborough, was originally called Millwood. The name was changed to honor Colonel George Whitfield Telford, who was an investor in the East Tennessee and Virginia Railroad, and also donated four acres of land for the operation of the depot and related facilities. In 1858, The East Tennessee and Virginia Railroad completed the line to Telford.
The Telford Depot, built in the early 1860s, is mentioned in History of Washington County Tennessee, as railroad facilities consisting of "livestock holding pens, water supply from the creek, and a wood yard for storing fuel for the engines." The depot is visible in the rear right of this photo behind the train.
The depot provided daily round-trip passenger service, as well as critical freight services. Logs, cattle, and agricultural products, especially poultry and eggs, originally made up the bulk of shipments. As industries developed, timber and iron products such as farm tools, stoves, and "hollowware," were shipped to numerous states in the north and southeast. Coal was a critical commodity shipped by rail, as this was the source of fuel for heating most homes.
The depot operated in Telford for nearly 100 years until 1960. In 1962, the depot was demolished. Passenger service continued until 1974 via a flagstop.
All that remains of the Telford Depot is a gravel lot with several piles of ballast on Mill Street in Telford, TN.
A view of the tracks near the former Telford Depot headed toward Jonesborough with railroad signals in the background.