Atlantic Coast Line railroad

Haywood Sauls and wife Betsey Sauls vs. Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Company.

In May 1911, Betsey Sauls took the extraordinary step of suing Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Company for serious injuries she suffered at Black Creek depot. The law firm of James H. Pou and William A. Finch, well-known in the state for their high-profile civil and criminal litigation, filed on her behalf (and her husband Haywood Sauls‘, as was required by law for married women at the time.)

In a nutshell, on 3 May 1909, Betsey Sauls bought a train ticket to travel from Wilson to Black Creek. The train overshot the depot at Black Creek, but announced “All off for Black Creek!” as usual. As Sauls attempted to disembark, she fell from the train and was injured.

Pou and Finch asserted that by stopping beyond the usual location, Sauls was forced to step down from an excessive height and near a side track with sharp, exposed sills (the long, heavy timbers used as a foundation for crossties.) As Sauls stepped down, the train suddenly began to move backward, throwing Sauls to the ground.

Pou and Finch further asserted that A.C.L.R.R. had failed to provide a stepstool customarily provided for older passengers faced with a higher-than-usual descent.

Sauls was 65 to 70 years old, was “corpulent,” and not used to train travel. The knee injuries she sustained were serious, painful, and — she believed — permanent. She had difficulty walking and sleeping, could not work, and was forced to use a stick or crutch. She also had back and hip pain.

Sauls was now “an invalid and sufferer” of both physical and mental anguish. She could not visit family, friends, or church and had incurred considerable expense for medical treatment.

Sauls sought $5000 in damages.

In a brief, spare decision, the judge G.S. Ferguson awarded Sauls $500 (roughly $17,000 in 2026 dollars.)

Civil Action Papers, Wilson County (N.C.) Court Records (1909), http://www.familysearch.org.

A legacy repurposed.

Restoration of the platform canopy of Wilson’s historic railway station began in May of this year. The ornamental ridge cap and copper gutters will be faithfully restored, as will the slate roof. These lustrous, deep gray shingles might look familiar to the keenly observant eye — they were sourced from the recently replaced roof of the Samuel H. Vick house!

Photos by Lisa Y. Henderson, August 2024.

Where we worked: on the railroad.

Wilson Daily Times, 2 March 1950.

Though Wilson was not a railroad town in the way Rocky Mount was, the Atlantic Coast Line and Norfolk Southern railroads kept significant numbers of African-Americans employed. The work was steady, but often dirty and dangerous, especially for brakemen and switchmen.

City directories, census enumerations, draft registration cards, and other records yield this running list of railroad employees:

  • Tom Abram, laborer, A.C.L. R.R., 1917
  • Claude Albritton, laborer in freight depot, N.S. Ry. Co., 1917
  • Dock Applewhite, railroad section hand, lived in Stantonsburg, 1910
  • Allen Armstrong, railroad laborer, 1910
  • Frank Asbell, depot station hand
  • James Austin [Alston], brakeman, lived at 206 East Spruce, 1908; laborer for Norfolk Southern R.R., 1912
  • Romeo Bagley, baggage porter, A.C.L. baggage station, 1918; railroad laborer, 1920
  • George Barnes, railroad laborer, 1910
  • George Barnes, freight porter, A.C.L. station, 1920
  • George T. Barnes, station hand, A.C.L. R.R., lived at 632 Viola, 1916
  • John Barnes, station hand, A.C.L. R.R., lived at 808 Viola
  • Joseph Barnes, brakeman, lived on Daniel nr Spruce, 1908
  • Martin Barnes, section hand, N.S. R.R. Co., Cent. Div., lived in Stantonsburg, 1918
  • Pierce Barnes, railroad laborer, lived on the A.C.L. Railway near Spruce, 1908
  • David Battle, railroad crossing flagman, 1920
  • Frank Battle, railroad laborer, 1910
  • Harry Battle, railroad laborer, 1910
  • Millard Battle, railroad laborer, 1920
  • Samuel Bethea, railroading, 1916
  • Jule Berkley/Julius Burkett, N.&S. Railway brakeman, 1920
  • Elijah Bishop, depot freight hand, 1920
  • Warren Brington [Brewington?], laborer, freight department, 1917
  • Arthur Brodie, laborer, Norfolk Southern R.R., 1928
  • James Brown, yard switchman, A.C.L. Railway, lived at Viola near Reid, 1912
  • James E. Brown, fireman on A.C.L. railroad, 1918
  • Sam Brown, railroad laborer, 1917
  • Willie Bryant, railroad laborer, 1910
  • Julius Burkett, railroad yard switchman, 1920
  • Will Byrd, Seaboard Air Line Railway Company laborer, 1920
  • Karl Crank, depot drayman, 1910
  • Brister Daniel, A.C.L. R.R. section hand “Contentnea to near Fremont,” 1918
  • Harry Draughn, railroad laborer, 1910
  • Dallas Dunford, railroad section hand, 1910
  • John Hardy Ellis, Norfolk & Southern Railroad section hand, 1917, resided in Stantonsburg
  • Fulghum Edwards, A.C.L. Railway brakeman, 1916, 1920
  • Swift Faison, mail porter, A.C.L. station, 1920
  • Leroy Farmer, section hand, N.&S. R.R., Central Division, lived in Stantonsburg, 1918.
  • George Frederick, section hand, 1924
  • Bud Gaston, brakeman, 1912
  • John H. Gaston, A.C.L. freight station, 1918
  • William Gates [Gay], brakeman, lived at 529 Church, 1908
  • Isaiah Gilyard, longshoreman, C.&O. Railway, 1918
  • Samuel Green, section hand, Stantonsburg, 1916
  • Reid Hagans, railroad laborer, 1910
  • Robert Hall, railroad section hand, lived in Stantonsburg, 1910
  • Leslie Harris, freight hand, Atlantic Coast Line R.R., 1917
  • Charles Hayes, railroad laborer, 1910
  • Daniel S. Henry, labor, A.C.L. passenger depot, 1917
  • Eddie Herron, railroad laborer, 1920
  • Henrietta Hill, matron at A.C.L. passenger depot, lived at 134 Pender, 1908
  • Charles Hines, flagman, 1920
  • George Hobbs, section hand, 1917
  • Will R. Hockaday, section hand, A.C.L. Ry., Elm City, 1918
  • Eddie Hogan, section work, Norfolk So. R.R. Co., 1918
  • Edward Howard, laborer, A.C.L. R.R. Co., 1918
  • Will Jeffreys, railroad laborer, Sharpsburg, 1918
  • Hardy Johnson, railroad laborer, 1910
  • Allen Jackson, station hand, lived at 423 South Railroad Street, 1920
  • James Joyner, railroad laborer, 1920
  • James Mack, laborer, N.&S. R.R. Co., 1917
  • Charlie Macon, laborer, A.C.L. depot, 1918
  • Ulysses Martine, railroad postal clerk, 1920
  • Eziel McCoy, baggage man, A.C.L. station, 1918
  • John McDaniel, A.C.L. Railway laborer, 1920
  • James C. McLean, station hand, A.C.L. R.R., 1917
  • Alec McMillan, freight hand, 1920
  • Louis Miles, railroad laborer, 1917
  • Dave Mills, “extra track gang track man,” Norfolk & Southern Central Division, 1918
  • Gertrude Moss, cleaner, A.C.L. Railroad, 1910
  • James Moore, freight handler, A.C.L. R.R., 1917
  • James Nowling, railroad laborer, 1918
  • Tom Overstreet, railroad laborer, 1910
  • Menus Parker, railroad laborer, Norfolk Southern Ry. Co., 1917
  • James Peacock, depot station agent, 1920
  • Jimmie Pender, railway laborer, Norfolk Southern Ry. Co., 1917
  • Fred Pickens, laborer, freight depot, A.C.L. R.R., 1917
  • Robert Pittman, railroad employee, N.S. R.R. Co., 1918
  • Isaiah Procter, laborer, “S.L. Johnson’s section,” Lucama, 1917
  • Charlie Reed, railroad fireman, 1920
  • Will Reid, A.C.L. Railway Company laborer, 1920
  • Doc Richardson, railroad section hand, 1917
  • Roman Ricks, section hand, A.C.L., Lucama, 1917
  • John Roberson, laborer, N.S. R.R. Co., 1918
  • Ashley Sanders, laborer, A.C.L. freight depot, 1918; freight handler at freight depot, 1920
  • Carey Simms, laborer, N.S.R.R., 1918
  • Shafter Simpson, laborer, Norfolk Southern Ry. Co., 1918
  • Edward Smith, brakeman, 1920
  • George H. Smith, railroad porter, 1920
  • John Spencer, depot freight hand, 1920
  • Samuel Stephens, station hand, 1920
  • George Taylor, railroad laborer, 1910
  • Andrew J. Townsend, Norfolk & Southern Railway section hand, 1940
  • Shirley Thomas, railroad section hand, A.C.L. R.R., Elm City, 1917
  • Lizzie Thompson, depot matron, 1920
  • John Ward, section hand, Atlantic Coast Line, 1918
  • Alonzo Westley, railroad hand, Lucama, 1917
  • Walter Whitfield, railroad station hand, A.C.L. R.R., 1918
  • Lonnie Whitley, flagman, 1920
  • Bud Wiggins, extra force group, Norfolk Southern R.R., Central Division, 1918
  • Daniel Williams, laborer, N.S.R.R. tracks, 1920
  • Ed. O. Williams, laborer, 1918
  • Edward Williams, railroad laborer, 1910
  • Jesse Williams, laborer, Norfolk Southern R.R., 1918
  • Tom Williams, brakeman, 1892
  • Charley Winn, laborer, Norfolk & Southern R.R. Co., Elm City, 1918
  • Jessie Winn, brakeman, A.C.L. Ry. Co., 1917

The old A.C.L. depot.

We’ve seen here the Atlantic Coast Line passenger depot, built in 1924, at which hundreds of African-American Wilsonians embarked for their new lives during the Great Migration. The O.V. Foust photograph above depicts the depot that preceded it. A dray sits out front awaiting luggage or freight; there was no platform.

Photo courtesy of J. Robert Boykin III’s Historic Wilson in Vintage Postcards (2003).

Three killed in crash in Dunn.

A road trip from Wilson to Fayetteville ended in the deaths of three people when a train hit their car in Dunn, North Carolina. Tom Mingo, Viola Bullard (or Bullock), and Bessie Manning was transported 70 miles to the Atlantic Coast Line hospital in Rocky Mount (standard practice at the time), but succumbed to their injuries.

Wilson Daily Times, 7 June 1926.

Wilson Daily Times, 8 June 1926.

  • Mezinge Jamaica, or Tom Mingo — Thomas Mingo is listed in the 1925 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory as laborer living at 721 Viola.
  • Viola Bullard or Bulluck
  • Bessie Manning — Bessie Manning is listed in the 1925 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory as a factory hand living at 510 Pettigrew Street.

Clippings courtesy of J. Robert Boykin III.

The waiting rooms.

As discussed here, the Atlantic Coast Line’s handsome passenger rail station was the point of departure for many African-Americans leaving Wilson during the Great Migration. Now an Amtrak stop, the station was restored and renovated in the late 1990s.

Here’s the station’s main waiting room today. Through a doorway, a sign marks a second room for baggage.

Into the 1960s, though, the baggage area was the train station’s “colored” waiting room.

Photos by Lisa Y. Henderson, June and September 2021.

Family ties, no. 1: a shoebox full of food.

Wilson’s emergence as a leading tobacco market town drew hundreds of African-American migrants in the decades after the 1890s. Many left family behind in their home counties, perhaps never to be seen again. Others maintained ties the best way they could.

Sarah Henderson Jacobs Silver and her husband Jesse A. Jacobs Jr. left Dudley, in southern Wayne County, North Carolina, around 1905. They came to Wilson presumably for better opportunities off the farm. Each remained firmly linked, however, to parents and children and siblings back in Wayne County as well as in the Great Migration north. This post is the first in a series of excerpts from interviews with Hattie Henderson Ricks, their adoptive daughter (and Sarah’s great-niece), revealing the ways her Wilson family stayed connected to their far-flung kin. (Or didn’t.)

——

Sarah Henderson Jacobs Silver, born in 1872, was the eighth of nine children. By time she moved to Wilson, only her brothers James Lucian Henderson, born 1859, and Caswell C. Henderson, born 1865, were living. (Hattie was her sister Loudie Henderson’s grandchild.) Caswell had migrated to New York City by about 1890, but Lucian remained in Dudley to farm. He and his wife, Susan McCollum Henderson, had only one child, who died in early adulthood without a spouse or children.

Susie Henderson had long been sickly and, by the late 1920s, Lucian Henderson’s health had begun to fail. Jesse Jacobs’ nephew, John Wesley Carter, lived nearby. He had developed a close relation with the Hendersons, but could not be expected to assume complete responsibility for their care.

The family turned to the Atlantic Coast Line Rail Road for a solution:

“Mama Sarah [would] fix dinner and send it down to Dudley on the train. The man that run the whatchacallit — engine?  Up there, where stokes the fire or whatever is on the train. He would take it.  But she would tell what day she was gon send it. And so somebody’d be up there to the train station to get it.  And the train, ‘cause a lot of time the train didn’t stop in Dudley. But anyway, the man, the conductor, he would pull the thing, whatever, for the train to stop long enough for him to drop off this package.  … Somebody she’d have be out there when the train come through, and then the porter on the train — Mama knew him —  and so then Johnnie and them or somebody be out there to take the package. It’d be a shoebox full of food, already cooked and ready to eat. So that’s the way they helped Uncle Lucian and A’nt Susie, like that. Until they died, and so that was the end of trying to feed them and take care of them.”

Look closely at this snippet of a 1936 map of the Atlantic Coast Line’s routes. Wilson is just above the center point. Lucian and Susie Henderson’s care packages traveled south through Goldsboro to the whistle stop at Dudley’s platform, nine miles below and just above Mount Olive.

Adapted from interviews of Hattie H. Ricks by Lisa Y. Henderson, 1996 and 1998. All rights reserved. 

He fell from the trestle and drowned.

The body of Ed Howell, who stoked the firebox and tended the boiler on an Atlantic Coast Line passenger train, was not recovered until eleven days after he fell into Contentnea Creek south of Wilson. The strap of his overalls snagged on a tree limb or root, holding him under several feet of water. The coroner noted that the eighty-five dollars Howell had on his person was missing, but opined that it might have fallen from his pocket as he fell. (Or was he robbed and murdered?)

Wilson Daily Times, 6 February 1935.

Per his death certificate, Howell died 25 January 1935. He was a native of Pitt County, but a resident of Rocky Mount, N.C., 18 miles north of Wilson. Cause of death was described as: “accidental drowning stepping off cab steps while train on tressel over Contentna Creek near Wilson NC Train #83.”