Valdosta in 1885, with Train Station

The Atlantic Coast Line train station shown in the previous post seems to be the one shown in this birdseye panorama of Valdosta in 1885:

Panorama of Valdosta in 1885

Valdosta Bird’s Eye View, Wellge, H., 1885, found in Historic Map Works Rare Historic Maps Collection
I suspect this map was drawn by somebody who had never been there, judging by the trees. Still, it’s interesting.

Swamp Still Full, Dog Ecstatic

Fay filled the swamp, but it’s been a week now, so time to check. Why yes, the swamp is still full, and the dog is ecstatic?

P9070181

Picture by Gretchen, 7 Sep 2008

How do you tell when a 100 pound Rotweiller is ecstatic? When she turns into an alligator.

The water is down a couple of inches as you can see by the watermarks, but it’s still pretty full.

Valdosta Depot, Atlantic Coast Line Railroad

Here’s a train at the ACL station in Valdosta:

ACL Depot

I don’t know the vintage of this picture. Those more clever than me could try dating it by the style of the Coca-Cola ads or the electrical poles or the clothes or the locomotive engine. I would guess 1920s.

This is the railroad (then known as the Atlantic and Gulf Railroad) that caused Troupville residents to uproot themselves and to found Valdosta as the Lowndes County seat at the present location, on the main line from Savannah to Thomasville. So this is the original Valdosta train station. I don’t know if it’s the original building, but it’s the original location, between Patterson and Ashley, where the overpass starts now.

Picture courtesy of Lowndes County Historical Society. They’ve got a caboose out back, too.