Roanoke's Virginian Ry. Station

Gary Gray · **Posted:** Wed Mar 07, 2012 8:51 pm

Finally, after almost a decade of hard work and persistence, and many bureaucratic hurdles and setbacks.

http://www.wdbj7.com/news/wdbj7-former- ... 3759.story

http://www2.wsls.com/news/2012/mar/07/r ... r-1748777/

Dave Crosby · **Posted:** Thu Mar 08, 2012 3:42 pm

Excellent news. It'll be nice to see it restored, as compared to the indoor botanical garden you showed me a couple years ago.

Dave

tim o'm · **Posted:** Fri Mar 09, 2012 12:23 am

The last time I was in Roanoke for any length of time was in 1998, and I don't remember much going on in the building at that time. Was it a functioning business of any type before the fire?

John D · **Joined:** Mon Aug 23, 2004 2:28 pm **Posts:** 485

IIRC, the Virginian Railway station was formerly used as a lawn/garden/fertilizer-type store of some kind.

Very glad to see this restoration taking place. Another chapther in Roanoke's rich rail preservation history!

Gary Gray · **Posted:** Fri Mar 09, 2012 2:09 pm

Before the fire the station was home to "Depot Feed & Seed". The fire was started by a "homeless person" in a trash barrell at the west end of the building. It spread to a trailer that was loaded with hay bales and then into the roof of the station. Interestingly enough, one of our prospective tenants is proposing to put in an upscale garden & landscaping shop. The baggage/express section will house a mini-museum focusing on the Virginian Ry.