News Release
Date: 7-11-03

NCDOT Celebrates Renovation of Historic Station

Hamlet - State Transportation Secretary Lyndo Tippett today joined state and local officials in Hamlet for a renovation celebration that marks the beginning of a year-long restoration process of the 103-year old Hamlet train station.

The N.C. Department of Transportation (NCDOT) and the city of Hamlet have been working together during the past few years to prepare the site and relocate the historic train station to a new, safer permanent home. Now the detailed work begins to renovate the historic train station and restore it as a passenger train station and community center.

"Our stations are a vital component of North Carolina’s passenger rail service," said Tippett. "Your first and last impressions of your trip are tied to the train stations, so it is imperative that those facilities are safe, comfortable and inviting."

Next week contractors will begin demolishing sheetrock, ceiling tiles and interior walls that were added over the years to expose the original wooden tongue and groove surfaces. During the next year, crews will stabilize the building, replace portions of the metal shingle roof, replace and repair sidings and windows, and refinish surfaces throughout the building. Renovation work should be completed in fall 2004.

Tippett said the department is working with communities across the state to preserve and renovate historic stations and develop new multi-modal centers to better serve the traveling public. "The Hamlet station restoration will serve as an inspiration for what is possible for rail travel in North Carolina," he said.

In 2001, the city realigned Main Street to provide enough room for the station in its new location. Construction crews spent the past year excavating the site, building a basement and foundation for the relocated station and installing utilities. In March, the station was lifted off its foundation, jacked up and rotated 90 degrees. The station was moved across the tracks onto its new foundation in April.

The total station rehabilitation project – including relocation of Main Street, station move and renovation – is expected to cost about $7.3 million. Ten percent of that will be paid with local grants and funds from the local community; federal transportation enhancement funds and state money will make up the difference.

The Hamlet train station was constructed for the Seaboard Airline Railroad (now CSX Transportation) in 1900 at the junction of five major rail lines connecting Raleigh, Savannah, Atlanta, Charlotte and Wilmington. Hamlet subsequently became the 'hub' of the railroad. Like so many towns, the railroad brought people and progress, spurred economic development, established businesses, and built the community. In the early 1940s, as many as 16 passenger trains made daily stops at the station. But passenger rail service diminished in the mid 20th century and the station fell into disrepair. In 1993, the NCDOT approached the city about restoring the station.

Today Amtrak's Silver Star provides daily service from Hamlet to New York and Florida. Amtrak has installed a modular station to house passengers temporarily while the station is being renovated.

"Hamlet was built around the railroad," said Marchell Adams David, Hamlet's City Manager. "And our city’s identity has long been tied to the station and the railroad. The community has been extremely supportive of the station project and has worked diligently to help raise funds for the renovation."

David said the station restoration project has become a catalyst for other redevelopment in the downtown.