Welcome to Discover Fort Monroe.

This week we're talking about trains.

Now, before some of you click away, did you know Fort Monroe had a rail line running through the entire base?

And not only helped military operations and the ability to move equipment around, but two other exciting facts we'll talk about later.

From a public perspective, it aided Fort Monroe's legacy as one of the premier tourist destinations.

Chugga chugga chugga chugga choo choo chugga chugga chugga chugga choo choo choo chugga chugga chugga chugga choo choo.

Before I tell you why we're at the seawall, I've got to give you some context about the Chesapeake and Ohio Rail Company.

Virginia Central and Huntington dreamed of connecting the Tidewater region to the western waters of the Ohio River.

In 1878 and 1888.

They found themselves with a large coal resource, and looked towards Newport News as a way to ship and distribute that coal.

I bring us here because before Continental Park, this was the site of the critically acclaimed Hygeia Hotel, which was purchased by a local hero, a famous local named Harrison Phoebus.

Harrison Phoebus pushed Huntington to build rail lines from Newport News to here at Old Point Comfort, also known as Fort Monroe.

And after quite a lot of persuasion, Huntington agreed, but the Army still wasn't convinced, and so the rail line would end.

Mile marker one in Phoebus.

This, amongst other efforts, gained Harrison Phoebus enough local fame that that part of Hampton is still named after him.

Approximately around 1889 1890, the Army gave in and C&O was allowed to build their railway to right here.

And that's what brings me to this recreation of mile marker zero.

Today it's a symbolic reminder, but back in 1890, it was the final stop.

The rail line would stretch 664.9 miles to Cincinnati, Ohio.

The effect of three major rail lines to Fort Monroe was massive, and the creation of that infrastructure was no easy feat.

We started this video and I'm currently sitting on a rail line trestle, which was kind of like a bridge for the trains to come into Fort Monroe and stretch 2,800ft into Phoebus.

Fort Monroe was one of the top destination spots on the East Coast, attracting a very high level clientele.

C&O built their rail stations at Fort Monroe a step above the rest, hoping that they could attract the affluent clientele to use their rail line.

The rail system at Fort Monroe often brought overlap between the military and the public.

If you remember from the TRADOC headquarters video at Fort Monroe, the second Coast Artillery was hosting tea dances right here on Saturday nights, and Murray Hall.

This rail system allowed for even more tourists and visitors to join in on the Saturday night fun.

Two other military facts I teased about at the beginning was this infrastructure allowed the military to display rail gun captured from the Germans, and even bring back one of Hitler's trains for studying.

Streetcars like this one behind me used to provide transportation around Hampton and on to Fort Monroe.

In this map, we can see the streetcar route labeled as trolley route as it comes through the entrance at Fort Monroe, passes the Fort Monroe Theater and continues down Ingalls Road.

In this photo, we could see it in front of the US Customs and Post Office, which we talked about in the Fort Monroe Authority offices at Fort Monroe.

Video while the C&O passenger service ceased operation in 1939, these streetcars would continue into the 1940s until busses started to phase in as the replacement.

Thanks to the tireless work that these volunteers here at Streetcar390.

This local piece of history is being restored right here at Fort Monroe.

Once complete, the plan is to display it as part of the Hampton History Collections.

This week we discovered the rail line remnants here at Fort Monroe, including mile marker zero, and this rail trestle here.

I've shown you the maps and we've talked about the important role the rail line infrastructure played.

Next time you're visiting Fort Monroe, pay attention to how the roads are laid out.

Think about what influence this old rail line might have had on those roads.

You might just find yourself in a eureka moment.