Weldon developed into a major regional railroad hub during the nineteenth century as lines from Virginia and North Carolina converged there, transforming the community from dependence on river transportation into a railroad crossroads linked to markets such as Richmond and Baltimore. The Petersburg Railroad reached nearby Blakely in 1833 as the first railroad to enter North Carolina, the Wilmington and Raleigh Railroad was diverted to Weldon after plans to connect the state’s chief port to Raleigh changed, and the Portsmouth and Roanoke Railroad completed the first bridge across the Roanoke River into what is now Weldon in 1837. By 1840, the Wilmington and Raleigh and the Raleigh and Gaston had been completed to or near Weldon, and the completed Wilmington and Weldon Railroad, at 161 1/2 miles, was regarded as the longest railroad in the world and had a terminus there. Weldon was incorporated on January 6, 1843, and by 1855 five rail companies operated lines to and through the town, leading some to call it the Railroad Capital of the World. Railroad resources remained central to Weldon’s significance, including the ca. 1840 freight depot, identified as the oldest railroad building in North Carolina, later enlarged in 1881. During the Civil War, Weldon’s rail position made it a mobilization camp and a critical point in the Confederate supply system, with the Wilmington and Weldon trestle serving as a vital link from Wilmington and the surrounding railroads called by General Robert E. Lee the Lifeline of the Confederacy; fortification remnants in the region reflect efforts to protect these lines. In the early twentieth century, the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad embankment and viaduct and the ca. 1912 Union Station represented continued railroad importance, with the elevated structure built in 1910-1911 to improve operations by allowing the Seaboard Air Line Railroad to pass beneath Atlantic Coast Line tracks.