Good transportation long set one area apart from another for communication, industrial growth, and visitation, and a dream begun in 1825 grew into a record-setting railroad completed in 1833 that stretched 136 miles from Hamburg, S.C. to Charleston. That railroad sparked the growth of Williston, which arose first as a water stop and soon became a major shipping point for asparagus, quickly making it a crucial stop along the line. Although the last train passed through in 1991 and the tracks were removed in 1995, the railroad's presence was so important that without it the town may never have existed.