The Committee hopes to restore the Boones Mill Depot and use it to highlight the town’s history, music and arts.
Over 100 years ago, the Norfolk & Western Railroad built a small station in Boones Mill, just south of Roanoke. From that station, the town of Boones Mill grew and thrived.
Now, the citizens of Boones Mill are working against a hard deadline of May 1, 2014 to raise $100,000 to move the depot off railroad property and set it on the path for restoration. If the Committee does not raise the necessary funds by May 1, the historic depot could be torn down.
“We announce today an anonymous $50,000 matching grant to move the depot,” said Mayor Ben Flora. “The grant will be matched dollar-for-dollar so we can reach our goal. The goal is in sight, and this matching grant will help us to save the Boones Mill Depot.”
Boones Mill Council Member Mike Smith said that the history of the town is deeply rooted in the old Depot. “Without this station, the town of Boones Mill would be known as nothing more than a stagecoach stop along the ‘Old Carolina Trail,’” he said. “The depot brought us commerce, opportunity and helped us to build a thriving community.”
The depot currently sits on Norfolk Southern property. In 2011, Norfolk Southern announced plans to tear down the station due to safety concerns. The Boones Mill Depot Restoration Committee was formed in 2012 to raise the funds to move the station off of Norfolk Southern property and to restore it to its former glory in a new location.
Norfolk Southern has agreed to delay plans to tear down the depot so the Committee could raise the necessary funds.
The Committee’s ultimate goal is to restore the depot so that the community can use it as a public place. “This station is where we welcomed our loved ones home,” Smith said. “We’d like the station to once again be a welcoming place for our community.”
Future plans for the Boones Mill Depot include a town museum, a place to highlight the area’s music, and a visitors’ center. “While the town will own the depot, local tax dollars will not be used to help move and restore the historic building,” Smith said. “The Committee is applying for grants and asking rail fans and citizens of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains to help us.”
Smith said that all donations are tax deductible. The official donation form can be found on the Boones Mill town website (www.townofboonesmill.org) or on the “Restoring the Boones Mill Norfolk & Western Railroad Station” Facebook page.
The Roanoke Valley Preservation Foundation is accepting the donations on behalf of the Town of Boones Mill. Donations can be mailed to:
Roanoke Valley Preservation Foundation
Attn: Boones Mill Depot Fund
PO Box 1366
Roanoke, VA 24007
