The Richmond and Danville Railroad was the railroad which could assist in the marketing of this crop, but the lawmakers would not give the railroad a charter until 1847. Railroads were the seeds of growth in Antebellum Richmond. Both the agricultural and manufacturing industries were reliant upon railroads, and vice versa. As industrial manufactures increased their products, Richmond began to commercialize. If agriculture and manufactured items were not being produced, then the railroads would suffer a severe decrease in net revenue.
Railroads receive much of their net revenue from passenger and freight charges.
Therefore railroads and farmers needed to coexist with each other in order to provide a profit for Richmond's economy. The city also needed the railroad. Urban growth, as well as that of large suburban areas, was greatly facilitated by developments in city transportation. Taylor suggests that railroads' binding of city and countryside was essential for the growth and industrialization of Richmond. Railroads presented problems to which the city had to adjust before becoming a major industrial center.