page_title: Stuart, Virginia
section_title: Civil War, reconstruction and growth (1860–1916)
hierarchical_section_title: Stuart, Virginia / History / Civil War, reconstruction and growth (1860–1916)
caption_attribution_description: English: Engine of the Danville and Western Railway, also known as the 'Dick and Willie' or the "Delay and Wait,' which ran from Danville, Virginia, to Stuart, Virginia. The railway began operation in 1891. The railroad later merged into the Southern Railway.
context_page_description: Stuart is a town in Patrick County, Virginia, where it is the county seat. The population was 1,408 at the 2010 census. The town of Stuart was named after Confederate Gen. J.E.B. Stuart, of nearby Ararat, Virginia.
context_section_description: Following the economic difficulties of the Civil War, the residents of Taylorsville focused their energies on expanding railroads to connect to markets and boost the economy. The Danville and New River Railroad was chartered in 1873, with the line completed to Martinsville, Virginia in nearby Henry County by 1881. In 1883, citizens of Patrick County approved a bond of $150,000 to expand the line. The first train pulled into Taylorsville in August 1884. With the growth associated with the railroad, Taylorsville was incorporated as a town in 1884 and was renamed Stuart in honor of Confederate Major General J.E.B. Stuart, who was born 20 miles west of town in Ararat, Virginia.
  Following the completion of the railroad, the town of Stuart continued to grow steadily. The population increased 25% from 300 in 1884 to 371 in 1900. While occupations continued to center around the courthouse functions and the typical needs of a trading center, the 1900 census reflects the influence of the railroad by recording four railroad employees, eight salesmen, one insurance agent, one mining engineer, and one timber dealer. Five teachers, three hotels, two druggists, and two bartenders also indicate the growth of the town. The construction of the railroad led to the distinction of "uptown" and "downtown" Stuart. The original courthouse village was situated at the crest of a hill. An industrial and commercial area developed adjacent to the railroad, which was located further downhill along the flats of the Mayo River. "Uptown" continued to serve as the center of the town with the courthouse, churches, school, attorneys' offices, banks, hotels, and stores. The two areas, however, were closely related and interdependent; the town's first telephone line at the turn of the twentieth century was run between the railroad depot downtown and the Hotel Perkins uptown.
caption: Engine, Danville and Western Railway, ca. 1900
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