Vicker Coaling Tower - Build Date

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Why was Vicker where it is? 

N&W had a practice of placing coaling stations mid-district on the
main line.  Dwight, Phoebe, Vicker, Farm, Prichard, and Dorney are
some examples.  Vicker certainly was in the right place -- it could
serve the pushers, and engines to/from Bluefield and Bristol.  In
the cycle of J's, the engine arriving Monroe on No. 42 went to make No. 41
for Bristol.  There was 4 minutes of schedule padding on both trains
to allow service at Vicker (and avoid having to pay Southern for coal
and water at Monroe).

The coaling facility at Dwight disappeared in late 1948, but during 
World War II,  Dwight had another purpose. Cars of ammunition and bombs
for transfer to ships at Norfolk were held there and relayed to Norfolk
on a "just-in-time" schedule based on a ship's sailing.  Why ?  Because
Dwight was beyond the range of a naval bombardment.   Harry Bundy




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