'It greeted our war dead:' Thousands push to preserve Raleigh's 80-year-old Seaboard Station

More than 2,500 people are pushing to save Raleigh's historic Seaboard Station. At a meeting on Tuesday, concerned locals spoke directly to City Council – hoping to explain the importance of the station's history and present ideas for how to incorporate the structure into the new development.

An online petition and Facebook page titled "Save Seaboard Station" have garnered a passionate following, calling on developers and the city council to spare the station during the rezoning process.

The group is appealing to people to sign their petition and attend the public rezoning hearing on Tuesday night at 7 p.m. in City Council Chambers.

Seaboard Station has remnants from 1942, including memories of WWII soldiers

Seaboard Station opened in 1942, serving passengers until 1986. Even today, in its new life as a garden shop and diner, the building's external appearance is almost completely unchanged from 80 years ago – providing a rare peek into Raleigh's past. The overhangs that sheltered passengers during WWII are still visible today, providing shelter for shoppers choosing plants for their garden. The giant concrete stop blocks that once prevented trains from hitting the station are still standing amid the lunch tables. Historians say the station also has remnants from the era of segregation in Raleigh.

"Seaboard Train Station is essentially unchanged. It's a 1942 touchstone of Raleigh's connection to the outside world and the only historic passenger station we have," said Dr. Ruth Little, an architectural historian who has lived in Raleigh since the 1970s.

She described the station as Colonial Revival-style architecture with classical entrances and a historic train shed, with each entryway porch holding a decorative symbol suggesting the wheels of a train.

Not only is the structure historically significant, Little says it has significance in the memories of many locals.

"So many Raleigh citizens are deeply attached to this building. For anyone here before 1986, it was a portal to the outside world," said Little, who remembers catching the Silver Star to Washington D.C. in the 1970s and boarding at the station as a newlywed for her honeymoon.

"Seaboard Station is not just a little brick building. It dutifully greeted out families, collected our war dead," said John Reese, resident of a historic neighborhood, at the meeting.

He warned of the risk of "butchering its bones" and turning Raleigh into "Anytown USA."

Why did Seaboard Station never become a historic landmark?

The former owners of Seaboard Station never requested historic landmark status, which left the station with no protection, despite its roots in Raleigh history. Because of this, developers do not have any legal obligation to save the station.

"The previous owners refused to list it on the National Register and to be locally landmarked, despite multiple efforts at the state and local level. They didn't want to register it because it would complicate the sale. The station is now threatened with demolition only because it has no protection," said Little.

She said the beloved station is in perfect condition – and it can tell the story of Raleigh's history for generations to come.

Council opted not to take a vote at Tuesday's meeting.