Prior to the move to Richmond, the Official Guide (1956) lists: "General Offices: S.A.L. R.R. Building, Norfolk 10, VA., and Portsmouth, VA." Where was the S.A.L. R.R. Building in Norfok and what departments were located there ? Norfolk, in 1956, was also HQ for the Virginian Rwy., Norfolk Southern RAILWAY, Norfolk & Portsmouth Belt Line.

-- Harry Bundy (Y6B@aol.com), March 11, 2003

Answers

The SAL 'round front' building near the waterfront in Portsmouth held a restaurant on the ground floor ("The Jewish Mother") until a couple of years ago...I dined there one lovely spring day. The 2 top floors of the building were added in 1914...some 19 years after the building was first constructed. SAL offices were moved to Broad St.in Richmond in August of 1958, but passenger operations continued on in Portsmouth until the late 1960s.

-- Greg Hodges (ghodges@smpsfa.com), March 17, 2003.

Harry, the SAL had their offices in as many as four buildings spread around Norfolk and Portsmouth. The Portsmouth building, located on the water front at the foot of High Street, was the location where most of the Eecutive offices were located originally but later was the location of the Accounting Offices and the Passenger Station. They also had a few offices in the neighboring Star Building, thus the walkway between the two buildings. Their Executive Offices were located on Plume Street at Granby Street in Norfolk from around 1934 to about 1958. This was a seven story building that also housed a ticket office and had other businesses on the first floor such as a camera shop, lunchionette, etc. This building was several blocks away from the Union Passenger Station used by the Virginian, N&W and the Norfolk Southern.

-- Dave George (deg835@earthlink.net), March 16, 2003.

On January 1st, 1937, the SAL moved their HQ into the "Seaboard Railway Building", 141 Granby St., Norfolk, Va. A 1930's era picture shows a building in Portsmouth, Va., titled "Main Offices". This is the brick building with a semi-circular facade.

-- Tom Underwood (tlunder@attglobal.net), March 11, 2003.