|
In 1762 William Ingles and his wife, Mary Draper Ingles, established Ingles' Ferry. The ferry became the nucleus of a commercial center which was to have, among other businesses, a tavern, blacksmith's shop and a general store.
The coming of the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad in 1854 brought a marked change in orientation for Radford. A depot was constructed at Lovely Mount and because it was situated halfway between Lynchburg and Bristol, it was named Central. Its midway location also led the railroad to build repair shops at Central stimulating residential and commercial growth in the village. When the railroad arrived, Lovely Mount had a population of 30. Two years later, when the first scheduled trains ran, there were over 100 people, a roundhouse, repair shop, workmen's homes, a tavern, restaurant and general store. Gradually trade was taken away from Lovely Mount Tavern and Central became the commercial center, serving as a shipping point for the area's products. These products consisted of tobacco, bacon and lumber.
The population grew from 300 in 1880 to 3,000 in 1890. In 1885, Central City was incorporated as a town and in 1887; its name was officially changed to Radford. In 1888, the post office was moved from Lovely Mount Tavern to Radford, although it retained the Lovely Mount name until 1891 when it was changed to Radford. The following year, 1892, a post office was established west of Connelly's Run and also named Radford. Therefore, the first post office was again renamed, this time to East Radford. There were also two railroad stations constructed, one on either side of Connelly's Run. They were called Radford (east side) and West Radford. By 1892, the two Radfords merged politically and, having the required population of 5,000, attained city status.
The Panic of 1894 put an end to Radford's boom. The city population between 1890 and 1900, but in the twentieth century began slowly to grow again. Several Radford industries began between 1900 and 1930. These included Radford Ice Manufacturing Company (1916), Clover Creamery Company (1922), West End Milling (Lewis Harvey and Sons, owners), and Norfolk and Western Timber Preserving Plant (1921). The Lynchburg Foundry acquired the Radford Pipe Works (opened in 1892) in 1905.
In 1957, the city joined the New River Valley Industrial Commission to help attract new industries to the city. Since then several companies have chosen to locate in Radford, among them the Inland Motors Division of Kollmorgen Corporation, Kenrose Manufacturing Company, Brad Ragan Rubber Company, which was originally the Graflo Rubber Company, and the RADVA Plastics Corporation. The growth of Radford College, given university status in 1979, has influenced the character and development of east Radford. The concern for education and juvenile after-hours behavior was the basis for Radford's achieving "All American city" status.
The railroad no longer dominates Radford. All passenger service was discontinued in 1971. The Radford section of Interstate 81, which was completed in 1965, bypassed the city and reduced US 11 to primarily local traffic. The hospital relocated from Radford to the neighboring county in 1999. Today Radford is a quaint small university town with a thriving business community made up primarily of specialty shops. |