Victoria Railroad Park #1 Traditional Cache
Victoria Railroad Park #1
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(micro)
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****Congratulations to ithink314 for the First To Find****
This the first of three geocaches placed in the town of Victoria, Virginia.
The founding history of the town starts in the first years of the twentieth century with the success of the Tidewater Railroad. Established in 1907 the town was named in honor of Queen Victoria of England, a person greatly admired by Henry H. Rogers, the financier and primary owner of the railroad. Located 120 miles west of Norfolk, Virginia, Victoria was a division point for the railroad which became the VIRGINIAN RAILWAY COMPANY in 1907 and passenger service between those two points started in that same year. By the end of that decade, the VIRGINIAN reached far into West Virginia to the coal mining areas, also making important links to other railroads reaching the midwest. Newspapers carried advertisements for land to draw residents and developers. It was expected to become a twentieth century boom town as coal was hauled from the West Virginia coal mines to the coal piers in Norfolk for shipment overseas. The railroad yard included a roundhouse, remnants of which can still be seen today in the park, and a passenger station. There was also a railroad commissary in Victoria, Sands & Co., where railroad employees could shop for groceries and dry-good items and have the charges deducted from their railroad paychecks. It was not uncommon to see coal trains in excess of 100 cars pass through the area. Victoria was the mid-point between Roanoke and Norfolk where the engines had to be switched and serviced before continuing onto the eastern and western points. The typical railroad development brought the expected growth to the town, both in population and buildings, before leveling off in a score of years. The railroad and the town continued to prosper. In 1959 the Virginian Railroad merged with the Norfolk and Western, which later became the Norfolk Southern, and the railroad ceased to exist in Victoria.
Recently groups of citizens have voluntarily worked to develop the railroad park, including walking trails, which is part of the Southside Virginia Tobacco Heritage Trail system, along the route of the tracks. The trail is limited to non-motorized traffic (not including handicap equipment) and is for use by pedestrians, hikers, bicyclists, and horseback riders. Imagine, as you walk along the trail, what it must have been like 50 years ago when coal trains were being moved along the rails.
This is the first of three geocaches hidden along the flat walking trail of the railroad park. The caches are within 50 feet of the trail. Two of the caches are traditionals, micro in size, and one is an unknown regular size cache. You will have to find Victoria Railroad Park #1 and #2 before you can find #3. There is information in both #1 and #2 that you will use to find #3. Each of the coordinates is an average of 300 waypoints. Bring a writing instrument to sign the logs and record the information you need for #3. Please replace the cache containers as found.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Fvapr gur pnpur vf va cynva ivrj vg jbhyq or JNVFG gb tvir n uvag.