Chester’s original “downtown” was a stop which was an intersection of the Richmond and Petersburg Railroad, running north to south, and the Clover Hill Railroad, which became the Bright Hope Railway, then the Farmville and Powhatan Railroad. In 1900, when the Richmond and Petersburg merged with the Atlantic Coast Line, that new railroad intersected the same east west railroad which became the Tidewater and Western Railroad in 1905.
The Brighthope Railway hulled coal and transported timber and agricultural products and had passenger service.
The Chester Station, which was located at Curtis Street and the CSX Railroad tracks, was the scene of a battle during the American Civil War. The Seaboard Air Line also passed through Chester in 1900 running north to south which today Chester Linear Park is located on part of it. Its station was located at the intersection of Lee and Quay streets at Linear Park.
