Harbeson railroad station draws visitors

The introduction of the railroad created new towns throughout the country, including in Sussex County. Similar to last week’s postcard with Rehoboth Beach stamped onto it, this generic postcard promotes visiting Harbeson, which is stamped onto the station next to the couple embracing in what can be interpreted as either a hello or goodbye. The Harbeson station was originally called Broadkill Station, which was 12 miles away from Broadkill Beach. According to the book “Abandoned Railroads of Delmarva” by Douglas Poore, when the station was built on a site with no name, the railroad chose to use the name of a nearby beach community. As the area around the station grew, the station was renamed Harbeson, taking the name of a major landowner in the area – Harbeson Hickman. The Delaware, Maryland & Virginia branch took rail passengers from Harrington to Rehoboth Beach. Stops along the way included Georgetown, Broadkill (Harbeson), Cool Spring, Nassau, Lewes and Rehoboth Beach.