Marston, North Carolina facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Marston, North Carolina
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 Marston, North Carolina
Location in North Carolina
Marston, North Carolina
Location in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | North Carolina |
| County | Richmond |
| Elevation | 423 ft (129 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP code |
28363
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| Area codes | 910, 472 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1021356 |
Marston is a small place in Richmond County, North Carolina, in the United States. It's called an "unincorporated community." This means it's a group of homes and businesses that isn't officially a town or city with its own local government.
Marston is located along a big road called U.S. Route 1. It's about 11 miles (18 km) east of a larger town called Rockingham. Even though it's a small community, Marston once had its own post office until 2010. It still has its own ZIP code, 28363.
Marston is also famous for something important from World War II. A special type of metal plank, used to build temporary runways and roads, was named "Marston Mat" after this community.
Contents
The Story of Marston Mats
The "Marston Mat" is a cool invention that helped soldiers during World War II. These mats were made of steel and had many holes in them. They were used to quickly build runways for airplanes and roads for vehicles in tough places.
How Marston Mats Were Developed
The idea for these special mats came from the Carnegie Illinois Steel Company. They designed the mats to be strong but also easy to use. Each mat was a panel of steel, about 10 feet long and 15 inches wide. They weighed about 66 pounds each.
Testing the Marston Mats
In November 1941, before the United States fully entered World War II, the U.S. military tested these mats near Marston, North Carolina. The 21st Engineer Regiment (Aviation) was in charge of this test. They built a 3,000-foot long runway. This is about the length of 10 football fields!
Building a Runway in Days
It took the engineers only eleven days to build this long runway. They used 36,000 panels of the pierced steel planking. These panels arrived on eighteen railway cars. The great thing about Marston Mats was that they could be put together without any special tools. Soldiers could also easily lift them up and move them to a new spot if needed. This made them perfect for wartime situations where speed and flexibility were key.
