Clinchfield Railroad

The Clinchfield Railroad (reporting mark CRR) was an operating and holding company for the Carolina, Clinchfield and Ohio Railway (reporting mark CCO). The line ran from the coalfields of Virginia and Elkhorn City, Kentucky, to the textile mills of South Carolina. The 35-mile segment from Dante, Virginia, to Elkhorn City, opening up the coal lands north of Sandy Ridge Mountains and forming a connection with the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway at Elkhorn City, was completed in 1915.

"Clinchfield" redirects here. For the small town in Georgia, see Clinchfield, Georgia.
Clinchfield Railroad
Overview
HeadquartersErwin, Tennessee
Reporting markCCO; CRR
LocaleSpartanburg, South Carolina to Elkhorn City, Kentucky
Dates of operation1902–1983
SuccessorSeaboard System (later CSX)
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge

The Clinchfield was the last Class I railroad built in the U.S. east of the Rocky Mountains. The 266-mile railroad provided access to numerous scenic wonders of the Appalachian region and is probably best known for the state-of-the-art railroad engineering techniques applied in its construction, as exemplified by the Clinchfield Loops climbing the Blue Ridge Mountains north of Marion, North Carolina.

The Clinchfield Railroad began operating the line December 1, 1924, and for many years it was leased jointly by the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad and Louisville and Nashville Railroad. When the L&N merged with the ACL's successor, the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad, effective January 1, 1983, forming the Seaboard System Railroad, the separate operating company was unnecessary and was merged into the Seaboard. The line is now owned and operated by CSX Transportation as their Blue Ridge Subdivision (Spartanburg to Erwin, Tennessee) and Kingsport Subdivision (Erwin to Elkhorn City).

At the end of 1925 the railroad operated 309 miles of road and 467 miles of track; mileages in 1970 were 312 and 501.

History
Revenue freight traffic, in millions of net ton-miles
YearTraffic
1925 1044
1933 640
1944 1740
1960 1904
1970 4102
Source: ICC annual reports
Revenue passenger traffic, in millions of passenger-miles
YearTraffic
1925 10
1933 1
1944 7
1960 0.05
1970 1
Source: ICC annual reports

In 1886 ex-Union Gen. John T. Wilder received a charter for the Charleston, Cincinnati and Chicago Railroad, commonly referred to as the "Triple C" Railroad. This was the beginning of the modern Clinchfield. The promoters proposed a 625-mile line from Ironton, Ohio, to Charleston, South Carolina, with an extension down the Ohio River to Cincinnati. It would serve the rich agricultural lands of the Piedmont, the summer resorts of the North Carolina mountains, the rich timber and mineral deposits and coal fields of Virginia and Kentucky, with terminals on both the Ohio River and the Atlantic seacoast. The estimated cost was $21 million, equal to $597,566,667 today. Johnson City, Tennessee, was established as the headquarters for the Triple C Railroad and that city became a railway boom town.

Built north and south from Johnson City, tracks reached Erwin, Tennessee, in 1890. Grading was 90% complete from Johnson City to Dante, Virginia, in 1893 when the Triple C had financial problems and failed in the national depression of that year. In July 1893, the assets of the Triple C Railroad were sold at a foreclosure for $550,000, equal to $15,650,556 today. The new owners renamed it the "Ohio River and Charleston Railroad." The construction continued halfheartedly and in 1897 owners began to sell off the railroad in segments.

Former Clinchfield Depot in Erwin, Tennessee

At the time an enterprising entrepreneur, George Lafayette Carter, was involved in developing the coal lands of southwestern Virginia and needed a railroad to transport his coal to a seaport. In 1902, he purchased the Ohio River and Charleston Railroad, renamed it the Clinchfield Railroad, and organized a gigantic construction program. Between 1905 and 1909 the road was completed from Dante, Virginia, to Spartanburg, South Carolina. Carter got financing to build to high standards and Clinchfield has not had to reduce grades, lighten curves, and enlarge tunnels to handle larger equipment as other railroads have had to do. (The main line retains many 14° curves, though.) Carter established the Clinchfield's headquarters in Johnson City, Tennessee, but later moved it to Erwin, Tennessee, when he could not get land for the shops and classification yards. Erwin remained Clinchfield's headquarters thereafter.

A station was built in 1910 near Little Switzerland, North Carolina, for visitors to the resort. The resort built Etchoe Pass Road, a 4-mile long toll road, connecting to it. The tolls were lifted and the road is now North Carolina Highway 226A. The toll booths are still visible.[1] The station's original name was Mount Mitchell Station but it was subsequently changed to Little Switzerland.[2] In 1954, the railroad retired its last steam locomotive in favor for diesel power.

The Family Lines and CSX

The Clinchfield lost its identity in the mid-1970s when it came under the "Family Lines System" banner, a marketing name for Seaboard Coast Line, L&N, and several smaller railroads. The Clinchfield is remembered for is its famous "Santa Claus Special" that debuted in 1943 from encouragement from several Kingsport businessmen and ran the length of the Clinchfield's main line between Elkhorn City and Kingsport, Tennessee, handing out gifts to the children along the route. Today, it is operated by CSX Transportation with the Kingsport Area Chamber of Commerce and is now known as the "Santa Train".

Freight schedules

Most of their traffic was coal trains, but the Clinchfield did operate a few scheduled Freight Trains. Northbound Clinchfield trains had odd numbers and southbound even (most railroads used even numbers for northbound trains). This was done so that their trains would mesh in with connecting trains from the SCL on the south end at Spartanburg and the C&O on the north end at Elkhorn City. Below is a sample of the Freight Trains between Spartanburg, S.C., and Erwin, Tennessee:

Northbound Trains & Schedule Type Class Freq Notes
93—Spartanburg-09:30am, Bostic-10:25am, Erwin-02:30pm Time Freight 2nd Class Daily
97—Spartanburg-02:20pm, Bostic-03:05pm, Erwin-06:50pm Time Freight 2nd Class Daily Known as "Florida Perishable"
95—Spartanburg-10:00pm, Bostic-11:15pm, Erwin-04:00am Time Freight 2nd Class Daily
19—Marion-01:00pm, Spruce Pine-03:00pm. Erwin-5:30pm Local Freight 4th Class Ex Sun.
7—Spartanburg-10:30am, Bostic Yard-12:30pm Shifter 4th Class Ex Sun.
Southbound Trains & Schedules Type Class Freq Notes
6—Bostic Yard-02:00pm, Spartanburg-05:00pm Shifter 4th Class Ex Sun.
18—Erwin-7:15am, Marion-12:15pm Local Freight 4th Class Ex Sun.
22—Erwin 11:00am, Bostic-04:30pm, Spartanburg-06:30pm Local Freight 4th Class Daily Regularly scheduled Coal Train!
26—Erwin-11:00pm, Bostic-04:30am, Spartanburg-06:30am Through Freight 4th Class Daily
92—Erwin-08:30am, Bostic-12:15pm, Spartanburg-01:15pm Time Freight 2nd Class Daily
94—Erwin-08:00pm, Bostic-10:20pm, Spartanburg-11:50pm Time Freight 2nd Class Daily
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References
  1. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-03-06. Retrieved 2010-06-05.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. Chapman, Ashton (August 23, 1953). "Old Clinchfield Railroad Built by Wild Death-Dealing Crews" (PDF). Charlotte Observer. Johnson's Depot. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2017-12-04. Retrieved 4 Dec 2017.

Further reading
  • Way Jr., William (2017). The Clinchfield Railroad: The Story of a Trade Route Across the Blue Ridge Mountains (2nd ed.). The University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 978-0-8078-7248-2.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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