| Annual Report of the South Side RR |
| as of October 1, 1865, |
| Superintendent's Report |
| |
| Superintendent's Report
|
| Superintendent's Office |
| Petersburg, Nov. 25th, 1865 |
|
|
|
L. Peebles
|
|
Pest. S. S. R. R. Co.
|
|
|
|
Sir,
|
|
Owing to the sudden change in the Government of the
country, which took place in April last, it becomes necessary to class
the account of the operations of the Railroad for the fiscal year
ending September 30th, 18665, under two heads.
|
|
First. Under the Confederate Government, the receipts and
expenses of Transportation for the six months from October 1st, 1864
to April 1st, 1865, were in Confederate money, as follows:
|
| Receipts of
Transportation |
| Freight |
228,213.25 |
| Express Freight |
122,217.13 |
| Passengers |
479,630.55 |
| Government transportation |
1,407,981.87 |
|
2,238,042.80 |
| The Expenses of Transportation were |
1,563,060.36 |
| Leaving income |
$674,982.44 |
|
|
The expenses include the value of stores and materials on
hand on the 1st of October last, and also the cost of all purchases
made for the same during the six months.
|
|
The income above stated will be found accounted for in
the Treasurer's report. I will merely state that the only part of any
value was the sum of $3,592.32 in greenbacks, which was all that we
had to start the road again when it was turned over to the Company by
the government.
|
|
*****
|
|
In connection with the business of the first six months
of the fiscal year, I consider it proper to state, that it was done
under the most adverse circumstances. During that time Petersburg was
closely besieged by the United States army, and shells were thrown
into and round our depot and shops as often, that it was unsafe to do
business in them with any regularity. The consequence was that we
could not get more than half our work done, and the repairs of the
engines had frequently to be done at night. It was also, as is well
known, extremely difficult to procure proper materials to do the work.
Added to this, the demand on our already over-tasked machinery for
military transportation grew larger every day, and we became unable to
bring in the supplies for the army as promptly as the exigencies of
the service required.
|
|
Under these circumstances, and not being able to procure
or hire additional power that we could control, we made application to
the Quarter Master's Department to impress for our use some engines
and cars from roads that had a surplus of them, as had been done for
the {Richmond &} Danville and other
companies. Instead of this being granted, for reasons doubtless
satisfactory to the Quarter Master General, but not to us, we
witnessed the strange spectacle of the most important part of our
road, that between Burkeville and Lynchburg, being impressed and given
to another company to run its cars on. It is not worth while to dwell
upon this transaction, except to say that it was done without our
knowledge or consent, and indeed against our strenuous protest. It was
one of those arbitrary exercises of power that was neither sustained
by law nor reason, and was not provoked by any failure of the company
to do its duty as far as it was in the compass of its ability.
|
|
This uncalled for impressment was well calculated to
injure us in various ways, if things had remained as they were, while
it was of questionable benefit to the government. But there was no
time for it to do much harm, for the evacuation of Petersburg by the
Confederate army occurred shortly afterwards, and put an end to the
impressment in as summary a manner as it had been made.
|
|
As we had a number of engines and cars up the road when
this last event took place, I considered it my duty to go up to take
charge of them. But with the surrender of the army, the United States
authorities took possession of our road and my duties necessarily
ceased for the time.
|
|
*****
|
|
In Petersburg {after the
evacuation} the bridge to the shops, 350
feet long, was burnt, with two locomotives and all the cars that could
be placed on it, and all the good cars in the depot lot. Our
provisions and stores of all kinds, of which we had nearly a year's
supply of meat, were either destroyed or pillaged, and nothing was
saved, except a quantity of salt *****.
|
|
The engines left standing in the engine house and the
cars in the lot at the shops were not destroyed, but every piece of
brass work, and all the belting, tools and every thing portable in the
shops, were carried off.
|
|
At the 14 mile post an engine and some cars that had
been sent up for wounded men the day before the evacuation, were
burnt.
|
|
Four spans of the High bridge, 450 feet long, were burnt.
Two and a third spans, or 260 feet, of the Farmville bridge were
burnt, and with it a number of cars which had been placed on the
bridge. The Buffalo bridge, a new structure just erected, 160 feet
long, and the two bridges across James River, one of four and the
other six spans, in all 1130 feet, were also burnt.
|
|
The whole length of bridges burnt was 2350 feet, all
first class bridges, of which the portion of the High bridge was over
100 feet high, and the lower James River bridge was 670 feet long and
from 30 to 40 feet high.
|
|
The number of cars burnt or destroyed was 7 passenger
cars, 2 baggage cars and 75 freight cars; and all the section cars
along the road were broken up or burnt, the tools stolen and most of
the fixtures at the way depots that were left standing, were carried
off.
|
|
In fine the destruction was almost complete, and when it
is recollected that the road had been harried by raids in the summer
of 1864, and most of the way stations burnt, and the iron for many
miles torn up and twisted, it will be seen how much the road was
injured.
|
|
*****
|
|
We had in the shops before the evacuation the timber got
out for the frames and the wheels, axles, springs and other materials
for 30 freight cars *****
|
|
We have done nothing yet towards rebuilding the depots
which were burnt last year by raiding parties, as it has tasked all
our energies and means to accomplish the more important work that has
been done. The depots destroyed were those at Ford's, Wilson's,
Wellville, Blacks & Whites, Burkeville, Appomattox and Concord.
*****
|
|
My thanks are due to those employees of the Company who
have assisted me during the late trying times, particularly to those
whose immediate duties obliged them to follow the fortunes of the road
on the memorable second of April. To the active exertions, the
prudence, skill and management, the coolness and courage of two of
them, who unfortunately are not now in our service, the Company is
indebted for the preservation of the only good funds saved from the
wreck of the road.
|
|
Respectfully submitted,
|
|
H. D. Bird
|
|
Gen'l Superintendent
|
|