Confederate Railroad Construction Plans

OR Series 4, Vol. 3, Page 742

NA, RR 2-28A-65

NP, CE 6-27-65

Blue Mountain, Al. to Jacksonville, Al.

This briefly considered road would have been about 20 miles long. Its purpose was to reduce the length of the wagon haulage from the railhead to the Army of Tennessee, at Gadsden, Al. The saving of 5 miles of wagon effort was out of all proportion to the effort required to haul the iron to the work site. No work was done and the Army soon moved out of Gadsden. Jacksonville to Blue Mountain was part of the Blue Mountain to Rome, Ga. line that had been pushed in early 1863. The branch to Gadsden had been a planned part of the Alabama & Tennessee River RR from its early days.

AR, A&TR 4-1-66

Montgomery, Ala. to Selma, Ala.

(the Western Rail Road of Alabama)

This 77 mile road would have completed an all-rail route from Vicksburg to Charleston and was of vital importance. The road was chartered in 1860 and was surveyed the same year. According to the 1862 annual report of the Montgomery & West Point RR, the entire road was placed under contract by January 1, 1862, with grading to be finished by the end of the year and arrangements were being made to secure the same type aid offered by the Government to the construction between Selma and Meridian. In July 1862, the Secretary of War was writing about the source of iron for the road. A November 1862 ad calls for 100 hands to work on the western 15 miles of the road. The route of the road was very difficult because the land on the shortest route was very low and swampy. It is very unlikely that any iron was laid on this road during the war. The leader of the effort to build this road was C. T. Pollard, who was President and Samuel C. Jones was probably Chief Engineer.

Western of Alabama Railroad Map

(Shelby Iron Company Railroad)

NA, RR 2-28A-65

Meridian, Miss. to Chattanooga, Tn.

(the Northeast & Southwest Alabama Railroad)

This 207-mile road had just begun construction when the war began -- only 27 1/2 miles had been laid. In early 1863, the road requested a loan in order to complete the road. It would have provided another route into Chattanooga to support the Army of Tennessee and would have tapped the very rich iron and coal belts of central Alabama. The great amount of work remaining and the lack of iron prevented the Government's giving the loan to complete the road, though the Engineer Bureau did recommend the completion of the southern 123 miles of the uncompleted portion.

NA, ENG 4-4-63

Calera, Ala. to Oxmoor, Ala.

(the South & North Alabama Railroad)

The road was a wartime expedient to connect Red Mountain to Selma, Alabama. The route used the one already surveyed for the unbuilt Alabama Central Railroad. It started at iron furnaces near Shades Mountain and connected to the Alabama & Tennessee River Railroad at Calera. It was extended from Shades Mountain to Oxmoor in late 1863, a total of 25 miles.

NA, A&F 4-3-63

B8, ALA 4-16-64

NA, QM 10-1-64

Shelby Iron Works

to the Alabama & Tennessee River Railroad

This 5-mile road was a wartime expedient to connect the Shelby Iron Company to the Alabama & Tennessee River RR. The local Confederate Ordinance official prevented the construction for over two years by threatening to have senior Company employees conscripted if they diverted iron to make rails for the road. Construction began in 1863 and was completed in January, 1865.

B8, ALA 4-16-64

Strother Iron Works, Ala.

A 1 1/2 mile road from the Alabama & Tennessee River RR, at Ashby, Ala., was graded to the Iron Works. No iron was laid during the war. Additional grading extended 2 1/2 miles toward the coal fields between the Cahaba and Little Cahaba Rivers.

NP, TAR 2-25-64

Selma & Gulf RR

This 59 mile road was chartered in 1858 as one small part of a Nashville to Gulf (Pensacola was the primary goal) road. The charter gave permission to build due south from Selma to a connection with the Mobile & Great Northern RR, the Mobile & Girard RR or the Alabama & Florida (of Alabama) RR. Grading from Selma to about Pine Apple (40 miles south) was practically completed when the war started. It is unlikely any additional work was done, beyond finishing the grading of that leg. It was reported in 1860 that 43 miles of iron had been ordered, but it was not received. William T. Minter was President, Y. L. Yuille was Chief Engineer and Willis S. Burr was Secretary and Treasurer.

NP, SMR 4-19-61

AL, S&G 12-5-61

NP, SMR 2-16-62

NA, S&G 8-29-63

Tennessee & Cossa RR

This 37 mile road was to connect the Alabama & Tennessee River RR at Gadsden to Gunter's Landing and the Winchester & Alabama RR. The road was ready for iron in June of 1861. H. S. Rayburn was President in 1861

NP, JR 4-4A-61

Opelika & Tuscumbia RR

A 232-mile road that was chartered in 1854 and again in 1859 to Talladega and was graded to Waverley in 1861; it was intended to pass through Dadeville to Childersburg and Talladega, with a major extension (and name change) to Tuscumbia approved in late 1861. The President was John R. Slaughter, Chief Engineer was A. H. Barnett, and Secretary & Treasurer was W. G. Williams. See 3/30/61 article for Directors. The Georgia Legislature gave Columbus, Ga. permission to subscribe to the road. The road was sometimes called the Savannah & Memphis RR and formally took that name in 1866.

NP, SR 2-2-61

NP, SR 3-16-61

NP, SR 3-16A-61

NP, SoR 3-23-61

NP, SoR 3-30-61

NP, JR 4-25-61

NP, SMN 7-12-61

UG, O&T 9-11-61

AL, O&T 11-9-61

AL, A&F 12-3-61

NP, MT 10-13-63

NA, RR 7-24-64

Opelika & Oxford RR

This 90-mile road would connect Opelika, on the Montgomery & West Point RR, to Oxford, on the Alabama & Tennessee River RR. Contracts for grading the first sixteen miles (to Lafayette) were let in June 1860; one-third of the grading and two-thirds of the culverting was completed before the war stopped work. Judge E. G. Richards was President and O. P. Rogers was Chief Engineer.

NP, SR 3-16-61

Gainesville to Selma

This 75-mile road was desired by the Government, but could not be constructed because of the lack of iron. A plank road was seen as a substitute, but I have found no information that it was constructed.

NA, QM 3-19-62

Arkansas

Little Rock & Fort Smith RR

This 163-mile long road was authorized in 1853. Grading was done, but no iron was laid until 1870. Jesse Turner was President from the beginning until after the war. S. Martin was the Secretary in 1861.

NP, ARG 4-27-61

Mississippi, Ouachita & Red River RR

A 155-mile road that was incorporated in 1851, chartered in 1852 and organized organized in 1854. The road was intended to run from present Arkansas City, on the Mississippi River, to the Red River, at Lewisville, by way of Monticello and Camden. It would open up 1.5 million prime cotton acres, a large corn area, coal from Camden and be part of the Charleston to San Francisco route. According to the Arkansas Encyclopedia of History & Culture, 7 miles headed south and west from the Mississippi River when the war started, but the road was not operational. The President of the road, however, said in January, 1861, that it was operating freight and passenger cars daily, and a soldier mentions getting a free ride on the road. The iron was sold to the Confederate Army and removed in late 1862. James Thomas Elliott was the President. Directors for 1862 are in the 12/11/61 article.

NP, ATD 1-12-61

NP, ATD 8-15-61

NP, MAP 12-11-61

NP, ATD 12-19-61

NP, ATD 1-2-62

B20, MO&RR 4-3-62

NP, WT 3-11-63

MISC, MO&RR 7-27-64

Florida

Lawton, Ga. to Live Oak, Fl.

This 49-mile connection between the Pensacola & Georgia Railroad and the Savannah, Albany & Gulf Railroad was opposed by many Florida railroad men before the war. It was feared that goods would travel by rail to Savannah or Charleston, rather than to Jacksonville; it would also destroy the rationale for the Florida Railroad. Construction, however, was begun in 1861 by the two companies. Confederate leaders wanted the road completed to enable them to send troops to defend Florida (without having to station them there) and to enable them to draw food (particularly beef) from Florida. Construction was essentially completed by May of 1863, but completion was slowed because of the lack of iron; enough was eventually obtained by removing it from the Florida Railroad, despite court injunctions. The road was completed in March of 1865.

NP, SMN 3-20A-61

AR, SA&G 5-1-61 P

OR Series 4, Vol. 1, Page 612

OR Series 4, Vol. 1, Page 777

FA, P&G 12-14-61

NA, P&G 12-26-61

FHS, FL 12-31-61

FHS, FL 12-xx-61

NA, QMR 3-18-62

OR Series 1, Vol. 53, Page 224

NA, QMR 3-31A-62

NA, QM 4-3-62

NA, QMR 4-27-62

AR, SA&G 5-1-62 P

AR, SA&G 5-1-62 E

FHS, FL 11-10-62

NP, SMN 12-6-62

OR Series 1, Vol. 53, Page 274

NA, ENG 2-6-63

FHS, FL 3-30-63

AR, P&G 4-1-63 P

NP, SMN 4-29-63

FHS, FL 5-21A-63

FHS, FL 5-23-63

NA, ENGR 5-24-63

NA, ENG 5-27C-63

FHS, FL 5-30-63

NA, SWR 6-8-63

NA, FL 6-29-63

NA, DSCGF 7-6-63

NA, ENG 8-10B-63

NA, ENG 8-15-63

FHS, FL 9-16-63

OR Series 1, Vol. 28, Part 2, Page 459

NA, ENGR 10-30A-63

OR Series 1, Vol. 31, Part 3, Page 787

NA, DSCGF 2-10-64

NA, ENGR 2-15-64

OR Series 1, Vol. 35, Part 1, Page 631

OR Series 1, Vol. 35, Part 1, Page 632

NA, ENG 2-22C-64

NA, ENG 2-26-64

NA, ENGR 2-19-64

NA, ENG 3-4A-64

OR Series 1, Vol. 35, Part 2, Page 333

NA, ENG 3-10-64

NA, DF 3-11C-64

NA, DSCGF 3-21-64

NA, RR 3-21-64

OR Series 1, Vol. 35, Part 1, Page 321

UF, A&G 4-6-64

OR Series 1, Vol. 35, Part 2, Page 431

NA, DSCGF 4-28-64

NA, FL 4-28-64

NA, DF 4-30-64

NA, DF 5-2-64

NA, QMR 5-2C-64

NA, DF 5-3-64

NA, L&LO 5-3-64

NA, DF 5-5-64

NA, DSCGF 5-14-64

NA, RRB 5-30-64

NA, L&LO 5-31-64

NA, DSCGF 6-2-64

NA, DSCGF 6-2A-64

NA, DSCGF 6-11-64

NA, DSCGF 7-5-64

NA, RRB 7-5C-64

NA, ENG 7-7A-64

NA, L& LO 7-16-64

OR Series 1, Vol. 35, Part 2, Page 594

OR Series 4, Vol. 3, Page 560

OR Series 1, Vol. 35, Part 2, Page 606

NA, RRB 10-18A-64

NA, DF 10-21-64

NA, RR 11-30-64

OR Series 1, Vol. 47, Part 2, Page 983

OR Series 1, Vol. 47, Part 2, Page 1005

OR Series 1, Vol. 47, Part 2, Page 1021

NA, QMR 1-24A-65

OR Series 1, Vol. 49, Part 1, Page 1029

NA, DF 3-7-65

UF, F 11-4-65

AR, A&G 1-1-66 P

Tallahassee, Fl. to Chattahoochee (Apalachicola) River

This 22-mile road would have run from the end of the Pensacola & Georgia Railroad, at Quincy, Fl., to Appalaga, Fl., on the Chattahoochee River. The road's purpose was to connect Florida and southern Georgia to the rest of the lower South by using river steamboats to Columbus, Ga. The road was graded, the ties furnished, and trestling built in 1862.

FHS, FL 12-31-61

FHS, FL 12-xx-61

OR Series 1, Vol. 53, Page 206

NA, DSCG 10-18A-62

FA, P&G 12-15-62

FHS, FL 3-30-63

FHS, FL 5-21-63

FHS, FL 5-21A-63

NA, SWR 5-21-63

NA, SWR 5-21A-63

NA, SWR 6-8-63

NA, ENG 6-9A-63

NA, DSCGF 7-6-63

NA, ENG 12-3-63

OR Series 1, Vol. 31, Part 3, Page 787

OR Series 1, Vol. 47, Part 2, Page 983

OR Series 1, Vol. 47, Part 2, Page 1005

NP, CT 1-16A-65

OR Series 1, Vol. 47, Part 2, Page 1021

OR Series 4, Vol. 3, Page 1053

NA, DF 2-17-65

NA, DF 3-21-65

Waldo to Ocala, Fla.

This 33-mile branch of the Florida RR was designed to enable the collection of Florida beef from central Florida. Its pre-war intention had been to be a link in a branch from Waldo to Tampa Bay. Grading had been done to Ocala before the war, but it is unlikely that any work was completed during the war because of lack of manpower and money.

NA, ENG 12-3-63

Georgia

Albany, Ga. to Thomasville, Ga.

This was a 55-mile route, proposed in early 1865, to connect southern Georgia and Florida to the rest of the lower South. It would have allowed the Savannah, Albany & Gulf Railroad to save its rolling stock and put it to use for the Confederacy. It is not known whether surveys had been done, but no work was started. Its main proponent was Col. Screven, President of the Atlantic & Gulf RR. The route was used by wagons and troops to get around the route of Sherman's march.

NA, RR 12-12-64

OR Series 1, Vol. 47, Part 2, Page 1021

OR Series 4, Vol. 3, Page 1053

NA, RRB 2-3-65

NA, RR 2-11-65

OR Series 1, Vol. 53, Page 386

Thomasville, Ga. to Bainbridge, Ga.

This plan would have constructed a 37-mile road from the end of the Savannah, Albany & Gulf Railroad to the Chattahoochee River. This had been the intended last leg of the Atlantic & Gulf RR. Despite a lack of money, grading continued through at least 1864, with 30 miles total graded from Thomasville to the west.

NA, DSCG 10-18A-62

OR Series 1, Vol. 47, Part 2, Page 1005

Warrenton, Ga. to Macon, Ga.

(the Milledgeville Railroad)

This road of about 75 miles, designed to connect the Georgia RR and Macon by way of the capital, Milledgeville, was well under construction early in the war. Seven miles of track had been laid from Warrenton toward Sparta when, in April 1862, the Confederate Government seized all but the rail laid and three additional miles of track (enough to reach the Ogeechee River). Grading, bed and masonry had mostly been completed to Milledgeville in late 1862 and work was still in progress to finish all but building the bridges and laying the track, with the plan to have everything in readiness to quickly lay the rail as soon as peace came and the rail could be imported. The road had one construction train, which may have been rented from the Georgia RR, with which it connected at Warrenton.

NP, MT 11-24-60

NP, MT 4-9-61

NP, SMN 1-29-62

NP, AI 3-18A-64

NP, ACS 1-4-65

Savannah, Ga. to Tybee Island, Ga.

This 17-mile branch was designed to provide a way to get goods from the island at the mouth of the Savannah River to Savannah without having to remove the obstructions the military had placed in the river. There is no indication any work was done on the road and it became meaningless once the Union captured Tybee Island and then Fort Pulaski. There is, however, an 1863 court case that indicates the road was at least partially finished.

Georgia Air-Line

This road was to connect Atlanta with northern South Carolina as a link in a shorter line to the North. There is no evidence any work was done during the war. Joseph Winship was President.

NP, ASCY 4-16-61

NP, JR 5-29-62

Georgia & Alabama RR

See Blue Mountain, Al. to Rome, Ga., in the Alabama section above.

Savannah, Griffin & North Alabama RR

The 175-mile road was organized in late 1859. An entry in Hill & Swayze's Guide, 1863, says that the principal grading from Griffin to the Chattahoochee river in Coweta county (about 45 miles) had been completed and the company had no debt. Building had been suspended because of the war. The route was from Griffin to Newnan, Ga. (crossing the Atlanta & West Point RR) and then to Decatur, Ala. The principal office was in Griffin. President: M. G. Dobbins; Secretary and Treasurer: W. J. Jossey.

NA, RR 6-14-62

Georgia Western RR

The road was chartered in 1854 and a call was made on October 4, 1860 for bids for grading and masonry on fifty miles, commencing at Atlanta and extending into Haralson County. The eventual destination was to be either Jacksonville or Tuscaloosa, Ala. L. P. Grant (future Confederate Engineer officer) was the Chief Engineer.

NP, CM 1-1B-61

NP, JR 5-29-62

Polk Slate Quarry RR

This 12 mile road was to connect the Polk Slate Quarry (in Paulding County) to the Western & Atlantic RR in Marietta. It was chartered in 1859 and contracts for grading were let in July, 1860. There was enough time to complete the road, but how much was done beyond grading is unknown. There are numerous documents relating to shipments of slate over the Western & Atlantic RR to Macon for the new Armory construction during the war, being shipped from Cartersville. The provider of the slate used the Van Wert Post Office in eastern Polk County, but the location of the quarry is uncertain. It is unlikely to have had rolling stock of its own, probably being serviced by the Western & Atlantic RR. The road was intended to eventually head west, through Polk County, Geo. to Jacksonville, Ala. where it would connect with the Alabama & Tennessee River RR, making a total of about 95 miles long.

In the Acts Passed by the General Assembly of Georgia, December 1860, on page 192, there is a section titled "Georgia Western R. R." which authorizes the Georgia Western Railroad Company and the Polk Slate Quarry Railroad Company the right to build and construct their Railroads on the right of way of the Western & Atlantic Railroad. This is clearly the railroad in the previous paragraph. However, on page 197, there is a section titled "Polk Slate Quarry R. R." which says the South Western R.R. may construct a Branch Railroad from Albany or Dawson to the Chattahoochee River. Dawson is 180 miles south of Paulding County and this road is clearly not the one mentioned in any Confederate documents.

NA, ML 8-17-63

Atlanta & Roswell RR

This 18-mile road was incorporated by the Legislature in April 1863 to connect the Georgia RR, near Decatur, to the factories in Roswell, on the northern side of the Chattahoochee River. Charles Pratt had been hired a the Engineer and was in process of laying out the line of the road in March, 1863. Pratt had been a Drill Master at the Georgia camp near Macon since June, 1862. Pratt's resignation from the Army was not accepted by the Secretary of War (probably since he knew that the iron could not be found to lay the road, even if graded), but nothing further about him is found in the Confederate Archives. James Roswell King, President of the Ivy Woolen Mills, in Roswell, appears to have been the man pushing the road. John P. King was the President of the Georgia RR (relationship unknown).

NP, SR 12-30-62

NA, RR 3-21-63

NP, SCY 4-12-63

Louisiana

New Orleans, La. to Orange, Tx.

This New Orleans & Texas RR was a link in the long-planned rail line from Houston to New Orleans. For war purposes, it would have made it much easier to get Texas troops and beef to the main war theaters. Most interest was lost shortly after New Orleans was captured, but see the later documents. The road was to be 117 miles long and connect the Texas & New Orleans RR to the New Orleans, Opelousas & Great Western Railroad at New Iberia, La. The 50 miles of the New Orleans, Opelousas & Great Northern from the head of the line to New Iberia had been graded and was ready for iron in early 1862. A. M. Gentry was President and E. L. Heriot was Chief Engineer. L. H. Place was Secretary in 1862. In 1864, J. J. Hanna was Vice President. Board of Directors is in NP, NOTP 2-23A-62.

NA, QM 12-11D-61

OR Series 4, Vol. 1, Page 1013

NA, NO&T 4-15-62

OR Series 4, Vol. 1, Page 1073

NP, NOTP 4-23-62

NP, NOTP 4-23A-62

NP, DD 4-24-62

OR Series 4, Vol. 1, Page 1108

OR Series 4, Vol. 1, Page 1113

NP, SN 5-6-62

NA, DT 7-25-62

NA, ENG 11-1-62

NA, ENG 11-12A-62

NA, ENG 11-14-62

NA, ENGR 1-25-63

NA, ENGR 2-6-63

NA, ENGR 4-7-63

NA, DTM 5-23-63

NA, DT 6-18-63

NA, DTM 6-23-63

NP, HT 1-26-64

NA, DETX 11-11-64

Baton Rouge to Texas

(Louisiana Central Stem of the Mississippi & Pacific RR)

This 232-mile road was to take traffic around the uncertain water levels of the Red River and to ensure that Texas produce went to New Orleans, rather than to Galveston by way of a projected Texas road. It would run from the west bank of the Mississippi across from Baton Rouge through Alexandria to Shreveport. The road would extend from the Baton Rouge, Grosse Tete & Opelousas RR's Atchafalaya River crossing northwestward to Shreveport and a connection to the Vicksburg, Shreveport & Texas RR. The Red River RR would extend from Alexandria to the Central Stem RR. By December 1861, 22 miles had been graded from the Atchafalaya River almost to Bayou Boeuf, when the war stopped work. Iron for the first 80 miles had been contracted and some of it delivered by July, 1860.

NA, RR 4-25-61

NP, OC 1-11-62

NP, NU 2-20-62

NP, OC 3-22-62

Clinton to

New Orleans, Jackson & Great Northern RR connection

This 30-mile road was advocated by Port Hudson to tap into the Confederate railroad system after the loss of the Mississippi River. Though the iron was identified, no work was done.

NP, MAP 2-7-63

Mississippi

Canton, Miss. to Aberdeen, Miss.

(the New Orleans, Jackson & Great Northern Railroad)

This was a 120-mile feeder line through a major cotton producing area. The route would cross the Mobile & Ohio RR at either Prairie or Egypt stations and continue northeast for another 9 miles. The first 26 miles from Canton to Kosciusko was completely graded and the remaining 14 miles to Kosciusko had been partly graded during 1861. By early 1862, the 9 miles from Aberdeen to the Mobile & Ohio RR was complete enough to begin laying iron as soon as the resident Engineer could get the Mobile & Ohio RR to forward the iron from Mobile. The switch and siding had been put in by the Mobile & Ohio RR. It is not know whether that iron was ever laid, but the rest of the line was not completed until after the war.

AR, NOJ&GN 3-1-61 P

AR, NOJ&GN 3-1-62 P

North Carolina

Greensboro, N. C. to Danville, Va.

(the Piedmont Railroad)

This 50-mile connection had been desired before the war, but rejected by the North Carolina Legislature because it would take traffic off the North Carolina RR. Only the war requirement to provide a second route from the lower South to Richmond overcame the opposition. The road was wholly owned by the Richmond & Danville RR and built by them, with Confederate Government power providing the required labor and iron. The road was well laid out, but poorly built because of the scarcity of labor and materials. The road was completed in 1864 and was vital to keeping Richmond supplied after Grant broke the Petersburg RR.

St. Catherine's & Charlotte RR

This road was chartered in March of 1861. I have no definite information on this road, but the St. Catherine gold mine was located about where the Charlotte NFL stadium is today. The mine had been in operation since 1830 and a line to it from the Charlotte depot would have been about 4 miles long. The act chartering the road says it was to run from St. Catherine's Mills to the depot of the North Carolina RR and the Charlotte & South Carolina RR. The route was to go by way of the Captain Wilkes' Steam Flouring Mills, in Charlotte.

Dallas & York River RR / Dallas & King's Mountain RR

This 25-mile road would have extended the King's Mountain RR due north to Dallas, N. C. Samuel Jarrett was the Treasurer.

NP, YE 3-7-61

NP, YE 3-14-61

NP, CD 3-19-61

NP, YE 3-21-61

NP, YE 4-4-61

B9, DEB 4-xB-61

NP, YE 6-5-61

NP, CM 6-8-61

NP, CM 6-8A-61

Milton & Yanceyville Junction RR

This road was proposed in 1859 as a way to connect the Richmond & Danville RR and the North Carolina RR, while cutting into the North Carolina RR's freight revenue as little as possible. The road would have been about 50 miles long, if the connection to the Richmond & Danville RR (about 7 miles) is included.

NCA, M&Y 2-20-61

Caswell RR

This road was proposed as a way to connect the Richmond & Danville RR and the North Carolina RR, while cutting into the North Carolina RR's freight revenue as little as possible. The road would have been about 50 miles long, if the connection to the Richmond & Danville RR (about 7 miles) is included -- however, the charter stated that if the RR ever connected to a railroad that went to Richmond, the charter would be revoked. With this provision, the RR had little chance of being built.

NCA, C 2-25-61

Fayetteville & Warsaw RR

This 55-mile line was intended to connect Fayetteville to the Wilmington & Weldon RR at the Warsaw Depot. There is one hint that it might have been constructed, but I doubt it because of the scarcity of railroad iron. It was intended to be equipped and run by the Wilmington & Weldon RR.

B9, DEB 4-xB-61

Fayetteville & Florence (S. C.) RR

This 90-mile road was chartered and the books opened for subscriptions. The charter was amended in May, 1864 to require only half as much as previously required in order to organize the company. There is no indication of any work being done on it during the War.

NCA, F&F 5-12-62

NP, CC 2-6-63

NCA, F&F 5-28-64

NP, DNC 12-30-64

Greenville & Goldsboro RR

This road would have been a 35-mile line to connect the North Carolina Sounds to the Wilmington & Weldon RR. Washington, N. C. had also been fighting to be the eastern end of the road. There is no evidence any work was started.

NCA, G&G 2-23-61

Raleigh, N. C. to Columbia, S. C.

(the Chatham Railroad)

This 31-mile road was chartered three times between 1855 and 1862 to run from Raleigh to the coal fields by way of boats at Locksville, in Haywood, N. C. Company literature made it clear that this was just the first step in a road connecting the two state capitals and in becoming part of a great road from New York to Mobile. Grading began in 1863 from both ends and continued until the approach of Sherman's army. Kemp Plummer Battle was the President throughout the war, Ellwood Morris was the Chief Engineer into 1863, then Henry A. Brown took over; James E. Allen was Superintendent in late 1863; William Worrell Vass was Treasurer throughout the war; Directors are listed in the 4/24/62, 4/22/63, 3/4/64 and 3/4A/65 newspaper articles. The road may have owned some freight cars and had strap iron laid on the first 8 miles.

UNC, C 2-15-61

NP, SMN 10-18-61

NCRR, NC 11-29-61

NCA, C 1-30-62

UNC, C 2-10-62

NCRR, NC 3-14-62

AR, R&G 6-1-62 P

NCRR, NC 8-29-62

NCRR, NC 11-21-62

NA, ENGR 6-7-64

NA, ENG 6-17D-64

NA, ENGR 7-2-64

NA, ENG 7-20B-64

UNCC, RR 8-27-64

NA, ENGR 9-3-64

NA, ENGR 10-5-64

NP, RCF 10-7-64

NA, ENGR 10-11A-64

NA, ENGR 11-12-64

University RR

This road was chartered in March of 1861. It was a local road of about 10 miles from near the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, N. C. to the North Carolina RR. The charter allowed it to be either steam or horse propelled.

Western RR to North Carolina RR

The 1860 North Carolina Legislature offered construction assistance to the Western RR if it decided to extend to meet the North Carolina RR. The Western agreed to the terms and ordered surveys started. Whether any further work was done is not known. Depending on the route taken, this extension would have been from about 30 to about 45 miles long.

NCA, W 2-16-61

OR Series 1, Vol. 42, Part 2, Page 1257

NP, WJ 3-26-61

NCA, W 5-10-62

NP, CW 10-31-64

Wilmington, N. C.

The Wilmington & Weldon RR and the Wilmington & Manchester RR had considered a bridge over the Cape Fear River before the war. Since the two roads ran the ferry across the river, they were not in a great hurry to construct the bridge. A proposal was surfaced in mid-1864 to build the bridge. Construction was delayed until shortly after the war. A major problem with this "connection" was the different gauges of the two Roads.

NA, ENG 7-4-64

NA, ENG 8-8-64

Williamston & Tarboro RR

This road was to head 30 miles east from Tarboro to Williamston and later, probably, to Plymouth, on the Albemarle Sound. It was chartered in February, 1861.

NCA, W&T 2-23-61

Danville, Va. to Coalfields

This road was proposed in the Virginia Legislature in January of 1861. The Danville to Company Shops proposed road would probably have used the same route.

NP, FO 1-17A-61

B36, P 12-4-61

B36, P 12-8-61

Plaster Banks & Salt Works RR

(Statesville, N. C. to Saltville, Va.)

This road was authorized in May, 1864. No wartime record of it has been found. It was to start in Statesville, N. C. and proceed to the Virginia border, in the direction of Saltville. The remaining route would be determined by a sister Virginia company.

NCA, PB&SW 5-30-64

Shelby and Broad River RR

This road would have been about 10 miles long.

NCA, S&BR 7-7-63

NP, SC 9-3-63

NCA, S&BR 5-28-64

NCA, S&BR 12-20-64

Dallas, Newton & King's Mountain

The name of the road would indicate a road of about 40 miles; the title of the act would only require about 28 miles.

NCA, DN&KM 12-17-62

Washington & Tarboro

A road of about 48 miles designed to connect the port of Washington to the Wilmington & Weldon RR. The charter was approved in early 1862, but no work appears to have been completed.

NP, TS 2-23-61

NCA, W&T 2-7-62

Wilmington & Weldon RR to Fayetteville

A connection branch of about 35 miles intended to connect Fayetteville to the rest of the railroad system. There is no indication is was worked on during the war, probably because of the lack of track iron..

NCA, W&W 2-18-61

Western section of Western North Carolina RR

This long range plan for bringing the railroad to the North Carolina mountains would have required 160+ miles of new track from Morganton to Asheville to Murphy, N. C. and other points. The eastern section of this RR was completed to two miles short of Morganton as the was started. No work on the new section appears to have been conducted until after the war.

NCA, WNC 2-18-61

Greensboro & Leakesville RR

This road would have been about 35 miles long in North Carolina, with the intention of connecting to an extension of the Richmond & Danville RR, which extension would have required about 30 miles of iron. It was chartered in early 1861 and does not appear to have subscribed enough shares to organize. Leakesville was also reputed to be the entrance to large coal fields.

NCA, G&L 2-20-61

OR Series 4, Vol. 3, Page 968

NP, GP 3-14-61

B36, P 12-4-61

South Carolina

Cheraw, S. C. to Egypt, N. C.

(the Cheraw & Coalfields Railroad)

This 55-mile road was intended to supply coal and iron to Charleston by connecting with the Cheraw & Darlington Railroad. It was chartered in 1857. Construction (grading, at least) began in 1862 and was still in progress in 1864. At least 10 miles were graded, but no iron was laid. Allan Macfarlan was President, W. R. Godfrey was Secretary; Directors are listed in the May, 1864 article. George W. Earle was Chief Engineer in late 1864, and may have been such since 1861, when he was ordered to conscription camp.

NP, CC 12-3-61

NA, QMR 9-11-62

NA, QMR 9-20A-62

NP, CC 12-2-62

NCA, C&C 12-17-62

NP, WJ 12-22B-62

B33, C&CF 2-6-63

NP, DB 6-12-63

SCA, C&C 11-30-63

NP, CM 4-16A-64

NP, CM 5-28-64

NA, ENGR 10-23-64

MISC, C xx-xx-18xx

Columbia, S. C. to Augusta, Ga.

(the Columbia & Hamburg/Augusta Railroad)

This road would have required 69 miles of iron and would have finished the other 10 miles on South Carolina Railroad track from Graniteville to Augusta (Hamburg was on the South Carolina side of the Savannah River and had been the first terminus of the original South Carolina RR). This road was probably the most important road not constructed by the Confederacy, since it gave an inland route between the Georgia Railroad and the Central (of Georgia) Railroad on the west and the Charlotte & South Carolina Railroad on the east. This would have relieved the stress on the roads near the coast and, most importantly, would have provided a line of transportation if the coastal roads were captured or destroyed in North or South Carolina. A considerable amount of grading was done in 1864 (25 miles were reported complete), but no track was laid until 1867. William Johnston was the President, James G. Gibbes the Chief Engineer and Henry Moore was Secretary & Treasurer. The second name was changed in a reorganization in December, 1863.

NA, ENGR 9-3-63

NA, ENG 9-8A-63

NA, ENGR 1-16-64

NA, SWR 1-18-64

NA, ENGR 1-22-64

NA, ENG 3-14B-64

OR Series 4, Vol. 3, Page 226

NA, ENG 5-19F-64

NA, ENGR 6-1-64

NA, ENG 6-11-64

NP, CE 8-18B-64

NP, CT 1-5-65

NP, CT 1-16-65

NP, WD 1-31-65

NP, ACS 2-8A-65

NP, ARJ 9-2-65

Georgetown, S. C.

Thus far I know of this road only from correspondence with Tredegar Iron Works in 1861. It appears that it was to run from Georgetown to the Northeastern RR, a distance of about 36 miles. In May of 1861, William Green was the Chief Engineer and had a request to buy a locomotive from Tredegar. He had also given Tredegar reason to believe he would need spikes and chairs shortly, so money must have already been raised. There is no indication that any construction was started.

LVA, TRED 5-17-61

LVA, TRED 5-31-61

Port Royal, S. C.

This road was intended to connect the port of Port Royal to the Charleston & Savannah RR, then go on to Augusta, Ga. for a total of 105 miles. Its purpose was to connect the upper South with a major harbor, saving 500 to 800 miles of railroad travel compared to shipping to Norfolk or New York. It was chartered in 1861 and construction efforts were being made in late 1863 -- toward a port held by the Union since 1861. Over 30 miles were graded by the end of 1863. The officers for 1863 and 1864 were President, R. J. Davant (from 1861); Chief Engineer, C. S. Gadsden; Secretary and Treasurer, A. C. McGillivray (from 1861); Superintendent of hands on Company grading, B. L. Willingham. Directors for 1862-3 are listed in the 9/4/62 document. The Directors for 1863-4 were: H. S. Haines and R. L. Singleton (both representing the Charleston & Savannah RR), B. R. Bostick, Jr., J. Vincent Martin, B. W. Lawton, B. L. Willingham, A. McB. Peeples, W. R. Barker, George P. Elliott, J. J. Brabham, F. F. Dunbar, J. H. Harley.

NP, CM 1-1A-61

NP, AC 1-11-61

NP, CM 3-11-61

NP, CM 3-15-61

NP, CM 4-5-61

NP, CM 5-1-61

NP, CM 5-20-61

NP, CM 5-20A-61

NP, CM 5-30-61

NP, CC 11-20-61

NP, CM 9-4-62

NP, CM 9-9-62

AR, PR 7-1-63 P

AR, PR 7-1-63 CE

NP, CM 2-15A-64

NP, CM 7-28-64

Augusta, Ga. to Branchville, S. C.

This 75-mile stretch of the South Carolina Railroad was proposed for double tracking in early 1864. This would have increased the capacity of the interior rail chain and would have been essential if Union forces broke the Charleston & Savannah RR.

NA, ENG 4-14A-64

NA, ENGR 4-29-64

NA, ENG 5-3-64

NA, ENGR 6-1-64

Shelby & Broad River RR

The road was chartered in both North and South Carolina in December, 1862, with plans to commence grading immediately to the Magnetic Iron Works, on the Broad River. The route to be taken is not known, but Shelby to the Works would have been about 18 miles. The question of what road to connect to was not chosen, though they had permission to connect to any railroad in the area. One connection considered was to the Spartanburg & Union RR. The most likely connection would be to the Charlotte & South Carolina RR, but that was thirty-five miles from the works, away from Shelby. Shelby would have no railroad connection until 1874. The President for 1863 and 1864 was Bentley D. Hasell. Directors are named in the May, 1863 and May, 1864 articles.