Branches and Spurs of the Clinchfield Railroad

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Clinchfield Railroad

Clinchfield Railroad Branches & Spurs

Researched and Chronicled by Scott Jessee and Sandhi Kozsuch

Throughout its existence as both the Clinchfield and CSX, the Clinchfield has built and/or operated approximately 50 miles of branches and spurs. Most of them were branches accessing coal mines or coal facilities. Their first branch, Dumps Creek had no physical connection to the Clinchfield mainline, so they used trackage rights on the Norfolk & Western to access the branch via St. Paul and Carbo.

Interactive Map of CRR Branches/Spurs

To see all of the branches and spurs, click on this link to see a Google Interactive Map.

Below, each individual branch and spur are listed with initial overview information. In the days ahead, we will add more details about their construction, operation, and in some cases, their closure.

Clinchfield Railroad Branches and Spurs Map - St. Paul to Elkhorn City

Haysi Railroad (Greenbrier Branch)

  • Mainline Mile Post: 11.7
  • Built: 1969
  • Operated: 1970 – 2007
  • Length: 5.6 Miles (some sources 6.6m)
  • Track: 2% grade, many 14-degree curves
  • Tipples: Rural, Crooked Branch, Ruth, and Greenbrier
  • Incorporated and operated as the Haysi Railroad, controlled jointly by the SCL and L&N.
  • Known for: Using a remote-control B-unit to switch coal cars
  • Cars per Day: Up to 70
  • Clinchfield Trains: Greenbrier Turn, Dante to Greenbriar and back,

Fremont Branch

  • Mainline Mile Post: 22.9 – Caney Junction
  • Built: 1944
  • Operated: 1944 – ?
  • Length: 14.6 Miles
  • Track: Up to 3.4% grade
  • Tunnel: Bear Pen Gap Tunnel
  • Largest Facility: Moss Mines and Preparation Plant
  • Tipples: Crabtree, Holly Creek, Dickenson, Cranes Nest, Mullins, Delp, Victor, Phipps, Moss, and Lick
  • Cars Per Day: 100 or more coal cars originated,
  • Moss Processing Plant Cars Per Day (Up and Back): Up to 150 cars or more
  • Clinchfield Trains: First and Second Moss Turns. Pushers were also used.

McClure Spur

  • Mainline Mile Post: 23.2
  • Built: 1979
  • Operated: 1979 — ?
  • Length: 2.1 Miles (some sources 1.9m)
  • Tipples: McClure 1
  • Cars Per Day: Up to 100

Nora Spur

  • Mainline Mile Post: 26.6
  • Built: 1925, Abandoned in the 1930’s
  • Clinchfield Acquired and rebuilt it in 1943
  • Operated: 1943 – ?
  • Length: 6.3 Miles
  • Track: Up to 3.3% grade
  • Tipples: Wohlford, Lamberts, Open Fork 1, Open Fork 2, Big Rock, Kilgore Creek, and Blue Diamond
  • Cars Per Day: Up to 70 cars
  • Clinchfield Train: Nora Turn

Neece Creek Spur (Branch of the Nora Spur)

  • Nora Spur Mile Post: 2.2
  • Length: 2.4 Miles
  • Operated: ? – ?

Dumps Creek Branch

  • First branch of the CC&O/Clinchfield
  • Carbo to Wilder VA
  • Length: 7 to 8 miles
  • Used trackage rights on the N&W to access the branch (St. Paul to Carbo)
  • Operated: 1911 to 1930
  • Coal operations were restarted in the 1940s, with N&W operating the branch.
  • Line was sold to N&W in 1958

Long Island Spur (Kingsport)

  • Mainline Mile Post: 93.0
  • Length: 2.1 Miles
  • Connection to Tennessee Eastman Railroad
  • Industrial spur to the west of the mainline, providing access to industries.

Johnson City Spur

  • Mainline Mile Post: 121
  • Length: 3.9 miles
  • Part of the original Clinchfield mainline. Once the Johnson City Highline was build in 1969, this segment was used to connect the new mainline with downtown Johnson City.

Carnegie Spur

  • Length: 2.4 miles
  • Part of the original 3Cs (Charleston Cincinnati & Chicago) alignment
  • Connects the Johnson City spur to industries in northeast Johnson City

Duke Spur

  • Mainline Mile Post: 258.3
  • Built: 1939
  • Length: 6.9 Miles (some sources 6.3m)
  • Customer: Duke Power Cliffside Generation Station
  • Cars Received per day: 90 cars

Spartanburg Terminal

  • Mainline Mile Post: 276.3
  • Built: 1963
  • Length: 1.6 miles

More content on Clinchfield’s branches and spurs will be added in the days ahead.

Clinchfield.org Sources and Resources

The following are excellent resources for those of you wanting to explore and learn more about the Clinchfield Railroad. These sources of information also serve as reference and historical materials for Clinchfield.org. Much of the content on the website is verified across multiple sources.

Clinchfield Railroad

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