Southern Railway
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- Corporate Couplings | Family Lines | Seaboard System | CSX | Closure/Reopening
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- Destinations | Elkhorn City | Breaks | Dante | Speers Ferry | Kingsport | Johnson City | Erwin | Nolichucky Gorge | Spartanburg | and more
- Clinchfield Model Railroads
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- Related Websites: Appalachian-Railroads.org | Southern-Railroads.org
Southern Railway and the Clinchfield
Even though they were fierce competitors, the Southern Railway and the Clinchfield benefited greatly from their connections and interchanges. It was a love-hate relationship, that played out in the legal courts, the regulatory commissions, and in the press. But in the end, both companies did work together in some instances such as trackage rights, interchange, and a coal port at Charleston SC.
Southern Railway Connections with the Clinchfield were at five locations:
- Miller Yard – Initially with the Interstate Railroad, which was purchased by the Southern in 1960. This was in important coal and manifest delivery point for the Clinchfield. Besides the Southern, L&N interchanged freight with the Clinchfield at Miller Yard.
- Frisco TN – A busy junction for many years that was a gateway to a very important trackage rights agreement between Norfolk Southern and CSX. Click here for more information on Frisco JCT.
- Johnson City TN – In the center of town, the Clinchfield interchanged with the Southern line that ran between Knoxville TN and Roanoke VA.
- Marion NC – The Southern’s line from Salisbury NC to Asheville NC interchanged with the Clinchfield.
- Spartanburg SC – The original interchange for the two railroads where the Clinchfield would deliver hundreds of cars per day. It was the southern termination point for the Clinchfield. After several legal battles, the Clinchfield gained the approval to also connect with the Atlantic Coast Line and Piedmont & Northern at Spartanburg. Click here for more information on the Spartanburg Connection and Tunnel.
More content about Southern Railway and Clinchfield Connections to be added in the days ahead.
Frisco JCT by Ron Flanary
Narrative and Photo by Ron Flanary
August 16, 1986: An eastbound (now going south) is coming off the old connecting track between the NS Appalachia District and the former Clinchfield main (far left) at Frisco, TN. The junction switch is named “Click” on the latter.
August 9, 2009: I followed the CSX coal train I had photographed at Natural Tunnel all the way to Frisco, TN. Here, it’s just a few seconds from taking the connecting track off NS and onto its own rails as NS units flank the train on both sides.
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.
- Association: Carolina Clinchfield Chapter National Railway Historical Society
- Association: Louisville & Nashville Railroad Historical Society
- Association: George L. Carter Railroad Historical Society
- Association: Watauga Valley Railroad Historical Society
- Personal maps, timetables, track charts, and memorabilia
- Archives of Appalachia – ETSU, Johnson City TN
- Book – Drury: ‘The Historical Guide to North American Railroads’
- Book – Goforth: ‘Building the Clinchfield’ and ‘When Steam Ran the Clinchfield’
- Book – Graybeal: ‘The Railroads of Johnson City’
- Book – Helm: ‘The Clinchfield Railroad in the Coal Fields’
- Book – Irwin & Stahl: ‘The Last Empire Builder: The Life of George L. Carter’
- Book – King: ‘Clinchfield Country’
- Book – Marsh: ‘Clinchfield in Color’
- Book – Poole: ‘A History of Railroading in Western North Carolina’
- Book – Poteat & Taylor: ‘The CSX Clinchfield Route in the 21st Century’
- Book – Stevens & Peoples: ‘The Clinchfield No. 1 – Tennessee’s Legendary Steam Engine’
- Book – Way: ‘The Clinchfield Railroad, the Story of a Trade Route Across the Blue Ridge Mountains’
- Magazines – ‘Trains‘ , ‘Classic Trains‘
- Newspaper Articles – Newspapers.com
- Online Article – Scientific American: ‘The Costliest Railroad in America‘
- Online Article – Classic Trains: ‘Remembering the Clinchfield Railroad‘
- Online Article – Railway Age: ‘This Coal Road Is Also A Speedy Bridge Line,’ Sept 1, 1952 edition
- Online Article – ‘Railway Signaling and Communications‘
- Online Article – Flanary: ‘The Quick Service Route, The Clinchfield Railroad‘
- Online Article – Flanary: ‘Men Against Mountains, Running Trains on the Clinchfield‘ October 2001
- Online Video – Ken Marsh on Kingsport area railroads and region’s history Video #1
- Online Video – Ken Marsh on railroads and region’s history Video #2:
- Website – Carolana.com – North Carolina Railroads, South Carolina Railroads
- Website – Johnson’s Depot hosted by StateOfFranklin.net
- Website – RailFanGuides.us for Johnson City and for Erwin
- Website – The Radio Reference Wiki
- Website – SteamLocomotive.com
- Website – VirginiaPlaces.org – Railroad History of Virginia
- Website – Multimodalways.org
Contact Us at Clinchfield.org
Would enjoy hearing from you if you have questions, suggestions, edits, or content that you are willing to share. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you have similar interests in the Clinchfield or Model Railroads.
3Cs Websites
Appalachian-Railroads.org | Clinchfield.org | Southern-Railroads.org
