Battle for the Big Sandy River Breaks

Between 1898 and 1902, surveys were completed by both the Ohio River & Charleston Railway/South & Western Railway and the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway on a proposed railroad between Elkhorn City and Dante VA. This rail line traversed the ‘Breaks of the Big Sandy River’, a very narrow and treacherous gorge with room for only one railroad. The Breaks is often called the ‘Grand Canyon of the South.’

Battle of the Breaks – Start and End

At one point, the survey teams ran into each other in the wilderness of the Breaks, setting off a race between the two railroads as to who could secure the land and build the rail line. Hasty final surveys and efforts at construction ensued. Also during this period of time the OR&C was sold to George L. Carter and the S&W. And as was typical for Carter, he quickly engaged in the fight, both in the field and in the courts.

S&W/Clinchfield Wins

Eventually the courts decided that the S&W/Clinchfield was the victor. The 1905 decree allowed the Carter and the S&W to proceed with surveying and construction. The decree also set Elkhorn City as the connection point for the two railroads, and they both agreed not to build past that point.

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

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3Cs Websites

Appalachian-Railroads.org | Clinchfield.org | Southern-Railroads.org