Erwin, Tennessee
- Home Page
- Appalachian Railroads
- Legacy: B&O | C&O | Clinchfield | L&N | NC&StL | N&W | Pennsylvania | Southern | Virginian
- Partners: ACL | SAL | SCL
- Early Lines: AT&O | Black Diamond | Blue Ridge | Cincinnati Southern | LC&C | N&C | OR&C
- Other: P&LE | W&LE
- Short Lines: Gainesville Mid | Kentucky & Tennessee | Tallulah Falls
- Consolidation: Chessie | Family | Penn Central & Conrail | Seaboard
- Today: CSX | Norfolk Southern
- Charleston Cincinnati & Chicago Railroad: History | Locos | Maps | John T. Wilder | Railfan Guide
- ET&WNC: History | Maps | Locomotives | Timetables | Leaders | Tweetsie
- Appalachian Railroad Cities: Asheville | Baltimore | Chattanooga | Cincinnati | Erwin | Johnson City | Knoxville | Lynchburg | Richmond | Roanoke | Spartanburg | and more
- Appalachian Mountain Gaps
- Railfan Guides | Abandoned Lines & Railroads | Rails to Trails
- Sources & Resources: Scholars & Authors | Books | Museums | Organizations | Links
- Model Railroads: 3Cs | ET&WNC
- Appalachian-Railroads.org: Site Map | Editor
- Related sites: Clinchfield.org | Southern-Railroads.org
Page Contents
Erwin, Tennessee
Headquarters of the Clinchfield Railroad
Erwin became a railroad town as part of a Plan B. Originally, Johnson City was intended to be the headquarters and yards/shops for what was first the South & Western Railway, and eventually the Clinchfield Railroad. However, George L. Carter was unable to secure the needed land in Johnson City.
Thus, Erwin became the management and operational center for the Railroad.
The first train ran on the Clinchfield in 1908, while yard and shops were completed in Erwin in 1909. By 1915, all primary management and teams were moved and housed in a new corporate headquarters in Erwin.
In 2015, CSX announced that they were closing the Erwin Yard, Engine/Shop facilities, and all operations there. 300 jobs were lost.
More information about Erwin will be added in the future.
Erwin Stats
- Coordinates: 36°20′N 82°22′W
- Elevation: 1,676 feet above sea level
- Originally known as: Ervin
- Founded: 1876
- Population: 6,083 (2020)
- County: Unicoi
- First Railroad: The Charleston Cincinnati & Chicago Railroad was chartered in 1886. Johnson City became the railroad’s headquarters. A few trains did run in 1890 in Johnson City and Erwin before the railroad started to experience financial challenges. By the end of 1890, construction and operation had ceased.
- Second Railroad: Ohio River & Charleston Railway (OR&C) in 1893. The OR&C purchased the 3Cs in receivership and worked to complete and operate the line with no success. It too went into receivership.
- Third Railroad: Carolina Clinchfield & Ohio Railway (CC&O) was completed in 1909 from Dante VA to Spartanburg SC. Originally Johnson City was to be the headquarters, but due to the inability to secure land, the headquarters was moved to Erwin. In 1915, the line was extended to Elkhorn City KY where it connected with the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway. In 1924, its ownership and name was changed to the Clinchfield Railroad (CRR).
- Erwin Highlights: Nolichucky River, Appalachian Trail
Clinchfield Railroad Erwin Gallery
The following pictures were taken in 2016 during a time that CSX had mothballed the old Clinchfield, running very few trains and closing the Erwin yard and operations center.
In 2017, rail traffic on the line began to increase.
Links for Additional Information
Website – RailFanGuides.us for Erwin
https://www.tnvacation.com/local/erwin-clinchfield-railroad-museum
For More Information – Sources and Resources
The following are excellent resources for those of you wanting to explore and learn more about the history and operation of the Appalachian Railroads. These sources of information also serve as reference and historical materials for Appalachian-Railroads.org. Much of the collective railroad history data points on this website are verified across multiple sources.
- Associations and their Archives
- ACL & SCL Railroads Historical Society
- Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Historical Society
- Chesapeake & Ohio Historical Society
- Carolina Clinchfield Chapter National Railway Historical Society
- ET&WNC Railroad Historical Society and their Facebook Page
- George L. Carter Railroad Historical Society (Johnson City Railroad Experience)
- Louisville & Nashville Railroad Historical Society
- Norfolk & Western Historical Society
- Pennsylvania Railroad Technical and Historical Society
- Southern Railway Historical Association
- Watauga Valley Railroad Historical Society
- Personal Maps & Memorabilia: Documents, maps, timetables, and track charts
- Archives of Appalachia: ETSU, Johnson City TN
- Newspaper Articles: Newspapers.com
- Magazines/Online: ‘Trains‘, ‘Classic Trains‘
- Books
- Castner, Flanary & Dorin: Louisville & Nashville Railroad The Old Reliable‘
- Davis: The Southern Railway, Road of the Innovators‘
- Drury: The Historical Guide to North American Railroads
- Dixon: ‘Chesapeake & Ohio, Superpower to Diesels‘, Chesapeake & Ohio in the Coalfields, and ‘C&O Allegheny Subdivision‘
- Flanary: The Louisville & Nashville Cumberland Valley Division
- Flanary, Lindsey & Oroszi. The Southern Railway‘
- Flanary, Oroszi & McKee: ‘The Louisville & Nashville in the Appalachians‘
- Goforth: ‘Building the Clinchfield‘ and ‘When Steam Ran the Clinchfield‘
- Graybeal: ‘The Railroads of Johnson City‘
- Huddleston: ‘Appalachian Crossings – The Pocahontas Roads‘
- Irwin & Stahl: ‘The Last Empire Builder: The Life of George L. Carter‘
- Lindsey: ‘Norfolk Southern 1995 Review‘
- King: ‘Clinchfield Country‘
- Lindsey: ‘Norfolk Southern 1995 Review‘
- Marsh: ‘Clinchfield in Color‘
- Oroszi & Flanary: ‘Dixie Lines, The Louisville & Nashville Railroad‘
- Poole: ‘A History of Railroading in Western North Carolina‘
- Poteat & Taylor: ‘The CSX Clinchfield Route in the 21st Century‘
- Prince: ‘Nashville Chattanooga & St Louis Railway‘
- Stevens & Peoples: ‘The Clinchfield No. 1 – Tennessee’s Legendary Steam Engine‘
- Way: ‘The Clinchfield Railroad, the Story of a Trade Route Across the Blue Ridge Mountains‘
- Webb: ‘The Southern Railway System: An Illustrated History‘
- Wolfe: ‘Southern Railway Appalachia Division‘
- Wolfe, Wilson & Mandelkern: ‘Norfolk & Western’s Clinch Valley Line‘
- Young: ‘Appalachian Coal Mines and Railroads In Color,’ Volume 1: Kentucky and Volume 2: Virginia
- Online Article: Flanary: ‘The Quick Service Route, The Clinchfield Railroad‘; Scientific American: ‘The Costliest Railroad in America‘
- Online Videos: Ken Marsh on Kingsport area railroads and region’s history Video #1 | Video #2:
- Websites:
- American-Rails.com
- AppalachianRailroadModeling.com
- Carolana.com – North Carolina Railroads, South Carolina Railroads
- Diesel Shop
- HawkinsRails.net
- Multimodalways
- StateOfFranklin.net which hosts Johnson’s Depot
- RailFanGuides.us for Johnson City and for Erwin
- SteamLocomotive.com
- VirginiaPlaces.org – Railroad History of Virginia
- Wikipedia.org
- WvncRails.org – North Carolina and West Virginia Railroads
Contact Us
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 railroads or model railroading.
3Cs Websites
Appalachian-Railroads.org | Clinchfield.org | Southern-Railroads.org
Contact Us
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 railroads or model railroading.