Blue Ridge Railroad
- Home Page
- Appalachian Railroads: AT&O | B&O | BR | C&O | Chessie | CNO&TP | CRR | LC&C | L&N | NC&StL | N&C | N&W | OR&C | SOU | VGN
- Charleston Cincinnati & Chicago Railroad: History | Locos | Maps | John T. Wilder | Railfan Guide
- ET&WNC: History | Maps | Locomotives | Timetables | A. Pardee | G. Hardin | T. Matson
- Appalachian Railroad Cities: Asheville | Cincinnati | Erwin | Johnson City | Knoxville | Lynchburgh | Roanoke | Spartanburg | and more
- Railfan Guides
- Abandoned Lines & Railroads
- 3Cs Model Railroad: CRR, SOU, ET&WNC & the 3Cs
- Sources & Resources: Scholars & Authors | Books | Museums | Organizations | Links
- Appalachian-Railroads.org: Site Map | Editor
- Related: Clinchfield.org | Southern-Railroads.org
Page Contents
Blue Ridge Railroad
During the 1830s, former Vice-President and South Carolina Senator John Calhoun was one of the key champions of creating a railroad to run from the Atlantic Ocean at Charleston to the Ohio River at Cincinnati OH. Additionally, the route included Knoxville TN and the Tennessee River. The goal was to bring trade and economic development to Charleston SC and its port. Calhoun’s efforts led to the chartering of the Blue Ridge Railroad in 1852, with construction beginning in 1854.
Rabun Gap vs. the French Broad River
The construction of the railroad was initially delayed due to a debate as to the best route over the mountains from Anderson SC to Knoxville TN. One option was through Asheville NC using the French Broad River. The second was through Rabun Gap GA, then using the Little Tennessee River to Knoxville. Rabun Gap was the final choice.
Construction Begins
The best of engineering and construction standards were used as work began in 1854 on an initial 195-mile segment from Anderson SC to Knoxville TN. Wooden bridges would be kept to a minimum. Instead, stone culverts, long tunnels, and large fills would be constructed to conquer the mountainous terrain with a high quality railroad that would be efficient to operate.
For the next five years, miles of roadbed were graded and thousands of feet of tunnel were blasted and chiseled. Stumphouse Tunnel was to be the longest tunnel in the world at over 5,800 feet.
Click here for a Google Interactive Map of the Blue Ridge Railroad.
The Threat of War – Construction Ends
But as tensions mounted in the months before the Civil War, construction on the railroad was halted. South Carolina was unwilling to provide additional funding to complete the railroad. Some historians believe well over half of the project had been finished, even as much as 80%.
Tallulah Falls Railroad
There were several attempts to revive the Blue Ridge Railroad after the Civil War, including one called the Black Diamond Railroad.
Eventually, the Tallulah Falls Railroad that ran from Cornelia GA to Franklin NC used segments of the Blue Ridge Railroad grade to complete their railroad in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Eventually, the Tallulah line was also abandoned.
The Blue Ridge Railroad Today
The Blue Ridge exists in several forms today:
- A completed and operated line from Benton SC to Walhalla SC
- Several unfinished tunnels north of Walhalla, including Stumphouse Tunnel which is now a park for exploring the tunnel and hiking the old railroad bed.
- Roadbed, a tunnel, and numerous stone culverts in Rabun County GA
Blue Ridge Railroad Stats
- Reporting Mark: BRRR
- Operated: 1859-present
- Length: 44 miles
- Mainline: Benton SC to Walhalla SC
- Primary Cities: Benton, Anderson, Seneca, and Walhalla SC
- Successors: Greenville & Columbia Railroad, Columbia & Greenville Railroad, Southern Railway
- BRRR Today: Norfolk Southern
For More Information
https://www.carolana.com/SC/Transportation/railroads/sc_rrs_blue_ridge.html
For More Information – Sources and Resources
The following are wonderful resources for those interested in Appalachian Railroads. They also serve as sources of information for Appalachian-Railroads.org
- Association/Archives: Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Historical Society
- Association/Archives: Chesapeake & Ohio Historical Society
- Association/Archives: Louisville & Nashville Railroad Historical Society
- Association/Archives: Norfolk & Western Historical Society
- Association/Archives: Southern Railway Historical Association
- Archives of Appalachia: ETSU, Johnson City TN
- Book: Drury: The Historical Guide to North American Railroads
- Book: Flanary, Lindsey & Oroszi: The Southern Railway
- Book: Goforth: ‘Building the Clinchfield’ and ‘When Steam Ran the Clinchfield’
- Book: Graybeal: ‘The Railroads of Johnson City’
- 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’
- Book: Wolfe: Southern Railway Appalachia Division
- Magazine: ‘Trains‘
- Magazine: ‘Classic Trains‘
- Website: Carolana.com – North Carolina Railroads, South Carolina Railroads
- Website: HawkinsRails.net
- Website: StateOfFranklin.net which hosts Johnson’s Depot
- Website: RailFanGuides.us for Johnson City and for Erwin
- Website: SteamLocomotive.com
- Website: WvncRails.org – North Carolina and West Virginia Railroads
- Video: Ken Marsh on Kingsport area railroads and region’s history Video #1
- Video: Ken Marsh on railroads and region’s history Video #2:
- Article: Flanary: ‘The Quick Service Route, The Clinchfield Railroad‘
- Articles: ‘Johnson City Comet‘
- Article: Scientific American: ‘The Costliest Railroad in America‘
- Personal Maps & Memorabilia: Documents, maps and track charts
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.