1/8/2024 Elizabeth and I arose and after breakfast, we drove to the Rock Bridge Veterinarian where we boarded our cat Chessie before starting our driving journey to the Railroad Passenger Car Alliance Conference in Cordele, Georgia. Over the four-day event, there were three train trips offered and two of them, on the Historic SAM Shortline, would be new mileage for us. So Elizabeth drove us from Columbia into western Illinois then I drove the rest of the way to Paducah, Kentucky. On the way, I remembered that we had planned to photograph a station in Zeigler, Illinois so once on Interstate 57, Elizabeth guided me to the station where we found a surprise.
Ilinois Central freight house.
Ilinois Central Zeigler station, now the town's library, year built unknown. From here I drove us to Paducah where we had dinner at Cracker Barrel then Elizabeth drove us the rest of the way to Nashville, Tennessee, where we checked into the Best Western Plus Sunrise Inn and I listened to the Pittsburgh Penguins defeat the Philadelphia Flyers 4-1, after which we called it a night.
1/9/2024 We arose this morning and following our Internet duites, checked out and I drove us to Waffle House for breakfast. Since it was raining, we decided to find the depots and photograph them at a later time, so easily located Smyrna and Murfreesboro as I drove Murfreesboro Boulevard to that town then drove US 231 south to Shelbyville, where we found a depot and the rain had stopped.
Nashville, Chatanooga and St. Louis Shelbyville station built in 1906, now home to an Adult Learning Center. We took Alternate 41A to Tullahoma where we found a caboose and a surprise.
Louisville and Nashville caboose 1092 built by the railroad in 1962, which was purchased by the Tullahoma Historic Preservation Society from the Tennessee Central Railway Museum in 2000.
CSX ET44AH 3214 West with CSX GE ET44AH 3435 came through while we were there.
Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Tullahoma station. The Nashville & Chattanooga Railroad chose a site about halfway between those two cities for a passenger depot, which would conveniently serve the surrounding areas. In 1850, local founders created a Town Company to establish the Town of Tullahoma. By 1852, the first Tullahoma depot was opened and trains were regularly running between Nashville and Tullahoma, and a branch line to Manchester and McMinnville had been chartered. Things moved fast along the railroad and service to cities and towns beyond Tullahoma was added. In 1854, the line from Nashville to Chattanooga was completed.
Next we drove to Winchester and to Cowan on Alternate 41A to visit the Cowan Railroad Museum.
The museum currently exhibits approximately 1,000 interesting, valuable and historic railroad and city of Cowan artifacts, pertaining to railroading mainly in and around Cowan. In many ways there has been a re-creation of a moment in history in the vignettes of various displays. There are displays of figures in period costumes, photographs, tools, documents, old maps and out-of-print railroad books. This collection is always growing and there will be special visits of interesting displays from time to time. There is also a small gift shop where you can purchase engineers caps, railroad oriented t-shirts, stickers, buttons, collectible RR patches, books and much more.
The Cowan Railroad Museum represents the railroad that has been an integral part of the city since 1849 when construction began on boring a railroad tunnel through the mountain two miles southeast of town. The Cumberland Mountain Tunnel was finished in 1852 before the railroad actually made it to Cowan from Nashville. The town, the railroad and the tunnel still exist today. In support of that endeavor and later frequent trains through this region, a substantial frame depot was built in 1904, and that building is where the museum now houses its collection for your enjoyment.
Bob Brick Company 4-6-0 1, ex. City of Cowan, exx. Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum, exxxx. Pirateland at Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, exxxxx. sold Cole & Marion Walters, exxxxxx. sold Cherokee Brick & Tile Company 1, nee Bob Brick Company 4-6-0 1 built by H.K. Porter in 1920.
Louisville and Nashville flat car 24536 built by the railroad, year unknown.
Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis bay window caboose class NE8 153 built in 1943 from boxcar 89 built in 1913. It was used as Radnor work train 42335.
Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis 44 ton switcher 100, nee Louisville and Nashville 3101, built by General Electric in 1950. This is our newest acquisition as a long-term loan, moved into place in June 2007.
Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis boxcar 22524 built by Pullman Standard in 1952.
Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Cowan station built in 1904. While we explored the outside displays, the station itself is closed during the winter months, opening between May and October. So we will return here in the early summer on the way to the Railroad Station Historical Society convention.
Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis speeder 7276 built by Fairmont.
Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis speeder 7299 built by Fairmont. We drove across the tracks and had a surprise.
Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis tower built in 1904. The two of us made our way to Chattanooga and had some excercise then went to Texas Roadhouse for dinner before Elizabeth drove us to the Best Western Royal Inn for the night.
1/10/2024 After our regular morning preparations, we went to Cracker Barrel for breakfast then I drove us to Georgia where we exited Interstate 75 and went into Ringgold to find our first station of the day.
The Western and Atlantic station historical sign.
The Ringgold Depot, A Survivior of Battle.
Western and Atlantic Ringgold station built in 1850. This is the only depot between Atlanta and Chattanooga that has been in continuous use since May 9, 1850, when the first train ran over this end of the line. Previous to the coming of the W & A to 'Cherokee Georgia', the nearest market was Augusta, three weeks away by ox wagon. In the early 1850's, Ringgold was a bigger market than Chattanooga and large quantities of wheat were shipped from this depot. Built in 1849 of local sandstone, with walls 14 inches thick, the building was badly damaged by Hooker's guns during the Battle of Ringgold on November 27, 1863. It was, as may be seen, repaired with limestone blocks.
Western and Atlantic Railroad Depot, Home of the Ringgold Opry. Next I drove us to Tunnel Hill.
CSX ES44AH 857 was on a local train that passed us here.
Western and Atlantic Tunnel Hill station built in 1850 by the State of Georgia as part of the state-owned Western & Atlantic Railroad. It was made from rock excavated from Chetoogeta Mountain during construction of the nearby Historic Tunnel. This depot is one of Georgia's oldest. The Depot witnessed many important events during the Civil War; a speech by Confederate State's President Jefferson Davis in 1861; the Great Locomotive Chase of 1862; several Civil War skirmishes; and the first headquarters of General Sherman during his Atlanta Campaign. For years the building was incorporated into Red Hat, ConAgra and Pilgrim's Pride feed mills. The last commercial business was a plastics recycling center. The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation placed the Depot on its 2014 Places in Peril list.
The Tunnel Hill Depot sign.
The current tunnel that the CSX still uses.
The control point for Tunnel Hill.
The Western and Atlantic Tunnel, which one can walk through. It is 1,477 feet of railroad and Civil War history, completed in 1850 and was the first major railroad tunnel in the South, the final link in the first railroad tunnel through the Appalachian Mountains, and witness to the 1862 Great Locomotive Chase. We would have taken the tour but had quite a bit planned for today, so will return in June.
We continued on to Dalton.
The Western and Atlantic station built in 1852.
Western and Atlantic Dalton station built in 1882 and was home to the Dalton Depot and Trackside Tavern Restaurant that closed in 2015. The contractor was Eugene LeHardy, chief engineer of the railroad, who was also involved in the construction of the Union Station in Chattanooga, and some of his descendants settled in Chattanooga. The W&A depot was acquired by the city of Dalton in 1978.
Western and Atlantic, now CSX, tower.
I drove us almost to Atlanta where I filled the car with petrol then Elizabeth drove us further south to McDonough.
Western Pennslyania Power 2-4-0 7 built by H.K. Porter in 1934. It worked at the company's Connellsville yard into the 1950's where it was apparently known as the "Highlander". The engine then spent some time at the Buckeye Central Scenic Railroad in Ohio in the 1960's. It is on display in the Heritage Museum and Historic Park and has been repainted and renumbered 7 in honour of an 0-4-0T engine involved in a collision at Camp Creek in 1907 and known as "Old 7".
The plaque for Western Pennslyania Power 2-4-0 7. We then went in search of the station here.
Southern Railway McDonough station. We made our way south to Macon.
Central of Georgia 2-8-0 No. 509, nee Central of Georgia Railway Company 1709, donated to the City of Macon, built by Baldwin in 1906.
Benny E. Scott Plaza dedicated in 1984.
Terminal Station used by Central of Georgia and Southern Railway built in 1916. Macon's historic Terminal Station is included on the National Register of Historic Place and is part of Macon’s Historic District. Set on thirteen acres on Fifth Street at the foot of Cherry Street and constructed in the Beaux Arts style, it was designed by architect Alfred T. Fellheimer acclaimed for his design of New York City's revered Grand Central Terminal.
Originally, the majestic structure was owned by the Macon Terminal Company and served as the union station of all 15 railroads operating in Macon at that time. More than 100 arrivals daily were handled through the Macon Terminal during the 1920s and 1930s, the heyday of the city's passenger rail. A plaque at Terminal Station says the engraving has been there since the construction of the building in 1916 as required under Jim Crow laws, and the building was not desegregated until the 1960's.
Following the desegregation of Terminal Station, the engraving would remain covered by a sign for years until mayor C. Jack Ellis uncovered it when he took office in 1999. Ellis said that he wanted to make sure younger African Americans knew the struggles their elders had been through.
Originally, the majestic structure was owned by the Macon Terminal Company and served as the union station of all 15 railroads operating in Macon at that time. More than 100 arrivals daily were handled through the Macon Terminal during the 1920s and 1930s, the heyday of the city’s passenger rail.
After nearly 60 years of service, the Terminal Station closed in 1975 and in 1982 was purchased by the Georgia Power Company, serving as its local headquarters until the 1990s. In 2002, the City of Macon purchased the Terminal Station and renovated it in 2014, restoring it to its former glory, then transferring the title to the Macon-Bibb County Transit Authority.
Since then, the MTA has been honored to manage the historic gem, along with its tenants and rentals.A $5-million renovation of the Terminal Station was completed in 2010 which included a new Transfer Station, updates to the waiting room and lobby, plus a new conference room and meeting room. The grand limestone building with its beautifully restored 14,000 square foot lobby features the original pale pink Tennessee marble walls and floor, gilt molding and long wooden benches.
Terminal Station built in 1916, which we entered.
The waiting room.
The former ticket windows in the station. Elizabeth drove us to Cordele and we checked into the Holiday Inn Express for the next few nights. At 5:30 PM, I drove us across the street to Denny's where we had dinner then Elizabeth picked up our tickets and lanyards in preparation for the Railroad Passenger Car Alliance conference. I completed this story and we watched part of the Republican Presidental Debate then called it a night as we had an early start the next day.
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