Columbus Southern Railway

The Columbus Southern Railway is a historic railroad that operated in the U.S. state of Georgia. The railroad operated an 88-mile line from Columbus to Albany that opened in 1890.

Columbus Southern Railway
Overview
LocaleSouthwest Georgia, Northwest Florida
Dates of operation1896–1944
SuccessorGeorgia and Alabama Railway
Technical
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) (standard gauge)
Length88 miles (142 km)

History

It was originally chartered in 1885 as the Columbus and Florida Railway. The Columbus Southern Railway was created in 1886 after the C&F's charter was amended. It rapidly ran into financial difficulties. In 1889 the State of Georgia demanded its assets be handed over to local counties for unpaid taxes. The company fought the order and the case made its way to the Supreme Court which in 1894 decided in Columbus Southern Ry. Co. v. Wright that the 14th Amendment did not protect the company from these actions. [1]

Soon after the decision the railway was sold to John Skelton Williams's Georgia and Alabama Railway in 1896.[2]

In January 1899, John Skelton Williams's syndicate offered to purchase a majority of shares in railroads along the east coast of the United States that would become the Seaboard Air Line Railroad. By 1900, the Georgia and Alabama Railway formally became part of the Seaboard Air Line. John Skelton Williams served as the first president of the Seaboard Air Line, and he would later serve as the United States Comptroller of the Currency.

The Seaboard Air Line discontinued passenger service from Columbus to Albany in 1932 and the line became a freight-only line.[3][4]

In 1944, the Seaboard Air Line acquired the Georgia Florida and Alabama Railway (GF&A), which paralleled the Columbus Southern between Richland and Kimbrough.[5] As a result, the Seaboard Air Line abandoned the former Columbus Southern between Richland and Kimbrough and consolidated service on the former GF&A. The Seaboard then designated the former Columbus Southern north of Richland (along with the GF&A) as their Richland Subdivision. The Columbus Southern south of Kimbrough became their Albany Subdivision.[6]

In 1967, the Seaboard Air Line merged with its rival, the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, and the combined company was named the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad. The former Columbus Southern segments continued to operate, though the segment from Kimbrough to Albany was renamed the Kimbrough Subdivision.[7] By 1982, track had been abandoned from Kimbrough to Dawson and the remaining segment from Dawson to Albany was known as the Dawson Subdivision.[8]

In 1980, the Seaboard Coast Line's parent company merged with the Chessie System, creating the CSX Corporation. The CSX Corporation initially operated the Chessie and Seaboard Systems separately until 1986, when they were merged into CSX Transportation.

CSX sold much of the line to the Georgia Southwestern in 1989.[9]

The Georgia Southwestern abandoned the line from Cusseta to Richland in 1995, with the rails being removed in September 1997. Rails remained in place from Columbus to Cusseta in order to serve a large pulpwood yard near the latter which are still in place today but are out of service.[10]

At the south end, the line was abandoned from Albany to Sasser in 1994. The Georgia Southwestern still operates the remaining line from Sasser to Dawson.[10]

Historic stations
Milepost City/Location Station[6] Connections and notes
SLB 0.0 Columbus Union Station junction with:
SLB 3.8 Fort Benning junction with Fort Benning Railroad
SLB 6.6 Sand Hill
SLB 10.5 Ochillee
SLB 13.4 Central Springs
SLB 18.5 Cusetta
SLB 27.8 Renfroe
SLB 32.3 Brooklyn
SLB 38.3 Richland Richland junction with:
SLB 44.7 Kimbrough junction with Georgia Florida and Alabama Railway (SAL)
SLB 47.8 Weston
SLB 55.7 Parrott, Georgia Parrott
SLB 64.9 Dawson Dawson junction with Southwestern Railroad (CoG/SOU)
SLB 71.8 Sasser Sasser
SLB 87.2 Albany Albany junction with:

References
  1. "Columbus Southern Ry. Co. v. Wright, 151 U.S. 470 (1894)". Justia Law. 2022-07-14. Retrieved 2022-07-16.
  2. Jones, R.C. (2017). A History of Georgia Railroads. Transportation. Arcadia Publishing Incorporated. p. 86. ISBN 978-1-4396-6012-6. Retrieved 2022-07-16.
  3. Official Guide of the Railways, Seaboard Air Line section, February 1932
  4. Official Guide of the Railways, June 1921, Seaboard Air Line section, Table 12
  5. United States. Congress. House. Committee on the Judiciary. Special Subcommittee on Bankruptcy and Reorganization (1947). Railroad Reorganization: Hearings Before Special Committee on Bankruptcy and Reorganization, Eightieth Congress, First Session, on H.R. 3237. U.S. Government Printing Office. pp. 242–.
  6. Seaboard Air Line Railroad South Carolina Division Timetable (1944)
  7. Seaboard Coast Line Railroad Savannah & Waycross Division Timetable (1976)
  8. Seaboard Coast Line Railroad Savannah & Waycross Division Timetable (1982)
  9. Lewis, Edward A. (1996). American Shortline Railway Guide (5 ed.). Kalmbach Publishing Company. p. 133. ISBN 0-89024-290-9.
  10. Thornhill, Tommy (2002). "Pig Trails of Southwest Georgia: Part 2". Lines South. White River Productions. 19 (1): 22–29.
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