The Gross Cutoff (sometimes referred to as the Gross-Callahan Cutoff) was a rail line built by the

Seaboard Air Line Railroad The Seaboard Air Line Railroad , which styled itself "The Route of Courteous Service," was an American railroad which existed from April 14, 1900, until July 1, 1967, when it merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, its longtime rival, t ...

in northern

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. It ran from the Seaboard Air Line Railroad’s

main line Mainline, ''Main line'', or ''Main Line'' may refer to: Transportation Railway * Main line (railway), the principal artery of a railway system * Main line railway preservation, the practice of operating preserved trains on an operational railw ...

at a point known as Gross to

Callahan Callahan may refer to: *Callahan (surname) Fictional characters *Father Callahan, in Stephen King novels *Harry Callahan (character), in ''Dirty Harry'' movies * Jack Callahan (''Neighbours''), from the Australian soap opera ''Neighbours'' *Mik ...

connecting two pre-existing tracks.

Route and history

Gross was the name of a small turpentine village along the Seaboard Air Line main line about 7 miles north of Yulee (near the current interchange between

Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1, US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between M ...

and

US 17 U.S. Route 17 or U.S. Highway 17 (US 17), also known as the Coastal Highway, is a north–south United States Highway that spans in the southeastern United States. It runs close to the Atlantic Coast for much of its length, with ...

). From Gross, the line proceeded from the Seaboard main line southwest though a forest where it crossed Mills Creek to Callahan where it connected with the Seaboard's line from Fernandina and Yulee to Baldwin (the former

Florida Railroad The Florida Railroad was the first railroad to connect the east and west coasts of Florida, running from Fernandina to Cedar Key. The line later became part of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad, and, where still in use, is operated by CSX Transport ...

). The Gross Cutoff was built in 1925 and acted as a bypass for the busy Jacksonville Terminal area, which trains would have to otherwise pass through. Trains could then continue from Callahan to the Seaboard main line in Baldwin. The line was busy enough by 1948 that the Seaboard Air Line installed

Centralized traffic control Centralized traffic control (CTC) is a form of railway signalling that originated in North America. CTC consolidates train routing decisions that were previously carried out by local signal operators or the train crews themselves. The system con ...

along the line with three passing sidings. Its heavy use also cause the Seaboard Air Line to abandon the old Florida Railroad from its connection with the Gross Cutoff in Callahan to Yulee in 1954. In 1967, the Seaboard Air Line merged with its rival, the

Atlantic Coast Line Railroad The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad was a United States Class I railroad formed in 1900, though predecessor railroads had used the ACL brand since 1871. In 1967 it merged with long-time rival Seaboard Air Line Railroad to form the Seaboard Coast L ...

, the main line of which crossed the former Florida Railroad in Callahan. The merged company was named the

Seaboard Coast Line Railroad The Seaboard Coast Line Railroad was a Class I railroad company operating in the Southeastern United States beginning in 1967. Its passenger operations were taken over by Amtrak in 1971. Eventually, the railroad was merged with its affiliate lin ...

. The line was designated as the Gross Subdivision in the Seaboard Coast Line era. In the merged network, the former Atlantic Coast Line Railroad main line was prioritized for through train traffic to and from the north, reducing the importance of the Gross Subdivision. The line was abandoned in 1985, right around the same time the former Seaboard Air Line main line was abandoned in southwestern

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, cutting it off as a through route.

Historic stations

Baldwin to Gross

References

{{reflist Defunct Florida railroads Railroad cutoffs Seaboard Air Line Railroad Transportation in Nassau County, Florida