The Norfolk and Western Railway , commonly called the N&W, was a US
class I railroad
In the United States, railroad carriers are designated as Class I, II, or III, according to annual revenue criteria originally set by the Surface Transportation Board in 1992. With annual adjustments for inflation, the 2019 thresholds were US ...
, formed by more than 200 railroad mergers between 1838 and 1982. It was headquartered in
Roanoke, Virginia
Roanoke ( ) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 100,011, making it the 8th most populous city in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the largest city in Virginia west of Richmond. It is l ...
, for most of its existence. Its motto was "Precision Transportation"; it had a variety of nicknames, including "King Coal" and "British Railway of America". In 1986, N&W merged with Southern Railway to form today’s
Norfolk Southern Railway
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (3 ...
.
The N&W was famous for manufacturing its own
steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomo ...
s, which were built at the
Roanoke Shops, as well as its own
hopper car
A hopper car (US) or hopper wagon ( UIC) is a type of railroad freight car used to transport loose bulk commodities such as coal, ore, grain, and track ballast. Two main types of hopper car exist: covered hopper cars, which are equipped with ...
s. After 1960, N&W was the last major Class I railroad using steam locomotives; the last remaining Y class 2-8-8-2s would eventually be retired between 1964 and 1965.
In December 1959, the N&W merged with the
Virginian Railway
The Virginian Railway was a Class I railroad located in Virginia and West Virginia in the United States. The VGN was created to transport high quality "smokeless" bituminous coal from southern West Virginia to port at Hampton Roads.
History ...
(reporting mark VGN), a longtime rival in the Pocahontas coal region. By 1970, other mergers with the
Nickel Plate Road and
Wabash formed a system that operated of road on of track from North Carolina to New York and from Virginia to Iowa.
In 1980, the N&W merged its business operation with those of the
Southern Railway, another profitable carrier, to create the
Norfolk Southern Corporation
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (3 ...
holding company
A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...
. The N&W and the Southern Railway continued as separate railroads operating under the single holding company.
In 1982, the Southern Railway was renamed Norfolk Southern Railway and the holding company transferred the Norfolk & Western Railway to the control of the newly renamed company.
History
Predecessors
City Point, Southside and Virginia and Tennessee railroads
The N&W's earliest predecessor was the
City Point Railroad
In 1836, the Virginia House of Delegates approved a charter for the City Point Railroad. City Point, Virginia, was just ten years old. The Lower Appomattox Company ran boats of cargo from Petersburg, Virginia, to the large port at City Point. The ...
(CPRR), a
short-line railroad
:''Short Line is also one of the four railroads in the American version of the popular board game Monopoly, named after the Shore Fast Line, an interurban streetcar line.''
A shortline railroad is a small or mid-sized railroad company that ope ...
formed in 1838 to extend from
City Point (now part of the independent city of
Hopewell, Virginia
Hopewell is an independent city surrounded by Prince George County and the Appomattox River in the Commonwealth of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 23,033. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Hopewell with ...
), a port on the tidal
James River
The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 to Chesap ...
, to
Petersburg, Virginia
Petersburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 33,458. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines Petersburg (along with the city of Colonial Heights) with Di ...
, on the
fall line
A fall line (or fall zone) is the area where an upland region and a coastal plain meet and is typically prominent where rivers cross it, with resulting rapids or waterfalls. The uplands are relatively hard crystalline basement rock, and the coas ...
of the shallower
Appomattox River
The Appomattox River is a tributary of the James River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 in central and eastern Virginia in the Unite ...
. In 1854, CPRR became part of the
South Side Railroad, which connected Petersburg with
Lynchburg, where it
interchanged through traffic with the
Virginia and Tennessee Railroad
The Virginia and Tennessee Railroad was an historic gauge railroad in the Southern United States, much of which is incorporated into the modern Norfolk Southern Railway. It played a strategic role in supplying the Confederacy during the American ...
(V&T) and the
James River and Kanawha Canal
The James River and Kanawha Canal was a partially built canal in Virginia intended to facilitate shipments of passengers and freight by water between the western counties of Virginia and the coast. Ultimately its towpath became the roadbed for a ...
.
Norfolk and Petersburg Railroad
William Mahone
William Mahone (December 1, 1826October 8, 1895) was an American civil engineer, railroad executive, Confederate States Army general, and Virginia politician.
As a young man, Mahone was prominent in the building of Virginia's roads and railr ...
(1826–95), an 1847 engineering graduate of the
Virginia Military Institute
la, Consilio et Animis (on seal)
, mottoeng = "In peace a glorious asset, In war a tower of strength""By courage and wisdom" (on seal)
, established =
, type = Public senior military college
, accreditation = SACS
, endowment = $696.8 mil ...
(VMI), was employed by
Francis Mallory to build the
Norfolk and Petersburg Railroad
The Norfolk and Petersburg Railroad was built between Norfolk and Petersburg, Virginia and was completed by 1858. The line was of track gauge.
It played a role on the American Civil War (1861–1865), and became part of the Atlantic, Mississip ...
(N&P) and eventually became its president in the pre-Civil War era. Construction of N&P began in 1853. Mahone's innovative
corduroy
Corduroy is a textile with a distinctively raised "cord" or wale texture. Modern corduroy is most commonly composed of tufted cords, sometimes exhibiting a channel (bare to the base fabric) between them. Both velvet and corduroy derive from f ...
roadbed
A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation.
There are many types of ...
through the
Great Dismal Swamp
The Great Dismal Swamp is a large swamp in the Coastal Plain Region of southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina, between Norfolk, Virginia, and Elizabeth City, North Carolina. It is located in parts of the southern Virginia indep ...
near
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...
, employed a log foundation laid at right angles beneath the surface of the swamp. It is still in use 150 years later and it withstands immense tonnages of coal traffic.
Mahone married
Otelia Butler, from
Smithfield in
Isle of Wight County, Virginia, a daughter of
Robert Butler (1784–1853), a Virginia state treasurer. Popular legend has it that Otelia and William Mahone traveled along the newly completed N&P naming stations along the
tangent
In geometry, the tangent line (or simply tangent) to a plane curve at a given point is the straight line that "just touches" the curve at that point. Leibniz defined it as the line through a pair of infinitely close points on the curve. Mor ...
between
Suffolk
Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...
and
Petersburg from ''Ivanhoe'', a book she was reading by
Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'', '' Rob Roy' ...
. From Scott's historical Scottish novels, Otelia chose the place names of
Windsor,
Waverly and
Wakefield
Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...
. She tapped the Scottish Clan "McIvor" for the name of
Ivor, a small
Southampton County town. When they could not agree on a name for a station just west of the
Sussex County line in
Prince George, it is said that the young couple invented a new word in honor of their "dispute", which is how the tiny community of
Disputanta was named. The N&P was completed in 1858.
Civil War
Of small stature, dynamic "Little Billy" Mahone became a major general in the
Confederate Army
The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fightin ...
during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
. He was widely regarded as the hero of the
Battle of the Crater
The Battle of the Crater was a battle of the American Civil War, part of the siege of Petersburg. It took place on Saturday, July 30, 1864, between the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, commanded by General Robert E. Lee, and the Union ...
during the
Siege of Petersburg
The Richmond–Petersburg campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg, Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865, during the American Civil War. Although it is more popularly known as the Siege of Petersburg, it was not a cla ...
in 1864–65. Otelia Mahone served as a
nurse
Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health ...
in the Confederate capital of
Richmond.
The N&P was severed by the war. The portion east of the
Blackwater River
A blackwater river is a type of river with a slow-moving channel flowing through forested swamps or wetlands. As vegetation decays, tannins leach into the water, making a transparent, acidic water that is darkly stained, resembling black te ...
at
Zuni, Virginia
Zuni () is an unincorporated community in Isle of Wight County in the Hampton Roads region of southeastern Virginia in the United States.
Zuni is home to a general store, a gas station, a small engine repair shop and two churches and is served b ...
, was held by the Union for most of the war. The eastern portion of the City Point Railroad played a crucial role for Union General
Ulysses S. Grant during the Siege of Petersburg, and was operated by the
United States Military Railroad. The South Side Railroad was also heavily damaged.
Early years
Beginning as the Atlantic, Mississippi & Ohio Railroad
William and Otelia Mahone were illustrious characters in post-bellum Virginia. Mahone got quickly to work restoring "his" N&P, and resumed his dream of linking the three trunk lines across the southern tier of Virginia to reach points to the west. He became president of all three, and drove the 1870 merger of N&P,
South Side Railroad and the
Virginia and Tennessee Railroad
The Virginia and Tennessee Railroad was an historic gauge railroad in the Southern United States, much of which is incorporated into the modern Norfolk Southern Railway. It played a strategic role in supplying the Confederacy during the American ...
to form the
Atlantic, Mississippi and Ohio Railroad
Atlantic, Mississippi and Ohio Railroad (AM&O) was formed in 1870 in Virginia from three east–west railroads which traversed across the southern portion of the state. Organized and led by former Confederate general William Mahone (1826-1895 ...
(AM&O). The AM&O extended from Norfolk to
Bristol, Virginia
Bristol is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 17,219. It is the twin city of Bristol, Tennessee, just across the state line, which runs down the middle of its main street, State ...
. The Mahones moved to the headquarters city of
Lynchburg, the midpoint of the AM&O. The acronym AM&O was said to stand for "All Mine and Otelia's."
The AM&O operated profitably in the early 1870s but like many railroads encountered financial problems during the
Panic of 1873
The Panic of 1873 was a financial crisis that triggered an economic depression in Europe and North America that lasted from 1873 to 1877 or 1879 in France and in Britain. In Britain, the Panic started two decades of stagnation known as the " ...
. A fourth road of the AM&O family was planned to extend west through the
Cumberland Gap
The Cumberland Gap is a pass through the long ridge of the Cumberland Mountains, within the Appalachian Mountains, near the junction of the U.S. states of Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee. It is famous in American colonial history for its rol ...
to Kentucky, but was never built. Mahone retained control of AM&O for several more years before his relationship with English and Scottish bondholders deteriorated in 1876 and receivers were appointed to oversee his work. After several years of operating under receiverships, Mahone's role as a railroad builder ended in 1881 when northern financial interests took control.
At the foreclosure auction, the AM&O was purchased by
E.W. Clark & Co., a private banking firm in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sin ...
with ties to the large
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad ( reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was na ...
. The PRR was seeking a southern connection for its
Shenandoah Valley Railroad (SVRR), which was then under construction up the valley from the
Potomac River
The Potomac River () drains the Mid-Atlantic United States, flowing from the Potomac Highlands into Chesapeake Bay. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map. Retrieved Aug ...
.
Name change to Norfolk and Western
In 1881, the AM&O was reorganized and renamed Norfolk and Western, a name perhaps taken from an 1850s charter application filed by citizens of
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...
. George Frederick Tyler became president.
Frederick J. Kimball
Frederick James Kimball (March 6, 1844 – July 27, 1903) was a civil engineer. He was an early president of the Norfolk and Western Railway and helped develop the Pocahontas coalfields in Virginia and West Virginia.
Kimball was born in P ...
, a civil engineer and partner in
E.W. Clark & Co., became First Vice President. Henry Fink, whom Mahone had hired in 1855, became Second Vice President and General Superintendent.
Kimball and his board of directors selected Big Lick, a small Virginia village on the
Roanoke River
The Roanoke River ( ) runs long through southern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina in the United States. A major river of the southeastern United States, it drains a largely rural area of the coastal plain from the eastern edge of the ...
, to be the junction of SVRR and the N&W. Big Lick was later renamed
Roanoke, Virginia
Roanoke ( ) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 100,011, making it the 8th most populous city in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the largest city in Virginia west of Richmond. It is l ...
. Over time, Roanoke began to grow and in the 1950s, reached a population of over 90,000.
At its founding, the N&W primarily transported agricultural products. Kimball, who had a strong interest in
geology
Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...
, led the railroad's efforts to open the Pocahontas
coalfield
A coalfield is an area of certain uniform characteristics where coal is mined. The criteria for determining the approximate boundary of a coalfield are geographical and cultural, in addition to geological. A coalfield often groups the seams of ...
s in western
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...
and southern
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the ...
. In mid-1881, the N&W acquired the franchises to four other lines: the
New River Railroad, Mining and Manufacturing Company, the Bluestone Railroad, and the East River Railroad. Consolidated into the New River Railroad Company, with Kimball as president, these railroads became the basis for N&W's New River Division, which was soon built from
New Kanawha (near East Radford) up the west bank of the
New River through
Pulaski County and into
Giles County to the mouth of the East River near
Glen Lyn, Virginia. From there, the new line ran up the East River, crossing the Virginia-West Virginia border several times to reach the coalfields to the west near the
Great Flat Top Mountain. Coal transported to Norfolk soon became NW's primary commodity, and led to great wealth and profitability.
Kimball served as N&W president from 1883 to 1895. Under his leadership, the N&W continued expansion westward with its lines through the wilderness of
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the ...
with the Ohio Extension, eventually extending north across the
Ohio River
The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illi ...
to
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and ...
by the Scioto Valley Railroad. Acquisition of other lines, including the
Cincinnati, Portsmouth and Virginia Railroad (CP&V) (which it had long supported and leased) extended the N&W system west along the Ohio River to
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line ...
, south from Lynchburg to
Durham, North Carolina
Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County and Wake County. With a population of 283,506 in the 2020 Census, Durham is the 4th- ...
, and south from Roanoke to
Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Winston-Salem is a city and the county seat of Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the second-largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region, the 5th most populous city in ...
. By the time Kimball died in 1903, the railroad had attained the basic structure it would use for more than 60 years.
In 1890 the N&W bought out the
Shenandoah Valley Railroad. This gave the railroad a reach north of the
Potomac River
The Potomac River () drains the Mid-Atlantic United States, flowing from the Potomac Highlands into Chesapeake Bay. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map. Retrieved Aug ...
and the Virginia-Maryland border, and a line with territory reaching as far north as
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in ...
. This would become referred to as the ''Shenandoah Valley Division.''
Coal
In 1885, several small mining companies representing about of
bituminous coal
Bituminous coal, or black coal, is a type of coal containing a tar-like substance called bitumen or asphalt. Its coloration can be black or sometimes dark brown; often there are well-defined bands of bright and dull material within the seams. ...
reserves grouped together to form the coalfields' largest landowner, the Philadelphia-based Flat-Top Coal Land Association.The N&W bought the association and reorganized it as the Pocahontas Coal and Coke Company (PCCC). The PCCC was later renamed the Pocahontas Land Corporation (PLC) and is now a subsidiary of NS.
As the availability and fame of high-quality Pocahontas
bituminous coal
Bituminous coal, or black coal, is a type of coal containing a tar-like substance called bitumen or asphalt. Its coloration can be black or sometimes dark brown; often there are well-defined bands of bright and dull material within the seams. ...
increased, economic forces took over. Coal operators and their employees settled dozens of towns in southern
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the ...
, and in the next few years, as coal demand swelled, some of them amassed fortunes. The countryside was soon sprinkled with tipples, coke ovens, houses for workers, company stores and churches. In the four decades before the
Crash of 1929
The Wall Street Crash of 1929, also known as the Great Crash, was a major American stock market crash that occurred in the autumn of 1929. It started in September and ended late in October, when share prices on the New York Stock Exchange coll ...
and subsequent
Depression, these coal towns flourished. One example was the small community of
Bramwell, West Virginia
Bramwell is a town in Mercer County, West Virginia, United States, along the Bluestone River. The population was 277 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Bluefield, WV- VA micropolitan area which has a population of 107,578.
History
In the 1 ...
, which in its heyday boasted the highest per capita concentration of millionaires in the country.
In 1886, the N&W tracks were extended directly to
coal pier A coal pier is a transloading facility designed for the transfer of coal between rail and ship.
The typical facility for loading ships consists of a holding area and a system of conveyors for transferring the coal to dockside and loading it into th ...
s at
Lambert's Point, which was located in
Norfolk County just north of the City of Norfolk on the
Elizabeth River, where one of the busiest
coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen.
Coal is formed wh ...
export facilities in the world was built to reach
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name of both a body of water in the United States that serves as a wide channel for the James River, James, Nansemond River, Nansemond and Elizabeth River (Virginia), Elizabeth rivers between Old Point Comfort and Sewell's ...
shipping. A residential section was also developed to house the families of the workers. Many early residents of Lambert's Point were involved in the coal industry.
Roanoke Shops
The company was famous for building its own
steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomo ...
s, a practice rare outside Britain (where most railways either built their own locomotives or had outside contractors build locomotives to their designs). The locomotives were built at the
Roanoke Shops at Roanoke. The Shops employed thousands of craftsmen, who refined their products over the years. The A, J, and Y6 locomotives, designed, built and maintained by NW personnel, brought the company industry-wide fame for its excellence in steam power. The N&W's commitment to steam power was due in part to its investment in the manufacturing capacity and
human resources
Human resources (HR) is the set of people who make up the workforce of an organization, business sector, industry, or economy. A narrower concept is human capital, the knowledge and skills which the individuals command. Similar terms includ ...
to build and operate steam locomotives, and partially due to the major commodity it hauled, coal. During the 1950s, N&W rebuilt its W Class 2-8-0 Consolidations into Shop Co W6 0-8-0Ts. In 1960, the N&W became the last major railroad in the United States to abandon steam locomotives for
diesel-electric motive power.
Today, the Roanoke Shops continued to build and repair rolling stock until 2020 when NS closed them.
Later years
Roanoke & Southern
The Roanoke & Southern Railway Company was organized in 1887, succeeding separate companies called Roanoke & Southern in North Carolina and Virginia. Norfolk and Western leased the Roanoke & Southern (called the Norfolk, Roanoke & Southern Rail Road by 1896) starting in 1892 but it became part of Norfolk and Western in 1911.
World Wars, Great Depression, and efficiencies
The N&W operated profitably through
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fight ...
and
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
and paid regular dividends throughout the Depression. During
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fight ...
, the N&W was jointly operated with VGN under the
USRA's wartime takeover of the Pocahontas Roads. The operating efficiencies were significant, and after the war, when the railroads were returned to their respective owners and competitive status, the N&W never lost sight of the VGN and its low-gradient routing through Virginia. N&W meanwhile during World War 2 used their J's, K1's, A Class, and S1 Switchers to handle the troop trains from Ohio to Norfolk, a point of embarkation. Other three were New York, San Francisco, and San Diego. However, the US
Interstate Commerce Commission
The Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) was a regulatory agency in the United States created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The agency's original purpose was to regulate railroads (and later trucking) to ensure fair rates, to eliminate ...
(ICC) turned down attempts at combining the roads until 1959, when a proposed N&W-VGN merger was finally approved.
The N&W also operated safely in this time, being the recipient of the Gold
E. H. Harriman Award for 1938. In a promotional booklet published in 1939, the N&W wrote "For the second time in 12 years, the American Museum of Safety has awarded the Harriman Memorial Gold Medal to the Norfolk & Western Railway for the outstanding safety record during 1938 among class I railroads of the United States." It is further noted that the railway carried one million passengers more than without incident in the period from 1924 to 1938.
At the end of 1925, the N&W operated of route on track; at the end of 1956 NW operated of route on of track.
Acquiring the Virginian Railway
VGN was conceived and built by
William Nelson Page and
Henry Huttleston Rogers. Page had helped engineer and build the
Chesapeake & Ohio Railway (C&O) through the mountains of
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the ...
and Rogers had already become a millionaire and a principal of
Standard Oil
Standard Oil Company, Inc., was an American oil production, transportation, refining, and marketing company that operated from 1870 to 1911. At its height, Standard Oil was the largest petroleum company in the world, and its success made its co-f ...
before their partnership was formed early in the 20th century.
Initially, their project was an -long
short line railroad. After failing to establish favorable rates to interchange coal traffic with the big railroads (who shut them out through collusion), the project expanded. Rogers was apparently a
silent partner in the early stages, and the bigger railroads did not take Page seriously. However, the partners planned and then built a "Mountains to Sea" railroad from the coal fields of southern West Virginia to port near
Norfolk
Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the N ...
at
Sewell's Point in the harbor of
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name of both a body of water in the United States that serves as a wide channel for the James River, James, Nansemond River, Nansemond and Elizabeth River (Virginia), Elizabeth rivers between Old Point Comfort and Sewell's ...
. They accomplished this right under the noses of the pre-existing and much bigger C&O and N&W railroads and their leaders by forming two small intrastate railroads,
Deepwater Railway, in West Virginia, and
Tidewater Railway The Tidewater Railway was formed in 1904 as an intrastate railroad in Virginia, in the United States, by William N. Page, a civil engineer and entrepreneur, and his silent partner, millionaire industrialist Henry Huttleston Rogers of Standard Oil ...
in Virginia. Once right-of-way and land acquisitions had been secured, the two small railroads were merged in 1907 to form the Virginian Railway.
Engineered by Page and financed almost entirely from Rogers' personal resources, VGN lines were laid on the principle that picking the best route and buying the best equipment would save operating expenses.
Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...
spoke at VGN's dedication in Norfolk, Virginia, only 6 weeks before Rogers died in May 1909 after his only inspection trip on the newly completed railroad. That June,
Booker T. Washington made a whistle-stop speaking tour on VGN, traveling in Rogers' private car,
Dixie
Dixie, also known as Dixieland or Dixie's Land, is a nickname for all or part of the Southern United States. While there is no official definition of this region (and the included areas shift over the years), or the extent of the area it cove ...
, and later revealing that Rogers had been instrumental in funding many small country schools and institutions of higher education in the South for the betterment of Black communities.
VGN operated over more modern alignments than the C&O, and the N&W, and its track was built to the highest standards. It provided major competition for coal traffic to C&O and the N&W. The VGN followed Rogers' philosophy throughout its profitable history, earning the nickname "Richest Little Railroad in the World." It operated some of the largest and most powerful steam, electric, and diesel locomotives.
The VGN
electrified of its route between 1922 and 1926 at a cost of $15 million, and had its own power plant at
Narrows, Virginia. It shared electrical resources with N&W from 1925 to 1950, when the N&W discontinued its
own, shorter, electrified section through the Elkhorn Tunnel and
Great Flat Top Mountain region. The VGN track was de-electrified in 1962, after the N&W-VGN merger.
Merger era: 1960–1982
In 1955, the N&W operated in North Carolina, Virginia, Kentucky, West Virginia, Maryland, and Ohio. In 1959, the
Interstate Commerce Commission
The Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) was a regulatory agency in the United States created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The agency's original purpose was to regulate railroads (and later trucking) to ensure fair rates, to eliminate ...
(ICC) approved VGN's merger into the N&W.
In 1964, the former
Wabash;
Nickel Plate;
Pittsburgh and West Virginia Railway; and
Akron, Canton and Youngstown Railroad
The Akron, Canton and Youngstown Railroad was a Class I railroad which operated in the state of Ohio. The company was founded in 1907 and opened its mainline between Mogadore and Akron, Ohio in 1912. Later reclassified as a short-line railroad, ...
were brought into the system in one of the most complex mergers of the era. This consolidation, plus the 1976 addition of a more direct route to
Chicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
, made N&W an important Midwestern railroad that provided direct single-line service between the Atlantic Ocean and the
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lak ...
and
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, ...
.
In the late 1960s, the N&W acquired Dereco, a
holding company
A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...
that owned the
Delaware & Hudson (D&H) and
Erie Lackawanna (EL) railroads. Dereco's troubled railroads were not merged into the N&W: EL eventually joined
Conrail
Conrail , formally the Consolidated Rail Corporation, was the primary Class I railroad in the Northeastern United States between 1976 and 1999. The trade name Conrail is a portmanteau based on the company's legal name. It continues to do bus ...
and D&H was sold to
Guilford Transportation Industries; it is now part of Canadian Pacific.
In 1970, the N&W operated in North Carolina, Virginia, Kentucky, West Virginia, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Missouri, and Iowa.
On September 1, 1981, the N&W acquired
Illinois Terminal Railroad. The N&W was also a major investor in
Piedmont Airlines
Piedmont Airlines, Inc. is an American regional airline headquartered at the Salisbury Regional Airport in unincorporated Wicomico County, Maryland, near the city of Salisbury. The airline is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the American Airline ...
. Sometime in the 1980s the song "Cargo Movin' People" was written and recorded, however it never was officially released to the public. It eventually made its way onto a DVD program titled Rails to Roanoke by Mark I Video in 1987.
By 1996, N&W ran in most of the Midwest and Eastern states. Many N&W lines by 1998 were abandoned and some of them were never used again. However, the Norfolk to Bluefield line still exists but traffic has slowed because of its 12-mile 1.2% grade.
=Autoracks
=
In the 1950s,
Canadian National Railway
The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States.
...
(CN) introduced a group of innovative bi-level
autorack railcars. These autoracks had end doors and were very large by the standards of the time; at long, each autorack could carry 8 completed automobiles. These autoracks were a big success and helped lead to the development of today's fully enclosed autoracks. Tri-level autoracks were developed in the 1970s.
During the 1960s, autoracks took over rail transportation of newly completed automobiles in North America. They carried more cars in the same space and were easier to load and unload than the
boxcar
A boxcar is the North American ( AAR) term for a railroad car that is enclosed and generally used to carry freight. The boxcar, while not the simplest freight car design, is considered one of the most versatile since it can carry most lo ...
s formerly used. Ever-larger auto carriers and specialized terminals were developed by NW and other railroads.
The railroads were able to provide lower costs and greater protection from in-transit damage, such as that which may occur due to vandalism or weather and traffic conditions on unenclosed truck trailers. Using the autoracks, the railroads became the primary long-distance transporter of completed automobiles, one of few commodities where the industry has been able to overcome trucking in competition.
Becoming part of the Norfolk Southern Corporation
In 1980, the profitable N&W teamed up with the
Southern Railway, another profitable company, to form the
Norfolk Southern Corporation
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (3 ...
and it paved the way for today's
Norfolk Southern Railway
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (3 ...
(formerly the Southern Railway) and compete more effectively with
CSX Transportation
CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The railroad operates approximately 21,000 route miles () of track ...
, itself a combination of smaller railroads in the eastern half of the United States.
Today, former N&W trackage remains a vital portion of the Norfolk Southern Railway, a
Fortune 500
The ''Fortune'' 500 is an annual list compiled and published by ''Fortune'' magazine that ranks 500 of the largest United States corporations by total revenue for their respective fiscal years. The list includes publicly held companies, along w ...
company. The headquarters of the Norfolk Southern Railway and the parent Norfolk Southern Corporation are near the coal piers at
Lambert's Point.
Passenger operations
While the ''
Powhatan Arrow'' (all-
coach
Coach may refer to:
Guidance/instruction
* Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities
* Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process
** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers
Transportation
* Coa ...
, Norfolk–Cincinnati/Columbus) was the N&W's flagship passenger train, sporting a regal maroon livery with gold trim and hauled by a J Class 4-8-4 Northern Type steam locomotive, the railroad also operated a number of other passenger trains. These include:
* ''
The Cavalier'' (coaches and
Pullmans,
Norfolk
Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the N ...
–
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line ...
/Columbus).
* ''
The Pocahontas'' (coaches and Pullmans, Norfolk–Cincinnati/Columbus).
The N&W also participated in five inter-line passenger trains:
* Trains 1 and 2 (
Roanoke Roanoke may refer to:
Places
*Roanoke Colony, a former English colony that mysteriously disappeared
*Roanoke Island, the location of the Roanoke colony in present-day North Carolina
*Roanoke River, flowing through Virginia and North Carolina and e ...
–
Hagerstown, Maryland
Hagerstown is a city in Washington County, Maryland,
United States and the county seat of Washington County. The population of Hagerstown city proper at the 2020 census was 43,527, and the population of the Hagerstown metropolitan area (ext ...
) which continued in a pool arrangement with the
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad ( reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was na ...
from Hagerstown to Harrisburg to
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* ...
via North Philadelphia. This allowed for a trip from western Virginia to New York, bypassing Washington, D.C. and Baltimore. In contrast with other N&W trains from south of Roanoke which traveled east from Roanoke, this overnight train continued north from Roanoke along the
Shenandoah Valley Route, via Waynesboro, VA. Sleeping car passengers would be able to take the trip continuously, without a change of coach in Harrisburg.
* ''Cannon Ball'' (New York – Norfolk in conjunction with Pennsylvania Railroad,
Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad, and 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 ...
).
* ''
Birmingham Special
The ''Birmingham Special'' was a passenger train operated by the Southern Railway, Norfolk and Western Railway, and Pennsylvania Railroad in the southeastern United States. The train began service in 1909 and continued, with alterations, after ...
'' (New York –
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...
in conjunction with the Pennsylvania Railroad and
Southern Railway).
* ''
The Pelican'' (New York –
in conjunction with the Pennsylvania Railroad and Southern Railway).
* ''
The Tennessean
''The Tennessean'' (known until 1972 as ''The Nashville Tennessean'') is a daily newspaper in Nashville, Tennessee. Its circulation area covers 39 counties in Middle Tennessee and eight counties in southern Kentucky. It is owned by Gannett, ...
'' (New York –
Memphis in conjunction with the Pennsylvania Railroad and Southern Railway).
The last three were unusual in that the Southern Railway operated the trains, either side of the N&W stretch between Lynchburg and Bristol.
The Norfolk-bound trains arrived at
Norfolk Terminal Station
Norfolk Terminal Station was a railroad union station located in Norfolk, Virginia, which served passenger trains and provided offices for the Norfolk and Western Railway, the original Norfolk Southern Railway (a regional carrier in Virginia an ...
, which also served as the N&W company offices.
Steam locomotive types on the Norfolk and Western
*
Class A:
2-6-6-4 simple articulated Top Speed: 70 mph
* Class Y1 though
Y6b:
2-8-8-2 Mallet
A mallet is a tool used for imparting force on another object, often made of rubber or sometimes wood, that is smaller than a maul or beetle, and usually has a relatively large head. The term is descriptive of the overall size and propor ...
Top Speed: 60 mph
*
Class J:
4-8-4
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles, eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles and four trailing wheels on two axles. The type ...
Top Speed: 110 mph
* Classes
K1 and
K2:
4-8-2
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels, eight powered and coupled driving wheels and two trailing wheels. This type of steam locomotive is commonly known a ...
''Mountain'' Top Speed: 80 mph
*
Classes M, M1, and M2:
4-8-0 ''Mastodon'' Top Speed: 55 mph
*
Class S1:
0-8-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of no leading wheels, eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles and no trailing wheels. Locomotives of this type are also referre ...
switchers Top Speed: 50 mph
*
Class Z1:
2-6-6-2
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives by wheel arrangement, a is a locomotive with one pair of unpowered leading wheels, followed by two sets of three pairs of powered driving wheels and one pair of trailing whe ...
Top Speed: 60 mph
*
Class E1:
4-6-2
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles and two trailing wheels on one axle. The locomot ...
Top Speed: 65 mph
*
Class E2:
4-6-2
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles and two trailing wheels on one axle. The locomot ...
Top Speed: 70 mph
*
Class W:
2-8-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, usually in a leading truck, eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles, and no trailing wheel ...
Top Speed: 45 mph
Surviving steam locomotives
The N&W had run
excursion train
An excursion train is a chartered train run for a special event or purpose. Examples are trains to major sporting event, trains run for railfans or tourists, and special trains operated by the railway company for employees and prominent custome ...
s since its first days of passenger traffic, and deliberately powered them with steam engines after 1960, when most other trains had been switched to diesels. The excursion trains were powered by several of the N&W's famous steam locomotives, including
J class #611 and
A class #1218. The practice continued after the 1982 merger, under the first president of the merged Norfolk Southern,
Robert B. Claytor, but was finally halted in 1994.
Today, #1218 is on static display at the
Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke, Virginia; locomotive #611 has been restored to working order for the VMT by the
North Carolina Transportation Museum;
N&W class Y6a #2156 has been brought to Roanoke from the
National Museum of Transportation in
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which ...
; and
Class M #475 continues to operate at the
Strasburg Railroad in Strasburg, Pennsylvania, where 611 will participate in Fall 2019 for the "Reunion of Steam" event.
N&W
Class M #433 survives at the trailhead of the Virginia Creeper in
Abingdon, Virginia
Abingdon is a town in Washington County, Virginia, Washington County, Virginia, United States, southwest of Roanoke, Virginia, Roanoke. The population was 8,376 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. It is the county seat of Washington C ...
. The Virginia Creeper runs on the old Right of Way of the Norfolk and Western Abingdon
branch line
A branch line is a phrase used in railway terminology to denote a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line.
Industrial spur
An industr ...
.
N&W
Class E #578 survives at the
Ohio Railway museum
The Ohio Railway Museum is a railway museum that was founded in 1948. It is located in Worthington, Ohio, near Columbus, Ohio.
History
Established in 1948 and incorporated August 22, 1950, it is one of the oldest organization involved wi ...
in
Worthington, Ohio.
Four other engines survive known as the Lost Engines of Roanoke; a group of engines that survived in a Roanoke Scrapyard from the late 1950s until all were retrieved in 2009. These four engines included a Class W2 2-8-0 #917, Class M2 #1118 and #1134, and Class M2c #1151. #917 is displayed without a tender in Bellville, Ohio as a display for a restaurant. M2 #1118 is owned by the Roanoke Chapter Historical Society without a tender. M2 #1134 is displayed in Portsmouth VA at the Railroad Museum of Virginia with a tender. M2c #1151 is owned by the Virginia Museum of Transportation, and currently sits unrestored with a tender from an A class engine.
N&W Class Y3a #2050 is also preserved at the
Illinois Railway Museum in
Union, Illinois.
Leaders of the Norfolk and Western
Thousands of men and women worked for the AM&O and NW after the Civil War. Among the leaders were:
*
William Mahone
William Mahone (December 1, 1826October 8, 1895) was an American civil engineer, railroad executive, Confederate States Army general, and Virginia politician.
As a young man, Mahone was prominent in the building of Virginia's roads and railr ...
*
George F. Tyler
*
Henry Fink
*
Frederick J. Kimball
Frederick James Kimball (March 6, 1844 – July 27, 1903) was a civil engineer. He was an early president of the Norfolk and Western Railway and helped develop the Pocahontas coalfields in Virginia and West Virginia.
Kimball was born in P ...
*
Lucius E. Johnson
*
Nicholas D. Maher
*
William J. Jenks
*
Arthur C. Needles
*
Robert Hall Smith
*
Stuart T. Saunders
*
Herman H. Pevler
*
John P. Fishwick
*
Robert B. Claytor
*
Richard F. Dunlap
Heritage unit
As a part of Norfolk Southern's 30th anniversary, the company painted 20 new locomotives into predecessor schemes. NS #8103, a
GE ES44AC
The Evolution Series is a line of diesel locomotives built by GE Transportation Systems (now owned by Wabtec), initially designed to meet the U.S. EPA's Tier 2 locomotive emissions standards that took effect in 2005. The first pre-production ...
, was painted into the Norfolk and Western's blue scheme. NS also has SD40 #1580, of N&W heritage, stored at
Altoona Works
Altoona Works (also known as Altoona Terminal) is a large railroad industrial complex in Altoona, Pennsylvania. It was built between 1850 and 1925 by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), to supply the railroad with locomotives, railroad cars and relat ...
, awaiting restoration to its original N&W colors. However, as of 2021, there is still no information on where #1580 will go when it will be donated.
See also
*
Norfolk and Western Railway Company Historic District
*
Norfolk and Western Railway Freight Station
*
List of Norfolk and Western Railway locomotives
*
Norfolk and Western 611
Norfolk and Western 611, also known as the "Spirit of Roanoke" and the "Queen of Steam", is a Norfolk and Western (N&W) class J 4-8-4 "Northern" streamlined steam locomotive built in May 1950 by the N&W's East End Shops in Roanoke, Virginia. It ...
- Class J 4-8-4
*
Norfolk & Western 475 – Class M 4-8-0
*
Norfolk & Western 1218 – Class A 2-6-6-4
*
Norfolk & Western 2156 – Class Y6a 2-8-8-2
*
Dinwiddie County Pullman Car
References
Notes
N&W System Map 1965
Further reading
*Blake, Nelson Morehouse, Phd. (1935) ''William Mahone of Virginia; Soldier and Political Insurgent'', Garrett and Massie Publishers; Richmond, VA
*Dixon, Thomas W, Jr., (1994) ''Appalachian Coal Mines & Railroads''. Lynchburg, Virginia: TLC Publishing Inc.
*Dow, Andrew (1999) ''Norfolk and Western Coal Cars: From 1881 to 1998''. Motorbooks Intl.
*Ferrell, Mallory Hope, (2007) ''Norfolk & Western: Steam's Last Stand''. Hundman Publishing
*
*Huddleston, Eugene L, Ph.D. (2002) ''Appalachian Conquest'', Lynchburg, Virginia: TLC Publishing Inc.
*Lambie, Joseph T., (1954) ''From Mine to Market: The History of Coal Transportation on the Norfolk and Western Railway'' New York: New York University Press
*Lewis, Lloyd D., (1992) ''The Virginian Era''. Lynchburg, Virginia: TLC Publishing Inc.
*Lewis, Lloyd D., (1994) ''Norfolk & Western and Virginian Railways in Color by H. Reid''. Lynchburg, Virginia: TLC Publishing Inc.
*King, Ed, (1997) ''Norfolk & Western in the Appalachians: From the Blue Ridge to the Big Sandy''. Kalmbach Publishing Company
*Middleton, William D., (1974) (1st ed.). ''When The Steam Railroads Electrified'' Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Kalmbach Publishing Co.
*Prince, Richard E., (1980) ''Norfolk & Western Railway, Pocahontas Coal Carrier'', R.E. Prince; Millard, NE
*Reid, H. (1961)., ''The Virginian Railway'' (1st ed.). Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Kalmbach Publishing Co.
*Reisweber, Kurt, (1995) ''Virginian Rails 1953–1993'' (1st ed.) Old Line Graphics.
*Striplin, E. F. Pat., (1981) ''The Norfolk & Western: a history'' Roanoke, Va. : Norfolk and Western Railway Co.
*Traser, Donald R., (1998) ''Virginia Railway Depots''. Old Dominion Chapter, National Railway Historical Society.
*Wiley, Aubrey and Wallace, Conley (1985). ''The Virginian Railway Handbook''. Lynchburg, Virginia: W-W Publications.
*Wardeb, William E., (1996) ''Norfolk & Western Railway's Magnificent Mallets: The Y Class 2-8-8-2s ''. Motorbooks International
*Cuthriell, N.L. (1956) ''Coal On The Move Via The Virginian Railway'', reprinted with permission of Norfolk Southern Corporation in 1995 by Norfolk & Western Historical Society, Inc.
*Warden, William and Miller, Kenneth L., (2000) ''Norfolk & Western Passenger Service: 1946-1971''. Lynchburg, Virginia: TLC Publishing Inc.
External links
Norfolk & Western Historical SocietyNorfolk and Western 1966 timetable
{{DEFAULTSORT:Norfolk Western Railway
Predecessors of the Norfolk Southern Railway
Former Class I railroads in the United States
Defunct Illinois railroads
Defunct Indiana railroads
Defunct Iowa railroads
Defunct Kentucky railroads
Defunct Maryland railroads
Defunct Michigan railroads
Defunct Missouri railroads
Defunct New York (state) railroads
Defunct North Carolina railroads
Defunct Ohio railroads
Defunct Pennsylvania railroads
Defunct Virginia railroads
Defunct West Virginia railroads
Railroads in the Chicago metropolitan area
Railway companies established in 1896
Railway companies disestablished in 1998
Defunct Ontario railways
1896 establishments in Virginia
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