The Cherokee Railroad is an historic railroad that operated in the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

state of

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 ...

. It was organized in 1870 to take over operations from the failing Cartersville and Van Wert Railroad. The Cherokee Railroad initially operated from

Cartersville Cartersville is a city in Bartow County, Georgia, Bartow County, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States; it is located within the northwest edge of the Atlanta metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the city ha ...

to Taylorsville, and the new owners extended the railroad to

Rockmart, Georgia Rockmart is a town in Polk County, Georgia, United States. Its population was 4,732 at the 2020 census. It developed as a railroad depot town when the Southern Railway built a station in the area. The community was incorporated in 1872, and w ...

. The new owners also converted the track from broad gauge to

narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...

. Unfortunately, the financial problems for the line continued and it was eventually sold to the

Cherokee Iron Company The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...

in 1879. The Cherokee Iron Company then leased the Cherokee Railroad's lines to the

East and West Railroad of Alabama The East and West Railroad of Alabama was a railroad in the U.S. states of Alabama and Georgia. The railroad started out with narrow gauge track, but it was eventually converted to track. The Alabama end of the line began at Pell City, where it ...

who, in 1886, purchased the line outright and then merged it into its own operations.

References

3 ft gauge railways in the United States Defunct Georgia (U.S. state) railroads Narrow gauge railroads in Georgia (U.S. state) Railway companies established in 1870 Railway companies disestablished in 1879 Predecessors of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad 5 ft gauge railways in the United States {{US-rail-transport-stub