The Atlantic, Suwannee River and Gulf Railroad Company was a railroad that ran westward from

Starke, Florida Starke is a city in and the county seat of Bradford County, Florida, United States. The population was 5,796 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The origin of the city's name is disputed. Starke may have been named in honor of local la ...

, eventually terminating at

Wannee, Florida Wannee is an unincorporated community in Gilchrist County, Florida, United States. It is located on the Suwannee River, approximately southwest of Bell A bell /ˈbɛl/ () is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells h ...

, on the

Suwannee River The Suwannee River (also spelled Suwanee River or Swanee River) is a river that runs through south Georgia southward into Florida in the Southern United States. It is a wild blackwater river, about long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrog ...

. It was later absorbed by the

Seaboard Air Line Railroad The Seaboard Air Line Railroad , known colloquially as the Seaboard Railroad during its time, was an American railroad that existed from April 14, 1900, until July 1, 1967, when it merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, its longtime ri ...

becoming their Wannee Subdivision.Seaboard Air Line Railroad North Florida Division Timetable (1951)
/ref>

Route description

The Atlantic, Suwannee River and Gulf Railway began in Starke at Wannee Junction, a junction with the

Florida Central and Peninsular Railroad The Florida Central and Peninsular Railroad was the final name of a system of railroads throughout Florida, becoming part of the Seaboard Air Line Railway in 1900. The system, including some of the first railroads in Florida, stretched from Jackso ...

(which later became the

's main line). From Starke, the line ran west to Sampson City, where it crossed the

Georgia Southern and Florida Railway The Georgia Southern and Florida Railway , also known as the ''Suwanee River Route'' from its crossing of the Suwanee River, was founded in 1885 as the Georgia Southern and Florida ''Railroad'' and began operations between Macon, GA and Valdo ...

. Beyond Sampson City, the Atlantic, Suwannee River and Gulf Railway continued west through Brooker,

La Crosse La Crosse ( ) is a city in La Crosse County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. Positioned alongside the Mississippi River, La Crosse is the largest city on Wisconsin's western border. La Crosse's population was 52,680 as of the 20 ...

, and Hainesworth. In Hainesworth, it crossed the Jacksonville and Southwestern Railroad. From Hainesworth, the Atlantic, Suwannee River and Gulf Railway then paralleled the Jacksonville and Southwestern Railroad west four miles to Alachua. Beyond Alachua, the Atlantic, Suwannee River and Gulf Railway continued west to Buda where it crossed a branch of the

Live Oak, Tampa and Charlotte Harbor Railroad The Live Oak, Tampa and Charlotte Harbor Railroad was a historic railroad in Florida chartered by railroad tycoon Henry B. Plant. It was built as an extension of Plant's Live Oak and Rowlands Bluff Railroad. Together, the two lines ran from L ...

(which later became 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 ...

DuPont—Lakeland Line The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad's DuPont—Lakeland Line (R Line) was a historic rail line in southern Georgia (U.S. State), Georgia and the northern west coast of Florida. On employee timetables, the line was actually divided into the DuPont ...

). Beyond Buda, it ran southwest to

Bell A bell /ˈbɛl/ () is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be m ...

before coming to its terminus at Wannee on the

History

Construction and early years

The Starke to Wannee rail line was initiated in 1891 with the incorporation of the Starke and Sampson City Railway Company. The company failed after grading the right-of-way from Starke to Sampson City, and in 1892 transferred the right-of-way to the Ambler Lumber Co. The Atlantic, Suwannee River and Gulf Railroad (ASR&G) was incorporated under the general incorporation laws of

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

in 1893. Shortly after incorporation, the company purchased the graded right-of-way between Starke and Sampson City from the Ambler Lumber Company and contracted with the Atlantic Lumber Company (successor to the Ambler Lumber Company) to lay the track. The track from Starke reached Sampson City in August, 1863, and

LaCrosse Lacrosse is a contact team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game w ...

in March, 1894. After a pause, The track reached Alachua in July, 1896, and Buda, between

High Springs High Springs is a city in Alachua County, Florida, United States. It is the fourth-largest city in Alachua County and seventh-largest in North Central Florida. The population was 6,215 at the 2020 census, up from 5,350 at the 2010 census. It is ...

and

Newberry Newberry is a surname, a variant of Newbury. Notable people with the surname include: * Booker Newberry III (1956–2023), American singer and keyboardist * Brennan Newberry (born, 1990), American professional stock car racing driver * Brian Ne ...

, in July, 1897. The

(FC&PR) leased the ASR&G in 1899, and contracted with the Atlantic Lumber Company to extend the line to Wannee, a distance of . With completion of the Wannee extension in 1902 the line was long. The completed line was

standard gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), international gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge in Europe, and SGR in East Africa. It is the ...

and single-track. The ASR&GR under FC&PR control operated the line from Starke to Buda, and the Atlantic Lumber Company operated the line from Buda to Wannee. From its founding, the ASR&GR had served primarily to feed timber and lumber to the FC&PR.

Seaboard Air Line Railroad

The Florida Central and Peninsular Railroad was acquired by the

(SAL) in the early 1900s. Operation of both the FC&PR and the ASR&GR was taken over by the Seaboard Air Line Railroad in July, 1900, and both were formally adsorbed by the SAL in June, 1903. The Seaboard Air Line would eventually designate the line as the Wannee Subdivision. For much of its history, the Seaboard Air Line would operate mixed train service (with both passengers and freight) on the Wannee Subdivision. The Seaboard Air Line removed the track between Wannee and

in the 1930s. Despite the removal of track from Wannee, the line was still known as the Wannee Subdivision.

Mergers and consolidation

Much of the line west of Brooker was abandoned after the Seaboard Air Line merged with its competitor, the

, in 1967. The track from Buda to Bell would remain as a spur of the West Coast Subdivision (an ex-ACL line) until the 1980s.Seaboard Coast Line Railroad Jacksonville Division and Tampa Division Timetable (1977)
/ref> The Seaboard Coast Line became

CSX Transportation CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of track, it is the lead ...

in the 1980s. In the 1990s, CSX rebuilt a short segment of the Atlantic, Suwannee River and Gulf Railway to Hainesworth to reconnect with the remains of the former Jacksonville and Southwestern Railroad, which had just been severed from its system. This segment is now

Brooker Subdivision The Brooker Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in Florida. The line runs from the CSX S Line (the Wildwood Subdivision) at Wannee Junction in Starke to Newberry for a total of 39.6 miles. Route description The Brooker S ...

and is still in service. The line's connection with the CSX S Line is still known as Wannee Junction.CSX Jacksonville Division Timetable
/ref>

Historic stations

Notes

References

Sources

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Atlantic Suwannee River Gulf Railway Defunct Florida railroads Predecessors of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad Railway companies established in 1893 Railway companies disestablished in 1909 1893 establishments in Florida American companies established in 1893