Dawkins Line Rail Trail

Rail trail in Kentucky, U.S.

Dawkins Line Rail Trail

Location within the state of Kentucky

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Dawkins Line Rail Trail (the United States)

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Location| Eastern Kentucky Coal Fields, Johnson County and Magoffin County, Kentucky USA
Nearest city| Paintsville, Kentucky
Coordinates| 37°44′12″N 82°54′00″W﻿ / ﻿37.73678°N 82.900059°W﻿ / 37.73678; -82.900059
Established| June 15, 2013
Governing body|

Kentucky Department of Parks

Length| 18 mi (29 km)
Trailheads| Swamp Branch
Royalton
Use| Cycling, Equestrian, and Hiking
Difficulty| Easy
Season| All
Surface| Crushed stone
Website| Official site

The Dawkins Line Rail Trail is an 18-mile (29.0 km) rail trail in Johnson and Magoffin Counties in Kentucky. The multi-use trail, suitable for biking, walking, and horseback riding, occupies an abandoned rail corridor that was constructed in the early 20th century for the Dawkins Lumber Company.[1] It is the longest rail trail in Kentucky.[2]

## History

[edit]

The name of the trail was derived from the Dawkins Lumber Company, which incorporated the Big Sandy and Kentucky River Railroad (BS&K) to construct the railroad in 1912. This rail corridor was developed as means of transportation for company employees and for the extraction of timber from remote areas. After the stock market crash of 1929, the BS&K was dissolved and the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O) acquired the railroad's stock on September 22, 1930.[3]

After the construction of a tunnel at Carver in 1949, the rail corridor was further expanded into Breathitt County.[3]

The rail line right-of-way was owned by CSX in 2002 when it was purchased by the R.J. Corman Railroad Group. R.J. Corman decided to abandon the 36 mile rail line in November 2004. In 2006, the Kentucky General Assembly provided the initial funds necessary to convert the abandoned right-of-way into a rail trail. In 2011, the right-of-way was purchased from R.J. Corman and the project began to move forward. The Kentucky State Parks received a multi-county coal severance grant of $500,000 to help support the development of the trail. The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet provided the Department of Parks with $2 million in transportation program funding for the first phase, as well as approximately $285,000 in Transportation Enhancement funding for trailheads.[3]

After the construction of Phase One of the rail trail was completed, the park opened to the public on June 15, 2013.[2] When Phase Two of the project is constructed, the trail will extend to Evanston in Breathitt County. When completed, the Dawkins Line Rail Trail will be a total of 36-miles (57.9 km) long.[2]

Future work (4th QTR 2014 or later) involves restoring abandoned railbed from Royalton southwest to near the tunnel at the Magoffin and Breathitt County line.[4]

## See also

[edit]

* List of rail trails
* Jenny Wiley State Resort Park
* Paintsville Lake State Park
* Pine Mountain State Scenic Trail

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Gov. Beshear and First Lady Open Dawkins Line Rail Trail Archived September 8, 2015, at the Wayback Machine Governor Steve Beshear's Communications Office. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
2. ^ a b c Dawkins Line Rail Trail Kentucky Department of Parks. Retrieved on 2013-06-20.
3. ^ a b c History of the Dawkins Line Rail Trail Archived January 17, 2014, at the Wayback Machine Kentucky Department of Parks. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
4. ^ Transportation Enhancement projects with Mods and Amendments. Spreadsheet dated 2014-08-27. Retrieved 2014-09-03.

## External links

[edit]

* Kentucky State Parks Brochure: Dawkins Line Rail Trail (pdf) Archived December 22, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
* Dawkins Line Rail Trail Official Map
new version (pdf) Archived June 4, 2018, at the Wayback Machine
* Dawkins Line Rail Trail Official Map
old version (pdf) Archived February 9, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
* Dawkins Line Rail Trail Opening Announcement Presentation (pdf, 8MB)
* Stage 1 Construction Presentation (pdf, 12MB) from Commonwealth of Kentucky
* Dawkins Line Rail Trail page at Kentucky State Parks website Archived June 24, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
* Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (documents containing "Dawkins")
* Rail Abandonment Environmental Assessment Decision (contains poor map on last page of pdf) Archived January 16, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
* Abandoned: History of Dawkins Subdivision of C&O Railroad
* Dawkins Line Rail Trail Feasibility Study (pdf, 9MB), from Summit Engineering for Big Sandy Area Development District and Big Lovely Mountain Trail Authority Archived September 24, 2013, at the Wayback Machine

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Protected areas of Kentucky

Federal|

| National Battlefields|

* Fort Donelson

|

National Forests|

* Daniel Boone
* George Washington and Jefferson

National Historical Parks|

* Abraham Lincoln Birthplace
* Cumberland Gap

National Monuments|

* Camp Nelson
* Mill Springs Battlefield

National Parks|

* Mammoth Cave

National Recreation Areas|

* Big South Fork
* Land Between the Lakes

National Trails|

* Lewis and Clark
* Trail of Tears

National Wild and Scenic Rivers|

* Red River

National Wildlife Refuges|

* Clarks River
* Green River
* Ohio River Islands
* Reelfoot

Other|

* National Historic Landmarks
* National Natural Landmarks
* National Register of Historic Places
* Wilderness Areas

State|

| State Resort Parks|

* Barren River Lake
* Blue Licks Battlefield
* Buckhorn Lake
* Carter Caves
* Cumberland Falls
* Dale Hollow Lake
* General Butler
* Greenbo Lake
* Jenny Wiley
* Kenlake
* Kentucky Dam Village
* Lake Barkley
* Lake Cumberland
* Natural Bridge
* Pennyrile Forest
* Pine Mountain
* Rough River Dam

|

State Historic Sites|

* Big Bone Lick
* Butler-Turpin House
* Dr. Thomas Walker
* Isaac Shelby Cemetery
* Jefferson Davis
* Old Mulkey Meetinghouse
* Perryville Battlefield
* Waveland
* White Hall
* Wickliffe Mounds
* William Whitley House

State Recreation
Parks|

* Carr Creek
* Columbus-Belmont
* Dawkins Line Rail Trail
* E. P. "Tom" Sawyer
* Fishtrap Lake
* Fort Boonesborough
* General Burnside Island
* Grayson Lake
* Green River Lake
* John James Audubon
* Kincaid Lake
* Kingdom Come
* Lake Malone
* Levi Jackson Wilderness Road
* Lincoln Homestead
* Mineral Mound
* My Old Kentucky Home
* Nolin Lake
* Old Fort Harrod
* Paintsville Lake
* Pine Mountain Trail
* Taylorsville Lake
* Yatesville Lake

State Forests|

* Dewey Lake
* Green River
* Kentenia
* Kentucky Ridge
* Knobs
* Olympia
* Pennyrile
* Tygarts

State
Nature Preserves|

* Axe Lake Swamp
* Bad Branch Falls
* Bat Cave and Cascade Caverns
* Beargrass Creek
* Blackacre
* Blue Licks
* Brigadoon
* Jesse Stuart
* JJ Audubon
* Natural Bridge
* Six Mile Island
* Tom Dorman

Other|

* Breaks Interstate Park
* Kentucky Horse Park

* Kentucky portal
* Office of Kentucky Nature Preserves

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Visitor attractions of the Eastern Kentucky Coalfield

Parks|

| State|

* Buckhorn Lake
* Carr Creek
* Carter Caves
* Cumberland Falls
* Dawkins Line Rail Trail
* Dr. Thomas Walker
* Fishtrap Lake
* Grayson Lake
* Greenbo Lake
* Jenny Wiley
* Kingdom Come
* Levi Jackson Wilderness Road
* Natural Bridge
* Paintsville Lake
* Pine Mountain
* Pine Mountain Trail
* Yatesville Lake

|

Federal|

* Big South Fork
* Cumberland Gap

Interstate|

* Breaks Interstate

Red River GorgeCumberland MountainsMartins Fork LakeCumberland FallsU.S. 23 Country Music Highway Museum

Museums|

* Barthell Coal Mining Camp
* Bell County Coal House & Museum
* Bell County Historical Society Museum
* Big Sandy Heritage Center
* Blue Heron Coal Mining Camp
* Bobby Davis Museum and Park
* Breathitt County Museum
* C.B. Caudill Store & History Center
* Cloverfork Museum
* Coal Miners' Museum
* Cumberland Inn Museum
* David A. Zegeer Coal-Railroad Museum
* East Kentucky Science Center
* Elkhorn City Railroad Museum
* F.M. Stafford House
* Harland Sanders Café & Museum
* Hensley Settlement
* Highlands Museum and Discovery Center
* Kentucky Coal Mining Museum
* Kentucky Folk Art Center
* Knox Historical Museum
* Magoffin County Pioneer Village and Museum
* Marie Stewart Museum & Craft Shop
* McCreary County Museum
* Morgan County History Museum
* Mountain Homeplace
* Mountain Life Museum
* Northeastern Kentucky Museum
* Samuel May House
* Swamp Valley Museum
* U.S. 23 Country Music Highway Museum
* Wolfe County History Museum

Forests|

* Daniel Boone
* Dewey Lake
* Jefferson
* Kentenia
* Kentucky Ridge
* Robinson
* Tygarts

Reservoirs|

* Buckhorn Lake
* Carr Creek Lake
* Cave Run Lake
* Cranks Creek Lake
* Lake Cumberland
* Dewey Lake
* Fishtrap Lake
* Grayson Lake
* Greenbo Lake
* Laurel River Lake
* Martins Fork Lake
* Paintsville Lake
* Yatesville Lake

Natural features|

* Black Mountain
* Cumberland Falls
* Cumberland Gap
* Dog Slaughter Falls
* Eagle Falls
* Middlesboro crater
* Pine Mountain
* Pound Gap
* Raven Rock
* Red River Gorge
* Tri-State Peak
* Yahoo Arch
* Yahoo Falls

Miscellaneous|

* Bad Branch Falls State Nature Preserve
* Bat Cave and Cascade Caverns State Nature Preserves
* Big South Fork Scenic Railway
* Black Mountain Off-Road Adventure Area
* Cumberland Gap Tunnel
* Furnace Mountain
* Kentucky Reptile Zoo
* Mayo Mansion
* Middle Creek Battlefield
* Nada Tunnel
* Pikeville Cut-Through
* Pilot Knob State Nature Preserve
* Sheltowee Trace Trail

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