Roanoke and Tar River Railroad

Roanoke and Tar River RailroadOverview

Locale| Virginia
North Carolina
Dates of operation| 1888–1911
Successor| Seaboard Air Line Railroad
Seaboard Coast Line Railroad
Technical
Track gauge| 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge

The Roanoke and Tar River Railroad was a railroad running from Boykins, Virginia south to Lewiston, North Carolina, a distance of 36 miles.

The Roanoke and Tar River Railroad was chartered by the North Carolina State Legislature in 1871 though no action to construct the line happened until 1885, when the charter was reissued. It would operate as a subsidiary of the Seaboard and Roanoke Railroad, which it connected with at the north end in Boykins. Construction began in 1887 and was complete a year later.[1]

In 1892, the Murfreesboro Railroad was built, which branched off the Roanoke and Tar River Railroad at Pendleton and ran to Murfreesboro, North Carolina. The Roanoke and Tar River Railroad would acquire the Murfreesboro Railroad in 1893 and operated it as a branch line until 1897.[2] When they discontinued service on the branch, the town of Murfreesboro took action to prevent the abandonment. But in the late evening of May 7, 1897, the company removed the branch's tracks in the dark of the night.[1]

By the end of the 1800s, the Seaboard and Roanoke Railroad became part of the Seaboard Air Line Railway network. The Roanoke and Tar River Railroad was fully merged into the Seaboard Air Line in 1911. The line would operate as the Seaboard Air Line's Lewiston Subdivision.[3]

In 1967, the Seaboard Air Line merged with its rival, the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad (ACL). The merged company was named the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad (SCL). The Lewiston Subdivision connected with an ex-ACL line in Kelford. In 1980, the Seaboard Coast Line's parent company merged with the Chessie System, creating the CSX Corporation. The CSX Corporation initially operated the Chessie and Seaboard Systems separately until 1986, when they were merged into CSX Transportation.

The southernmost five miles of the line from Kelford to Lewiston was abandoned sometime after 1986.[1] The remaining line from Boykins to Kelford was sold to the North Carolina and Virginia Railroad in 1987, who operates the line today.[4]

## Historic stations

[edit]

State  | Milepost  | City/Location  | Station[3] | Connections and notes

|
|
|
|

VA | SAB 54.1  | Boykins | Boykins  | junction with Seaboard and Roanoke Railroad (SAL)
NC | SAB 59.3  | Severn | Severn  |
SAB 62.2  |  | Pendleton | junction with branch to Murfreesboro
SAB 67.4  |  | Milwaukee |
SAB 70.9  |  | Potecasi |
SAB 73.0  | Woodland | Woodland  |
SAB 77.3  | Rich Square | Rich Square  |
SAB 82.5  | Roxobel | Roxobel  |
SAB 84.3  | Kelford | Kelford  | junction with Norfolk and Carolina Railroad (ACL)
SAB 89.3  | Lewiston | Lewiston  |

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c "North Carolina Railroads - Roanoke & Tar River Railroad". Carolana. Retrieved 26 July 2023.
2. ^ "North Carolina Railroads - Murfreesboro Railroad". Carolana. Retrieved 26 July 2023.
3. ^ a b Seaboard Air Line Railroad Virginia Division Timetable (1955)
4. ^ "CSX sells 54-mile rail line". Rocky Mount Telegram. 1987-11-19. p. 21. Retrieved 2022-09-03.