Sarasota Subdivision | |||
---|---|---|---|
Overview | |||
Other name(s) | Parrish Subdivision | ||
Status | Some segments still operating | ||
Owner | Seaboard Air Line Railroad | ||
Termini | |||
Technical | |||
Line length | 74 mi (119 km) | ||
Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge | ||
Electrification | No | ||
Signalling | None | ||
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The Seaboard Air Line Railroad's Sarasota Subdivision (W Line) was a rail line that ran from the company's main line at Turkey Creek south to Palmetto, Bradenton, Sarasota, and Venice. The line was built in phases from 1901 to 1911.
The Sarasota Subdivision was one of the first major expansions of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad network in Florida. All of Seaboard's lines in Florida prior to this were part of the Florida Central and Peninsular Railroad network, which the Seaboard acquired in 1900.
The Seaboard Air Line organized a subsidiary United States & West Indies Railroad and Steamship Company in 1901 to oversee construction of the line. [1] In 1901, construction commenced with the line branching off the Seaboard main line near Turkey Creek. It proceeded south through Durant, Willow, and Palmetto. It crossed the Manatee River via a long swing bridge into Bradenton, which was located just east of the current Desoto Bridge. From Bradenton the line continued south to downtown Sarasota. Here, some of the line ran along the former right of way of the Arcadia, Gulf Coast and Lakeland Railroad, an earlier unsuccessful railroad between Bradenton and Sarasota. The line also had a spur to Terra Ceia, as well as spurs into the central areas of Ellenton, Palmetto, and Bradenton (known then as Bradentown).
The Seaboard Air Line operated the line's first train to Sarasota on March 23, 1903. Upon completion, the United States & West Indies Railroad and Steamship Company was renamed the Florida West Shore Railway. By 1905, the line was extended east from downtown into Fruitville. In 1909, Seaboard fully acquired the Florida West Shore Railway subsidiary, ending the Florida West Shore Railway's separate corporate identity.
The Seaboard Air Line extended the line south to Venice in 1911 after being convinced by local socialite Bertha Honoré Palmer who owned land in Venice. [2] [3] In Venice, the line connected with a small logging railroad operated by the Manasota Lumber Co. [4] The extension to Venice greatly benefited the city's economy. The railroad would be used by cadets and faculty of the Kentucky Military Institute's Venice campus for winter classes from 1933 to 1970. It also transported patients to Fred H. Albee's Florida Medical Center from 1932 to 1942 and transported goods and servicemen to Venice Army Air Field during World War II. [5] Another major customer on the line would be the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, which was headquartered in Sarasota from 1927 to 1959 and then in Venice from 1959 to 1990. [2]
By 1925, at the height of the Florida land boom of the 1920s, Seaboard considered extending the line further south through Englewood along Lemon Bay to Placida to intercept with their Boca Grande Subdivision (the former Charlotte Harbor and Northern Railway). The extension was never built. [2]
By the 1940s, the Seaboard Air Line removed the segment between the main line at Turkey Creek and Durant at the north end. The Seaboard's Valrico Cutoff, which was built in 1925 and crossed the Sarasota Subdivision at Durant, was then used to access the line and provided a slightly shorter route to Tampa. [2] By then, two local passenger trains were running the line daily in addition to a through freight train from Durant to Palmetto which ran six days a week. [3]
The SAL ran a section of its Silver Meteor, from Tampa to Bradenton, Sarasota and Venice on the SAL's Venice Division. The Silver Meteor offered through coaches and sleepers (no transfer needed) from New York City on this section. [6]
In 1967, the Seaboard Air Line (SAL) merged with their rival, the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad (ACL), who operated a nearly parallel route closer to the coast (the Tampa Southern Railroad). By April of 1968, the company abandoned the ex-SAL track within Downtown Sarasota and consolidated all service between Shade Avenue and 12th Street on the former Atlantic Coast Line tracks. All passenger traffic was also consolidated at the former Atlantic Coast Line passenger depot at Main Street and School Avenue. [7] Additionally, the SAL's swing bridge over the Manatee River was also removed in the wake of the merger in an effort to consolidate the company's operation on to a single bridge crossing (which also resulted in the removal of track between Palmetto Junction and Bradenton Junction). The Seaboard Coast Line then designated the remaining track north of the Manatee River as the Parrish Subdivision, and track south of the river became part of the Palmetto Subdivision (which also included the former Atlantic Coast Line route). [8] The Parrish Subdivision became a freight-only route after the merger.
Passenger operations from Tampa to Venice in the combined network was provided by the Champion once daily. The Champion ran from Tampa to Bradenton on the former Atlantic Coast Line route, but still ran on the remaining Seaboard Air Line track from Bradenton to Venice (except through downtown Sarasota). [9] Passenger service was discontinued in the Sarasota area after the Seaboard Coast Line's passenger operations were taken over by Amtrak in 1971.
In 1970, the Parrish Subdivision became the original route of the Tropicana Juice Train which brought fresh orange juice in insulated boxcars from Bradenton to Kearny, New Jersey six days a week. Seaboard Coast Line would later reroute the juice train through Tampa on the Palmetto Subdivision (former Atlantic Coast Line) where it operates today. [10]
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. In 1986, in an effort to further consolidate the network, track was abandoned between Durant and Willow. Though, the bridge over the Little Manatee River still stands with the tracks removed. [11]
From Willow to Palmetto, the line is still in service as CSX's Parrish Spur. The former spur in Palmetto now connects the line to the Palmetto Subdivision main track (the ex-ACL line). The right of way of the Parrish Spur north and east of Ellenton is now largely owned by Florida Power and Light, and the Florida Railroad Museum operates excursion trains on this segment from Parrish to Willow.
South of Bradenton, CSX continues to operates the line as part of their Palmetto Subdivision from the north end of Tropicana Yard south to Oneco. The short line Seminole Gulf Railway took over the rest of the remaining line south of Oneco to Venice in 1987. Seminole Gulf abandoned the line from Venice to Palmer Ranch in 2004, and the line from there to Sarasota was abandoned in 2019. [12] The Legacy Trail now runs on the former right of way from the Venice Depot to Fruitville Road in Sarasota. The remaining right of way south of the Venice Depot is now home to the Venice Urban Forest. [13]
Milepost [lower-alpha 1] | City/Location | Station [14] | Connections and notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|
SW 828.6 | Turkey Creek | Turkey Creek | junction with Seaboard Air Line Railroad Main Line | |
SW 832.8 | Durant | Durant | junction with Seaboard Air Line Railroad Valrico Subdivision | |
SW 836.5 | Lithia | Lithia | ||
SW 839.8 | Boyette | Boyette | ||
Burnett's Crossing | ||||
SW 844.6 | Balm | Balm | ||
SW 848.2 | Wimauma | Wimauma | ||
SW 854.0 | Willow | Willow | ||
Dickey | ||||
SW 860.2 | Parrish | Parrish | ||
SW 863.8 | Erie | |||
SW 867.2 | Terra Ceia Junction | junction with Terra Ceia Spur (see below) | ||
SW 869.1 | Ellenton Junction | junction with Ellenton Spur | ||
SWB 869.3 | Ellenton | located on Ellenton Spur | ||
SW 870.2 | Palmetto Junction | junction with Palmetto Spur | ||
SWC 871.5 | Palmetto | Palmetto | located on Palmetto Spur | |
SW 870.8 | Manavista | |||
SW 872.4 | Bradenton | Bradentown Junction | junction with Bradentown Spur | |
SWD 873.8 | Bradentown | located on Bradentown Spur | ||
SW 872.5 | Manatee | later renamed Bradenton-Manatee junction with: | ||
SW 875.8 | Oneco | |||
SW 877.7 | Tallevast | |||
Rardins | ||||
SW 883.4 | Sarasota | Sarasota | ||
SW 886.4 | Fruitville | |||
SW 890.0 | Bee Ridge | |||
SW 894.9 | Osprey | |||
SW 900.1 | Laurel | |||
SW 901.3 | Nokomis | |||
SW 902.6 | Venice | Venice | ||
Terra Ceia Spur | ||||
SWA 867.2 | Terra Ceia Junction | junction with Main Line | ||
SWA 869.8 | Rubonia | |||
SWA 871.7 | Terra Ceia | |||
Palmetto is a city in Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was listed as 13,323. It is part of the North Port–Sarasota–Bradenton metropolitan statistical area.
The Seaboard Coast Line Railroad was a Class I railroad company operating in the Southeastern United States beginning in 1967. Its passenger operations were taken over by Amtrak in 1971. Eventually, the railroad was merged with its affiliate lines to create the Seaboard System in 1983.
The Seminole Gulf Railway is a short line freight and passenger excursion railroad headquartered in Fort Myers, Florida, that operates two former CSX Transportation railroad lines in Southwest Florida. The company's Fort Myers Division, which was previously the southernmost segment of CSX's Fort Myers Subdivision, runs from Arcadia south to North Naples via Punta Gorda, Fort Myers, Estero, and Bonita Springs. The company's other line, the Sarasota Division, runs from Oneco south through Sarasota. Seminole Gulf acquired the lines in November 1987 and operates its own equipment. The company's first train departed Fort Myers on November 14, 1987.
The Silver Star is a long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak on a 1,522-mile (2,449 km) route between New York City and Miami via Washington, D.C., Richmond, Virginia, Raleigh, North Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina, Savannah, Georgia, Jacksonville, Florida, and Tampa, Florida. The Silver Star and its sister train in the Silver Service brand, the Silver Meteor, are the descendants of numerous long-distance trains that operated between Florida and New York for most of the 20th century.
The Florida Railroad Museum is a railroad museum located in Parrish, Florida. The museum operates a heritage railroad and offers round-trip tourist excursions along six miles of the former Seaboard Air Line Sarasota Subdivision in Manatee County between Parrish and Willow.
The Ocala Union Station is a bus station and former train station in Ocala, Florida, United States. It is located at 531 Northeast First Avenue, and was built in 1917 by both the Atlantic Coast Line and Seaboard Air Line Railroad. Prior to this, ACL and SAL had separate depots in Ocala. The former ACL station was originally built by the Florida Southern Railroad, while the former SAL station was built by the Florida Transit and Peninsular Railroad. On December 22, 1997, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
Lakeland station is a train station in Lakeland, Florida, that is served by Amtrak, the national passenger rail system of the United States. It is served by the Silver Star train, which runs daily between New York City and Miami. The station is located on the northern shore of Lake Mirror.
The Champion was a streamlined passenger train operated by the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad and Florida East Coast Railway between New York City and Miami or St. Petersburg, Florida. It operated from 1939 until 1979, continuing under the Seaboard Coast Line and Amtrak. It was a direct competitor to the Seaboard Air Line Railway's Silver Meteor, the first New York-Florida streamliner.
Wildwood station is a bus station, and former train station, in Wildwood, Florida. It serves Amtrak Thruway buses and formerly served trains for Amtrak and other rail companies. The station is located on 601 North Main Street in Wildwood, Florida. Along with the northern terminus of Florida's Turnpike, the station gave Wildwood a reason to refer to itself as "The Crossroads of Florida."
The Charlotte Harbor and Northern Railway is a historic railroad line that at its greatest extent serviced Gasparilla Island in Charlotte Harbor and a major shipping port that once operated there. The railroad's principal purpose was to transport phosphate mined along the Peace River and in the Bone Valley region of Central Florida to the port to be shipped. It also brought passengers to the island community of Boca Grande on Gasparilla Island, and is largely responsible for making Boca Grande the popular tourist destination it is today. Part of the line remains in service today between Mulberry and Arcadia, which is now owned and operated by CSX Transportation. Today, it makes up CSX's Achan Subdivision and part of their Brewster Subdivision.
The Tampa Southern Railroad was a subsidiary of the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad (ACL) originally running from Uceta Yard in Tampa south to Palmetto, Bradenton, and Sarasota with a later extension southeast to Fort Ogden in the Peace River valley built shortly after. It was one of many rail lines completed during the Florida land boom of the 1920s. Most of the remaining trackage now serves as CSX Transportation's Palmetto Subdivision. Another short portion just east of Sarasota also remains that is now operated by Seminole Gulf Railway.
The Florida Western and Northern Railroad was a subsidiary of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad that expanded their network in the 1920s by building a rail line from Coleman, Florida all the way to West Palm Beach via Auburndale and Sebring, a distance of 204 miles. The line would be extended to Miami by the Seaboard-All Florida Railway, another Seaboard Air Line subsidiary, shortly after with the full line from Coleman to Miami becoming the Seaboard Air Line's Miami Subdivision. The line is still in service today from Auburndale to West Palm Beach and is now operated by Seaboard successor CSX Transportation as their Auburndale Subdivision.
The Palmetto Subdivision is a CSX Transportation rail line in the Tampa Bay region of Florida. It runs from East Tampa and roughly parallels U.S. Route 41 south through Ruskin to Palmetto and Bradenton. The Palmetto Subdivision ends just south of Tropicana Yard in Oneco, where it connects with the Seminole Gulf Railway, a shortline that continues south into Sarasota.
The Clearwater Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in the Tampa Bay region of Florida. The line begins just east of downtown Tampa in Gary and heads north through some of Tampa's suburban neighborhoods. In Sulphur Springs, the Clearwater Subdivision turns and runs west through Oldsmar, where it crosses Tampa Bay. It briefly shifts south running through Safety Harbor, and then heads west again to Clearwater. In Clearwater, it turns southeast, running through Largo and Pinellas Park before terminating at Fifth Avenue North in St. Petersburg near Tropicana Field. The distance from Gary to St. Petersburg along the line is 48.6 miles (78.2 km). At the line's north end it continues from the Tampa Terminal Subdivision and at its south end the track comes to an end.
The Tampa Terminal Subdivision is a group of railroad lines owned by CSX Transportation in and around Tampa, Florida. The Tampa Terminal Subdivision covers track around Yeoman and Uceta Yards and is located at the end of two of CSX's U.S. East Coast main lines to Richmond, Virginia, the A Line and the S Line.
CSX Transportation's Valrico Subdivision is a railroad line in Central Florida. It serves as CSX's main route through a region of Central Florida known as the Bone Valley, which contains the largest known deposits of phosphate in the United States.
The Wildwood Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in Florida. It runs along CSX's S Line from Baldwin south to Zephyrhills via Ocala and Wildwood for a total of 155.7 miles. The S Line is CSX's designation for the line that was the Seaboard Air Line Railroad main line from 1903 to 1967.
The Tampa and Gulf Coast Railroad (T&G) was a railroad company in the Tampa Bay Area of Florida in the United States. It initially built and operated a line that ran from the Tampa Northern Railroad main line in Lutz west to Tarpon Springs and into Pasco County. Additional track starting from Sulphur Springs running west towards Clearwater and south to St. Petersburg was built shortly after. The railroad was informally known as the "Tug n' Grunt". While it was the second railroad to serve St. Petersburg and Clearwater after the Orange Belt Railway, it had the advantage of being the first to connect the area directly with Tampa.
The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad’s Main Line was the backbone of the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad's network in the southeastern United States. The main line ran from Richmond, Virginia to Port Tampa just southwest of Tampa, Florida, a distance of nearly 900 miles. Along its route it passed through Petersburg, Rocky Mount, Florence, Charleston, Savannah, Jacksonville, and Orlando. With the exception of a short 61-mile segment in Greater Orlando, the entire line is still owned by the Atlantic Coast Line's successor, CSX Transportation, and is still in service as their A Line.
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