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The W&W Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The line today runs from just south of Wilson, North Carolina, to Wallace, North Carolina, for a total of 69.1 miles. At its north end the line connects to CSX's A Line (South End Subdivision). [1] [2] The line's name stands for the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad, the company that originally built the line.
The Wilmington and Weldon Railroad was completed in 1840 and was the longest railroad in the world at the time of its completion. [3] In 1899, the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad was merged into the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad (ACL). The Atlantic Coast Line would incorporate the Wilmington and Weldon's main line north of Contentnea (just south of Wilson) into their A Line. The rest of the line south of that point would become the Contentnea—Wilmington Line (C Line), one of the company's secondary main lines. The line would continue to provide service to the port city of Wilmington, North Carolina where the ACL was headquartered from 1900 to 1960. [4]
In 1909, the ACL realigned the track in Goldsboro to bypass the center of town in conjunction with the opening of Goldsboro Union Station. The line's original alignment along Center Street was removed in 1925. [5]
By 1949, two daily round-trip passenger trains and a daily through freight train were running the Contentnea—Wilmington Line on their way from Rocky Mount to Wilmington. An additional local freight train ran the line six days a week at the same time. [6]
In 1967, the ACL merged with its rival, the Seaboard Air Line Railroad (SAL), who also served Wilmington via a line that originated in Hamlet (the Wilmington Subdivision). The merged company was named the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad (SCL), who designated the line as the W&W Subdivision. By then, only freight trains were running the line. [7]
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. Also in 1986, CSX abandoned the W&W Subdivision from Wilmington to Wallace, where the line terminates today. [8] The Wilmington Subdivision is now CSX's only line serving Wilmington.
The Clinton Spur line runs from Warsaw to Clinton for a total of 11.3 miles. Most of the spur is owned and operated by CSX. The end of the spur (approximately 3.53 miles of rail line between milepost 199.0 in Moltonville, NC, and the end of the track at milepost 202.53 in Clinton, NC) was owned and operated by the Clinton Terminal Railroad Company (CTR), originally as the Clinton Division of the Waccamaw Coast Line, from July 1994 until August 2023. Regional Rail announced at the beginning of August 2023 that it had acquired the CTR, and that it would continue to operate, now as the Clinton Branch of the Carolina Coastal Railway (CLNA), a local Class III railroad acquired by Regional Rail in 2020. This “new” branch does not directly connect with any other trackage of the CLNA, relying instead on interchange with CSX in Moltonville. The Clinton Spur was originally built as the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad's Clinton Branch in 1887.
| Milepost | City/Location | Station [6] | Connections and notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| AC 138.9 | Contentnea | junction with Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Main Line | |
| AC 141.9 | Black Creek | Black Creek | |
| AC 148.6 | Fremont | Fremont | also known as Nahunta |
| AC 152.1 | Pikeville | Pikeville | |
| AC 159.8 | Goldsboro | Goldsboro Union Station | junction with: |
| AC 161.4 | Royall Yard | ||
| AC 168.5 | Dudley | named for Governor Edward Bishop Dudley, founder of the Wilmington & Weldon Railroad | |
| AC 173.5 | Mount Olive | ||
| AC 177.2 | Calypso | Calypso | |
| AC 180.4 | Faison | Faison | |
| AC 184.6 | Bowden | ||
| AC 188.8 | Warsaw | Warsaw | junction with Clinton Branch |
| AC 196.5 | Magnolia | Magnolia | |
| AC 201.7 | Rose Hill | Rose Hill | |
| AC 205.8 | Teachey | Teachey | |
| AC 208.1 | Wallace | Wallace | originally known as Duplin Roads [9] |
| AC 211.5 | Willard | originally known as Leesburg [10] | |
| AC 214.7 | Watha | Watha | |
| AC 221.4 | Burgaw | Burgaw | |
| AC 226.5 | Ashton | ||
| AC 229.5 | Rocky Point | ||
| AC 235.4 | Castle Hayne | ||
| AC 239.7 | Wrightsboro | ||
| AC 241.1 | Gordon | ||
| AC 242.5 | Wilmington | Smith Creek Yard | |
| AC 243.1 | New Bern Junction | junction with Atlantic Coast Line Railroad New Bern Branch | |
| AC 243.6 | Wilmington Union Station | junction with Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Wilmington—Pee Dee Line |
| Milepost | City/Location | Station | Connections and notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| ACA 188.8 | Warsaw | Warsaw | junction with the Contentnea—Wilmington Line |
| ACA 194.4 | Turkey | ||
| ACA 195.8 | Elliott | ||
| ACA 202.5 | Clinton | Clinton | |
The Wilmington and Weldon Railroad (W&W) name began use in 1855, having been originally chartered as the Wilmington and Raleigh Railroad in 1834. When it opened in 1840, the line was the longest railroad in the world with 161.5 miles (259.9 km) of track. It was constructed in 4 ft 8 in gauge. At its terminus in Weldon, North Carolina, it connected with the Seaboard and Roanoke Railroad and the Petersburg Railroad. The railroad also gave rise to the city of Goldsboro, North Carolina, the midpoint of the W&W RR and the railroad intersection with the North Carolina Railroad. It’s been more than 50 years since passenger rail linked Wilmington and Raleigh, but there’s a renewed push to bring back a passenger route between the two cities. The latest feasibility study, prepared by Florida-based firm WGI Inc., compares two potential route options linking Wilmington with Raleigh: a western route through Fayetteville and an eastern route through Goldsboro.
The Raleigh and Gaston Railroad was a Raleigh, North Carolina, based railroad opened in April 1840 between Raleigh and the town of Gaston, North Carolina, on the Roanoke River. It was North Carolina's second railroad. The length was 100 miles (160 km) and built with 4 ft 8 in gauge. Part of the Raleigh and Gaston's tracks remains in service today as part of CSX's S Line as the Norlina Subdivision of CSX's Florence Division.
The Columbia and Sumter Railroad was a railroad in South Carolina running between those two cities that began operating immediately after the American Civil War. It later became part of the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad network. The railroad is still in service today and it is now operated by CSX Transportation as their Eastover 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 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 Aberdeen Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in North Carolina. The line runs along CSX's S Line from Raleigh, North Carolina, to Marston, North Carolina, for a total of 86.9 miles. At its north end it continues south from the Norlina Subdivision and at its south end it continues south as the Hamlet Terminal Subdivision.
The Charleston Subdivision is a railroad territory owned by CSX Transportation in the U.S. states of South Carolina and Georgia. The line from Florence, South Carolina, to Savannah, Georgia, for a total of 195.8 miles. At its north end it continues south from the South End Subdivision and at its south end it continues south as the Savannah Subdivision of the Jacksonville Division.
The Monroe Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in the U.S. states of North Carolina and South Carolina. The line runs from Pee Dee, North Carolina to Abbeville, South Carolina, for a total of 177 miles. The full line is dispatched by Centralized traffic control.
The Norlina Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in the U.S. State of North Carolina. The line currently runs from Norlina, North Carolina, to Raleigh, North Carolina, for a total of 51.2 miles. At its north end the line comes to an end and at its south end the line continues north from the Aberdeen Subdivision. While the current line dates back to 1840, it has been known as the Norlina Subdivision since 1967. Under CSX's predecessor, the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad, the Norlina Subdivision continued north to Collier Yard near Petersburg, Virginia.
The Portsmouth Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in Virginia and North Carolina. The line connects CSX's network with the port city of Portsmouth, Virginia. The Portsmouth Subdivision was historically operated by the Seaboard Air Line Railroad, a CSX predecessor.
The Southeastern Railroad was a railroad line in southern North Carolina that ran between Elrod and Chadbourn.
The CSX A Line forms the backbone of the historic Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Main Line, the backbone of their network in the southeastern United States. The main line runs from Richmond, Virginia to Port Tampa just southwest of Tampa, Florida, a distance of nearly 900 miles. Along its route it passes 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 owned by CSX Transportation.
The Seaboard Air Line Railroad's Sarasota Subdivision 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 Seaboard Air Line Railroad’s Main Line was the backbone of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad's network in the southeastern United States. The main line ran from Richmond, Virginia to Tampa, Florida, a distance of over 800 miles. Along its route it passed through Petersburg, Raleigh, Columbia, Savannah, Jacksonville, and Ocala, Florida. While some segments of the line have been abandoned as of 2023, most of the line is still in service and is owned by the Seaboard Air Line's successor, CSX Transportation as their S-Line.
The Carolina Central Railroad, was a railway company in the United States. It was incorporated in 1855 as the Wilmington and Charlotte Railroad and was renamed the Wilmington, Charlotte and Rutherford Railroad shortly after. It was reorganized as the Carolina Central Railway in 1873. It built 152 miles (245 km) of track, in two unconnected sections, in the southern part of North Carolina. The company was again reorganized as the Carolina Central Railroad in 1880. In 1900, the Carolina Central Railroad was merged into the Seaboard Air Line Railroad. Its lines are now owned by CSX Transportation.
The Seaboard Air Line Railroad's East Carolina Line was the unofficial name of their line running from Hamlet, North Carolina through eastern South Carolina to Savannah, Georgia. Officially designated on Seaboard employee timetables as the Andrews Subdivision from Hamlet to Andrews, South Carolina, and the Charleston Subdivision from Andrews south, the line was known as the East Carolina Line by Seaboard employees due to its location in eastern South Carolina. With connections to the Seaboard's main line at both ends, the East Carolina Line was frequently used as an alternative freight route for the company.
The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad's Wilmington—Pee Dee Line was a railroad line running from Wilmington, North Carolina west to Pee Dee, South Carolina. Running in an east–west trajectory, it notably passed through Lake Waccamaw, Chadbourn, Nichols, and Mullins. Some of the line is still operating today.
The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad's Parkton—Sumter Line was one of the company's secondary main lines running between Parkton, North Carolina and Sumter, South Carolina.
The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad's Norfolk—Rocky Mount Line was one of the company's secondary main lines running from the company's main line in Rocky Mount, North Carolina northeast to a point just outside of Norfolk, Virginia. Despite its name, it terminated at Pinners Point in Portsmouth, Virginia. Bus and ferry service connected passengers to Norfolk.
The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad's Kinston Branch was a railroad line that at its greatest extent ran from company's main line in Pender, North Carolina south to Kinston, North Carolina. The line south of Parmele, North Carolina is still active today and is now the Parmele Subdivision of CSX Transportation, the Atlantic Coast Line's successor company through various mergers.
