Alabama and Gulf Coast Railway
Encyclopedia
The Alabama and Gulf Coast Railway is one of several Class III
short-line railroad companies owned by RailAmerica, Inc. It operates 348 miles (560.1 km) of track from the Pensacola, Florida
export terminals, west of downtown, north to Columbus, Mississippi
, with trackage rights
along BNSF Railway
to Amory, Mississippi
. A branch uses trackage rights
along Norfolk Southern from Kimbrough, Alabama
west and south to Mobile, Alabama
, with separate trackage at the end of the line in Mobile.
and Cantonment, Florida
. This line was dismantled by Confederate
forces during the Civil War
so that the iron rails could be used elsewhere. The railroad was not rebuilt until 1877. In 1874, the company took control of the Pensacola and Perdido Railroad, which ran west from Pensacola about five miles to a lumber mill at Millview, Florida on Perdido Bay
. In 1892, the system merged with the Pensacola, Alabama and Tennessee Railroad, which connected the Millview and Muscogee branches. Shortly thereafter, the railroad was renamed the Gulf Ports Terminal Railway.
In 1910, the Gulf Ports Terminal Railway was acquired by Southern States Lumber, which operated 68 miles (109.4 km) of track to move lumber from forests in Baldwin County, Alabama
, to its large mill at Muscogee, and on to the port of Pensacola for export. The combined system had a total length of around 80 miles (128.7 km).
In 1911, the railroad was acquired by the Gulf, Florida, and Alabama Railway. Soon after, construction of a line from Cantonment to Pensacola was begun, being completed in 1913. Almost immediately following the completion of this line, another, much longer line was begun, this one from Cantonment north via Atmore
and Frisco City, Alabama
to an interchange with the Southern Railway at Kimbrough, Alabama
. The line, including a large bridge over the Alabama River
, was completed in 1915.
to Kimbrough, connecting the former MSB&P with the rest of the Frisco's system. This line was completed in 1928.
During the mid-1900s, the railroad operated as part of the Frisco, moving bulk products south to Pensacola for export and produce products north, although chemical and paper products took on increased importance by the 1970s. Passenger service over the line continued until 1955, when the Sunnyland, operating between Pensacola and Kansas City, Missouri
, via Amory, Mississippi
, and Memphis, Tennessee
, was discontinued.
In 1980, the Frisco and several other western railroads were merged to form the Burlington Northern Railroad
(BN). In 1995, the BN merged with the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
to form the BNSF Railway
.
and isolated trackage near Mobile, Alabama
. As part of this deal, the AGR gained trackage rights
on the BNSF between Columbus and Amory and on the Norfolk Southern Railway
between Mobile and Kimbrough.
In 2002, the railroad, which had been formerly owned by States Rail, Inc., a short-line holding company, was acquired by RailAmerica.
Class III railroad
A Class III railroad, as defined by the Surface Transportation Board, is a railroad with an annual operating revenue of less than $20 million . The term only applies to United States railroads, but is sometimes applied to other countries...
short-line railroad companies owned by RailAmerica, Inc. It operates 348 miles (560.1 km) of track from the Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle and the county seat of Escambia County, Florida, United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,255 and as of 2009, the estimated population was 53,752...
export terminals, west of downtown, north to Columbus, Mississippi
Columbus, Mississippi
Columbus is a city in Lowndes County, Mississippi, United States that lies above the Tombigbee River. It is approximately northeast of Jackson, north of Meridian, south of Tupelo, northwest of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and west of Birmingham, Alabama. The population was 25,944 at the 2000 census...
, with trackage rights
Trackage rights
Trackage rights , running rights or running powers is an agreement whereby a railway company has the right to run its trains on tracks owned by another railway company....
along BNSF Railway
BNSF Railway
The BNSF Railway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It is one of seven North American Class I railroads and the second largest freight railroad network in North America, second only to the Union Pacific Railroad, its primary...
to Amory, Mississippi
Amory, Mississippi
Amory is a city in Monroe County, Mississippi, United States. The population is 6,956 as of the 2000 census.-History:Amory was the first planned city in Mississippi. The Kansas City, Memphis & Birmingham Railroad needed a mid-point between Memphis, Tennessee and Birmingham, Alabama for their...
. A branch uses trackage rights
Trackage rights
Trackage rights , running rights or running powers is an agreement whereby a railway company has the right to run its trains on tracks owned by another railway company....
along Norfolk Southern from Kimbrough, Alabama
Kimbrough, Alabama
Kimbrough is an unincorporated community in Wilcox County, Alabama. It is near Pine Hill on State Route 5.-Geography:Kimbrough is located at and has an elevation of ....
west and south to Mobile, Alabama
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
, with separate trackage at the end of the line in Mobile.
Predecessor lines
The current AGR is composed of numerous lines built during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which were gradually consolidated into a system that was purchased by the St. Louis – San Francisco Railway and remained under that railroad or its successor's control until 1997, when it was spun off into an independent company.Pre-1922
The earliest ancestor of the AGR was the Pensacola and Mobile Railroad and Manufacturing Company, which in 1861 constructed 5 miles (8 km) miles of track between Muscogee, FloridaMuscogee, Florida
Muscogee, Florida, is a ghost town located twenty miles northwest of Pensacola, Florida, in Escambia County, along the Perdido River, in the United States. Named after the Muscogee Lumber Company, formed by Georgia lumber men, the European-American town was founded in 1857 by a group of lumbermen...
and Cantonment, Florida
Cantonment, Florida
Cantonment, Florida is a suburb approximately north of downtown Pensacola, Florida. Most of the people who live in Cantonment commute to either Pensacola or the Pace, Florida and Milton, Florida areas for employment. The two largest employers are International Paper and Ascend. Schools include...
. This line was dismantled by Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
forces during the Civil War
Civil war
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same nation state or republic, or, less commonly, between two countries created from a formerly-united nation state....
so that the iron rails could be used elsewhere. The railroad was not rebuilt until 1877. In 1874, the company took control of the Pensacola and Perdido Railroad, which ran west from Pensacola about five miles to a lumber mill at Millview, Florida on Perdido Bay
Perdido Bay
Perdido Bay is a bay at the mouth of and draining the Perdido River, a designated Outstanding Florida Waters river, in Baldwin County, Alabama and Escambia County, Florida, United States.-Geography:...
. In 1892, the system merged with the Pensacola, Alabama and Tennessee Railroad, which connected the Millview and Muscogee branches. Shortly thereafter, the railroad was renamed the Gulf Ports Terminal Railway.
In 1910, the Gulf Ports Terminal Railway was acquired by Southern States Lumber, which operated 68 miles (109.4 km) of track to move lumber from forests in Baldwin County, Alabama
Baldwin County, Alabama
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*85.7% White*9.4% Black*0.7% Native American*0.7% Asian*0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*1.5% Two or more races*4.4% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
, to its large mill at Muscogee, and on to the port of Pensacola for export. The combined system had a total length of around 80 miles (128.7 km).
In 1911, the railroad was acquired by the Gulf, Florida, and Alabama Railway. Soon after, construction of a line from Cantonment to Pensacola was begun, being completed in 1913. Almost immediately following the completion of this line, another, much longer line was begun, this one from Cantonment north via Atmore
Atmore, Alabama
Atmore is a city in Escambia County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 7,676. According to the 2005 U.S. Census estimates, the city had a population of 7,530. The city was named for Mr. C.P. Atmore....
and Frisco City, Alabama
Frisco City, Alabama
Frisco City is a town in Monroe County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 1,460.-Geography:Frisco City is located at .According to the U.S...
to an interchange with the Southern Railway at Kimbrough, Alabama
Kimbrough, Alabama
Kimbrough is an unincorporated community in Wilcox County, Alabama. It is near Pine Hill on State Route 5.-Geography:Kimbrough is located at and has an elevation of ....
. The line, including a large bridge over the Alabama River
Alabama River
The Alabama River, in the U.S. state of Alabama, is formed by the Tallapoosa and Coosa rivers, which unite about north of Montgomery.The river flows west to Selma, then southwest until, about from Mobile, it unites with the Tombigbee, forming the Mobile and Tensaw rivers, which discharge into...
, was completed in 1915.
1922-1997
In 1922, the Gulf, Florida, and Alabama Railway was acquired by the Muscle Shoals, Birmingham and Pensacola Railroad (MSB&P), which only three years later was bought by the Frisco (St. Louis – San Francisco Railway). After the acquisition, the Frisco constructed a line from Aberdeen, MississippiAberdeen, Mississippi
Aberdeen is a city in Monroe County in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The population was 6,415 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Monroe County....
to Kimbrough, connecting the former MSB&P with the rest of the Frisco's system. This line was completed in 1928.
During the mid-1900s, the railroad operated as part of the Frisco, moving bulk products south to Pensacola for export and produce products north, although chemical and paper products took on increased importance by the 1970s. Passenger service over the line continued until 1955, when the Sunnyland, operating between Pensacola and Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
, via Amory, Mississippi
Amory, Mississippi
Amory is a city in Monroe County, Mississippi, United States. The population is 6,956 as of the 2000 census.-History:Amory was the first planned city in Mississippi. The Kansas City, Memphis & Birmingham Railroad needed a mid-point between Memphis, Tennessee and Birmingham, Alabama for their...
, and Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, was discontinued.
In 1980, the Frisco and several other western railroads were merged to form the Burlington Northern Railroad
Burlington Northern Railroad
The Burlington Northern Railroad was a United States-based railroad company formed from a merger of four major U.S. railroads. Burlington Northern operated between 1970 and 1996....
(BN). In 1995, the BN merged with the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often abbreviated as Santa Fe, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The company was first chartered in February 1859...
to form the BNSF Railway
BNSF Railway
The BNSF Railway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It is one of seven North American Class I railroads and the second largest freight railroad network in North America, second only to the Union Pacific Railroad, its primary...
.
Current railroad
In 1997, the BNSF spun off the route between Kimbrough to Pensacola; the Alabama and Gulf Coast was formed at this time to take over operations. In 2003, BNSF sold additional trackage to the AGR—a line between Kimbrough and Columbus, MississippiColumbus, Mississippi
Columbus is a city in Lowndes County, Mississippi, United States that lies above the Tombigbee River. It is approximately northeast of Jackson, north of Meridian, south of Tupelo, northwest of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and west of Birmingham, Alabama. The population was 25,944 at the 2000 census...
and isolated trackage near Mobile, Alabama
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
. As part of this deal, the AGR gained trackage rights
Trackage rights
Trackage rights , running rights or running powers is an agreement whereby a railway company has the right to run its trains on tracks owned by another railway company....
on the BNSF between Columbus and Amory and on the Norfolk Southern Railway
Norfolk Southern Railway
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I railroad in the United States, owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. With headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia, the company operates 21,500 route miles in 22 eastern states, the District of Columbia and the province of Ontario, Canada...
between Mobile and Kimbrough.
In 2002, the railroad, which had been formerly owned by States Rail, Inc., a short-line holding company, was acquired by RailAmerica.
Traffic
The railroad's traffic comes mainly from industrial materials such as metals, coal, paper products, chemicals, and limstone. The AGR hauled around 61,000 carloads in 2008.Connections
Connections are made at the following locations:- BNSF RailwayBNSF RailwayThe BNSF Railway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It is one of seven North American Class I railroads and the second largest freight railroad network in North America, second only to the Union Pacific Railroad, its primary...
at Amory, MississippiAmory, MississippiAmory is a city in Monroe County, Mississippi, United States. The population is 6,956 as of the 2000 census.-History:Amory was the first planned city in Mississippi. The Kansas City, Memphis & Birmingham Railroad needed a mid-point between Memphis, Tennessee and Birmingham, Alabama for their... - Canadian National RailwayCanadian National RailwayThe Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....
at Mobile, AlabamaMobile, AlabamaMobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest... - Columbus and Greenville RailwayColumbus and Greenville RailwayThere have been two uses of Columbus and Greenville Railway, both for the same rail line.-Original Columbus and Greenville:The first Columbus and Greenville Railway was formed by the sale of the Southern Railway operated Southern Railway in Mississippi, to local interests...
at Columbus, MississippiColumbus, MississippiColumbus is a city in Lowndes County, Mississippi, United States that lies above the Tombigbee River. It is approximately northeast of Jackson, north of Meridian, south of Tupelo, northwest of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and west of Birmingham, Alabama. The population was 25,944 at the 2000 census... - CSX TransportationCSX TransportationCSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...
at Mobile, AlabamaMobile, AlabamaMobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
, Linden, AlabamaLinden, AlabamaLinden is a city in and the county seat of Marengo County, Alabama, United States.. The population was 2,424 at the 2000 census.-History:Originally known as the Town of Marengo, it was changed to Hohenlinden in 1823 to honor the county's earliest European settlers, French Bonapartist refugees to...
and Cantonment, FloridaCantonment, FloridaCantonment, Florida is a suburb approximately north of downtown Pensacola, Florida. Most of the people who live in Cantonment commute to either Pensacola or the Pace, Florida and Milton, Florida areas for employment. The two largest employers are International Paper and Ascend. Schools include... - Golden Triangle RailroadGolden Triangle RailroadThe Golden Triangle Railroad is a railway in central Mississippi, totalling in length. The GTRA interchanges with the Kansas City Southern Railway at Columbus, Mississippi, and with Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Norfolk Southern via trackage rights over the KCS.The GTRA serves a Weyerhaeuser...
at Columbus, MississippiColumbus, MississippiColumbus is a city in Lowndes County, Mississippi, United States that lies above the Tombigbee River. It is approximately northeast of Jackson, north of Meridian, south of Tupelo, northwest of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and west of Birmingham, Alabama. The population was 25,944 at the 2000 census... - Kansas City Southern RailwayKansas City Southern RailwayThe Kansas City Southern Railway , owned by Kansas City Southern Industries, is the smallest and second-oldest Class I railroad company still in operation. KCS was founded in 1887 and is currently operating in a region consisting of ten central U.S. states...
at Mobile, AlabamaMobile, AlabamaMobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
and Columbus, MississippiColumbus, MississippiColumbus is a city in Lowndes County, Mississippi, United States that lies above the Tombigbee River. It is approximately northeast of Jackson, north of Meridian, south of Tupelo, northwest of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and west of Birmingham, Alabama. The population was 25,944 at the 2000 census... - M&B Railroad at Linden, AlabamaLinden, AlabamaLinden is a city in and the county seat of Marengo County, Alabama, United States.. The population was 2,424 at the 2000 census.-History:Originally known as the Town of Marengo, it was changed to Hohenlinden in 1823 to honor the county's earliest European settlers, French Bonapartist refugees to...
- Norfolk Southern RailwayNorfolk Southern RailwayThe Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I railroad in the United States, owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. With headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia, the company operates 21,500 route miles in 22 eastern states, the District of Columbia and the province of Ontario, Canada...
at Mobile, AlabamaMobile, AlabamaMobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
, Kimbrough, AlabamaKimbrough, AlabamaKimbrough is an unincorporated community in Wilcox County, Alabama. It is near Pine Hill on State Route 5.-Geography:Kimbrough is located at and has an elevation of ....
, Demopolis, AlabamaDemopolis, AlabamaDemopolis is the largest city in Marengo County, Alabama, United States. The population was 7,483 at the time of the 2010 United States Census....
and Boligee, AlabamaBoligee, AlabamaBoligee is a town in Greene County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 369. It is part of the Tuscaloosa, Alabama Metropolitan Statistical Area. Boligee has one site listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Boligee Hill.... - TASD Railroad at Mobile, AlabamaMobile, AlabamaMobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
See also
- St. Louis – San Francisco Railway
- List of United States railroads
- List of Florida railroads
- List of Mississippi railroads