Choctawhatchee and Northern Railroad
Encyclopedia
The Choctawhatchee and Northern Railroad was one of many proposed railroad projects that never made it beyond the planning stage, this one in the northwest Florida Panhandle. Chartered in February 1927 "To construct, acquire, maintain, lease, or operate a line of railroad or railroads from a point between Galliver and Crestview
on the Louisville and Nashville Railroad
in Okaloosa County, to a point in said county on Choctawhatchee Bay
, a distance of approximately 28 mi (45.1 km)," the line was envisioned as part of a Port Dixie (now Shalimar, Florida
) development plan.
housing development in Shalimar, a $29,000,000 Port Dixie Harbor and Terminal Company was chartered to build wharves for liners, a rail line north, and a city of one square mile, with streets 100 feet wide. These ambitious plans would not see fruition and no rail was ever laid on this project.
Use as a deep water port was contingent upon the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dredging East Pass at Destin
, the only outlet to the Gulf for the Choctawhatchee Bay, and despite claims by the optimistic developers that the ocean liner SS Normandie
could be berthed without dredging, the Corps determined that the required work to deepen East Pass for deep-water vessels was not feasible. "It is not known for certain whether capital for the railroad was contingent upon a positive report by the Corps of Engineers on the pass proposal or whether the company was simple [sic] unable to finance the railroad. In any case, the project died, died with no obituary, no post-mortem." The peak of local interest came in May and June, 1931, when optimistic accounts in the local press reported that in mid-May, M. C. Miller, secretary-treasurer of the "Port Dixie Railroad Line" "revealed that the prospects for an early start on the enterprise were very promising." This positive view was based upon receipt of a letter from J. M. Hodgskins, president, from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, stating that necessary groundwork was running ahead of schedule. Details were announced by Hodgskins at a mass meeting attended by some 1,500 in Camp Walton, Florida, as he outlined the grandiose plans including a realty company, railroad, port facilities, shipbuilding plant, steamship lines, a rubber tire plant, a nightclub and townsite. The excitement lasted through the July 3, 1931 publication of an article in the Okaloosa News-Journal, Crestview, Florida, stating that the port plans had been perfected. After that - nothing. The Corps of Engineers' refusal to dredge doomed the project.
The United States Air Force would later construct a rail line from an interchange with the L&N at Mossy Head, Florida to the main base of Eglin Air Force Base
, just north of the envisioned Port Dixie terminus of the Choctawhatchee and Northern. This line opened in late 1951 and operated until about 1980 before being abandoned and partially lifted.
Crestview
-Communities:in Canada*Crestview, Nepean, Ontario, a communityin the United States*Crestview, California, in Mono County, an unincorporated community*Crestview, Los Angeles, California, a neighborhood*Crestview, Florida, the largest place by this name...
on the Louisville and Nashville Railroad
Louisville and Nashville Railroad
The Louisville and Nashville Railroad was a Class I railroad that operated freight and passenger services in the southeast United States.Chartered by the state of Kentucky in 1850, the L&N, as it was generally known, grew into one of the great success stories of American business...
in Okaloosa County, to a point in said county on Choctawhatchee Bay
Choctawhatchee Bay
Choctawhatchee Bay is a bay in the Emerald Coast region of the Florida Panhandle. The bay, located within Okaloosa and Walton counties, has a surface area of 129 mi2...
, a distance of approximately 28 mi (45.1 km)," the line was envisioned as part of a Port Dixie (now Shalimar, Florida
Shalimar, Florida
Shalimar is a town in Okaloosa County, Florida, United States. The population was 718 at the 2000 census. As of 2004, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 738...
) development plan.
History
On Garnier's Bayou near the present Eglin Air Force BaseEglin Air Force Base
Eglin Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately 3 miles southwest of Valparaiso, Florida in Okaloosa County....
housing development in Shalimar, a $29,000,000 Port Dixie Harbor and Terminal Company was chartered to build wharves for liners, a rail line north, and a city of one square mile, with streets 100 feet wide. These ambitious plans would not see fruition and no rail was ever laid on this project.
Use as a deep water port was contingent upon the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dredging East Pass at Destin
Destin, Florida
Destin is a city located in Okaloosa County, Florida. It is a principal city of the Fort Walton Beach-Crestview-Destin, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.Located on Florida's Emerald Coast, Destin is known for its white beaches and emerald green waters...
, the only outlet to the Gulf for the Choctawhatchee Bay, and despite claims by the optimistic developers that the ocean liner SS Normandie
SS Normandie
SS Normandie was an ocean liner built in Saint-Nazaire, France for the French Line Compagnie Générale Transatlantique. She entered service in 1935 as the largest and fastest passenger ship afloat; she is still the most powerful steam turbo-electric-propelled passenger ship ever built.Her novel...
could be berthed without dredging, the Corps determined that the required work to deepen East Pass for deep-water vessels was not feasible. "It is not known for certain whether capital for the railroad was contingent upon a positive report by the Corps of Engineers on the pass proposal or whether the company was simple [sic] unable to finance the railroad. In any case, the project died, died with no obituary, no post-mortem." The peak of local interest came in May and June, 1931, when optimistic accounts in the local press reported that in mid-May, M. C. Miller, secretary-treasurer of the "Port Dixie Railroad Line" "revealed that the prospects for an early start on the enterprise were very promising." This positive view was based upon receipt of a letter from J. M. Hodgskins, president, from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, stating that necessary groundwork was running ahead of schedule. Details were announced by Hodgskins at a mass meeting attended by some 1,500 in Camp Walton, Florida, as he outlined the grandiose plans including a realty company, railroad, port facilities, shipbuilding plant, steamship lines, a rubber tire plant, a nightclub and townsite. The excitement lasted through the July 3, 1931 publication of an article in the Okaloosa News-Journal, Crestview, Florida, stating that the port plans had been perfected. After that - nothing. The Corps of Engineers' refusal to dredge doomed the project.
The United States Air Force would later construct a rail line from an interchange with the L&N at Mossy Head, Florida to the main base of Eglin Air Force Base
Eglin Air Force Base
Eglin Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately 3 miles southwest of Valparaiso, Florida in Okaloosa County....
, just north of the envisioned Port Dixie terminus of the Choctawhatchee and Northern. This line opened in late 1951 and operated until about 1980 before being abandoned and partially lifted.
See also
- List of United States railroads
- List of defunct Florida railroads
- Eglin Air Force Base Railroad