Virginia Air Line Railway
Encyclopedia
Virginia Air Line Railroad (VAL) was a short-line railroad that operated from 1908 to 1975 in Central Virginia
. It was built by the Virginia Air Line Railway Company to connect the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad's (C&O) Piedmont Subdivision at Lindsay, Virginia
, to the Rivanna Subdivision of C&O's James River Line at Strathmore Yard, near Bremo Bluff, Virginia
.
The route was once an important link for providing coal
to power the Washington, D.C.
area. However, facing increased competition from other modes of transportation such as trucks and automobiles, service on the rail line was cut back and eventually abandoned after 67 years of declining use.
The idea for the railroad originated from C&O president George Stevens. The Commonwealth of Virginia issued a charter to the Virginia Air Line Railway Company on April 10, 1906. Construction began in October 1906, under chief engineer Walter Washabaugh of Charlottesville, Virginia
. Designed as an air-line railroad, the slope of grades were limited to 1 percent and the curvature of tracks were limited to six degrees. By 1907, 17 miles of the approximately 30 miles of planned track had been laid from the initial junction of Lindsay
to the Fluvanna County
seat of Palmyra
. Six bridges were built on the railway: four under contract with the American Bridge Company, and one each by the Phoenix Bridge Company and the Virginia Bridge & Iron Company. A quarry was opened in Carysbrook to mine granite for bridge construction. The project was budgeted at $900,000 at a cost of about $30,000 per mile. Around May 1908, a full-service agency for the rail line was built in the town of Clarkland, newly renamed Troy
after Virginia Air Line Railway company president "Captain" T. O. Troy.
Completed in October 1908, this branch route was built to handle cargo that would have otherwise been too tall or wide to fit through the tunnels
that crossed the Blue Ridge Mountains
between Charlottesville
and Waynesboro
. Coal destined for Washington, D.C.
and Northern Virginia
was sent down the James River Line to the southern junction of the route at Strathmore Yard, near Bremo Bluff
. The shipments then proceeded up the Virginia Air Line to the northern junction at Lindsay
, and continued on to Gordonsville
. The railway also became an important line of communication that connected the small communities along the route with larger cities, such as Washington, D.C. C&O began to operate the company directly in July 1909, and acquired it outright in July 1912. Stevens stepped down as the president of C&O in 1920.
During the 1950s, young Ethel Mae Robinson, whose family members worked for C&O, became a regular sight along the route. Robinson, who lived near the tracks, waved so consistently at passing trains that the crew became accustomed to seeing her and brought her gifts until her teenage years. She later married William DeLong, who also worked for C&O.
on the Virginia Air Line Railway. Trains traveling in opposite directions were given a "meet order" to use a passing loop
at Troy
. However, a "meet" had not been coordinated on the line in 20 years. The northbound locomotive was having problems maintaining pressure for the uphill journey and collided with a coal train south of Palmyra
, two stops before reaching Troy. No passengers were on either train. Northbound railroad engineer
Bill Ganzert was killed instantly and was found in the wreckage of the locomotive on the engineer's seat with his hand still on the steam pressure gauge. Brakeman
Jack “J.J.” Ferrer survived burn injuries from the crash and joined a 1992 reunion of the surviving crew, organized at Bethel Baptist Church near Palmyra by retired trainmaster Frank Schumaker with the Fluvanna County Historical Society.
s in June 1932. The growing adoption of automobiles and airplanes had been taking business away from railroads since the 1930s. In 1931, the Virginia Electric & Power Company (now Dominion Resources
) constructed a 30-megawatt coal-fired power station
right along the path of the James River Line at Bremo Bluff, which did not require the connection through the Virginia Air Line Railway for coal shipments.
The railway's practice of mixing passengers and cargo amid declining traffic resulted in a $500 personal injury suit. 65-year-old farmer S. O. Butler claimed that he was injured on June 10, 1939, while disembarking from a moving train which had slowed down at Palmyra, rather than coming to a complete stop, because of its heavy load. The Supreme Court of Virginia
ruled in favor of parent company C&O on June 8, 1942, as the conductor had discussed the circumstances ahead of time with the passengers and did not compel Butler to leave the train. By June 1954, all remaining mixed train service had come to an end.
On October 26, 1971, the Fluvanna Board of Supervisors sued C&O to keep the railway in operation. However, the Interstate Commerce Commission
permitted C&O to proceed with plans to close the line. On August 1, 1973, the final train made its round trip on the route. After a one-year delay by the Environmental Protection Agency, the Virginia Air Line was officially abandoned
on November 3, 1975. The remaining tracks were removed by August 25, 1978. On September 2, 1987, C&O itself was merged into CSX Transportation
.
. The pathway was cleared and publicly opened in 2004. In 2005, the foundation undertook restoration work to open a museum at the trailhead, as well as designing a replacement bridge at the Rivanna River
in Palmyra, to provide access to views of the area.
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. It was built by the Virginia Air Line Railway Company to connect the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad's (C&O) Piedmont Subdivision at Lindsay, Virginia
Lindsay, Virginia
Lindsay is an unincorporated community in Albemarle County, Virginia....
, to the Rivanna Subdivision of C&O's James River Line at Strathmore Yard, near Bremo Bluff, Virginia
Bremo Bluff, Virginia
Bremo Bluff is an unincorporated community located on the northern bank of the James River in Fluvanna County, Virginia, United States. The locale was established by the Cocke family in 1636. During the American Civil War, the family of General Robert E. Lee sought refuge in the community...
.
The route was once an important link for providing coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
to power the Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
area. However, facing increased competition from other modes of transportation such as trucks and automobiles, service on the rail line was cut back and eventually abandoned after 67 years of declining use.
History
Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for...
. Designed as an air-line railroad, the slope of grades were limited to 1 percent and the curvature of tracks were limited to six degrees. By 1907, 17 miles of the approximately 30 miles of planned track had been laid from the initial junction of Lindsay
Lindsay, Virginia
Lindsay is an unincorporated community in Albemarle County, Virginia....
to the Fluvanna County
Fluvanna County, Virginia
As of 2002, Fluvanna County's population was 20,047. There are 7,387 households, and 5,702 families residing in the county. The population density was 70 people per square mile . There were 8,018 housing units at an average density of 28 per square mile...
seat of Palmyra
Palmyra, Virginia
Palmyra is a census-designated place in and the county seat of Fluvanna County, Virginia, United States. The population as of the 2010 Census was 104. Palmyra lies on the eastern bank of the Rivanna River along U.S. Route 15...
. Six bridges were built on the railway: four under contract with the American Bridge Company, and one each by the Phoenix Bridge Company and the Virginia Bridge & Iron Company. A quarry was opened in Carysbrook to mine granite for bridge construction. The project was budgeted at $900,000 at a cost of about $30,000 per mile. Around May 1908, a full-service agency for the rail line was built in the town of Clarkland, newly renamed Troy
Troy, Virginia
Troy is an unincorporated community in Fluvanna County, Virginia, United States. It lies just east of U.S. Route 15, between Zion Crossroads to the north and the county seat of Palmyra to the south. Troy's existence was defined by the Virginia Air Line Railway, which operated from 1908 to 1975...
after Virginia Air Line Railway company president "Captain" T. O. Troy.
Completed in October 1908, this branch route was built to handle cargo that would have otherwise been too tall or wide to fit through the tunnels
Blue Ridge Tunnel
The Blue Ridge Tunnel, also known as the Crozet Tunnel, was the longest of four tunnels built on the Blue Ridge Railroad to cross the Blue Ridge Mountains at Rockfish Gap near Afton Mountain in central Virginia...
that crossed the Blue Ridge Mountains
Blue Ridge Mountains
The Blue Ridge Mountains are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Mountains range. This province consists of northern and southern physiographic regions, which divide near the Roanoke River gap. The mountain range is located in the eastern United States, starting at its southern-most...
between Charlottesville
Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for...
and Waynesboro
Waynesboro, Virginia
Waynesboro, deriving its name from General Anthony Wayne, is an independent city surrounded by Augusta County in the U.S. state of Virginia. The population was 21,006 in 2010.....
. Coal destined for Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
and Northern Virginia
Northern Virginia
Northern Virginia consists of several counties and independent cities in the Commonwealth of Virginia, in a widespread region generally radiating southerly and westward from Washington, D.C...
was sent down the James River Line to the southern junction of the route at Strathmore Yard, near Bremo Bluff
Bremo Bluff, Virginia
Bremo Bluff is an unincorporated community located on the northern bank of the James River in Fluvanna County, Virginia, United States. The locale was established by the Cocke family in 1636. During the American Civil War, the family of General Robert E. Lee sought refuge in the community...
. The shipments then proceeded up the Virginia Air Line to the northern junction at Lindsay
Lindsay, Virginia
Lindsay is an unincorporated community in Albemarle County, Virginia....
, and continued on to Gordonsville
Gordonsville, Virginia
Gordonsville is a town in Louisa and Orange counties in the U.S. state of Virginia. The population was 1,496 at the 2010 census.-History:Nathaniel Gordon purchased in 1787 and in 1794, or possibly earlier, applied for and was granted a license to operate a tavern...
. The railway also became an important line of communication that connected the small communities along the route with larger cities, such as Washington, D.C. C&O began to operate the company directly in July 1909, and acquired it outright in July 1912. Stevens stepped down as the president of C&O in 1920.
During the 1950s, young Ethel Mae Robinson, whose family members worked for C&O, became a regular sight along the route. Robinson, who lived near the tracks, waved so consistently at passing trains that the crew became accustomed to seeing her and brought her gifts until her teenage years. She later married William DeLong, who also worked for C&O.
1942 collision
On July 31, 1942, four rail employees were killed when two trains were involved in a head-on collisionHead-on collision
A head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
on the Virginia Air Line Railway. Trains traveling in opposite directions were given a "meet order" to use a passing loop
Passing loop
A passing loop is a place on a single line railway or tramway, often located at a station, where trains or trams in opposing directions can pass each other. Trains/trams in the same direction can also overtake, providing that the signalling arrangement allows it...
at Troy
Troy, Virginia
Troy is an unincorporated community in Fluvanna County, Virginia, United States. It lies just east of U.S. Route 15, between Zion Crossroads to the north and the county seat of Palmyra to the south. Troy's existence was defined by the Virginia Air Line Railway, which operated from 1908 to 1975...
. However, a "meet" had not been coordinated on the line in 20 years. The northbound locomotive was having problems maintaining pressure for the uphill journey and collided with a coal train south of Palmyra
Palmyra, Virginia
Palmyra is a census-designated place in and the county seat of Fluvanna County, Virginia, United States. The population as of the 2010 Census was 104. Palmyra lies on the eastern bank of the Rivanna River along U.S. Route 15...
, two stops before reaching Troy. No passengers were on either train. Northbound railroad engineer
Railroad engineer
A railroad engineer, locomotive engineer, train operator, train driver or engine driver is a person who drives a train on a railroad...
Bill Ganzert was killed instantly and was found in the wreckage of the locomotive on the engineer's seat with his hand still on the steam pressure gauge. Brakeman
Brakeman
A brakeman is a rail transport worker whose original job it was to assist the braking of a train by applying brakes on individual wagons. The advent of through brakes on trains made this role redundant, although the name lives on in the United States where brakemen carry out a variety of functions...
Jack “J.J.” Ferrer survived burn injuries from the crash and joined a 1992 reunion of the surviving crew, organized at Bethel Baptist Church near Palmyra by retired trainmaster Frank Schumaker with the Fluvanna County Historical Society.
Decline
In February 1927, dedicated passenger rail service was reduced to one train per day in each direction, and replaced by mixed trainMixed train
A mixed train is a train that hauls both passenger and freight cars or wagons. In the early days of railways they were quite common, but by the 20th century they were largely confined to branch lines with little traffic. As the trains provided passengers with very slow service, mixed trains have...
s in June 1932. The growing adoption of automobiles and airplanes had been taking business away from railroads since the 1930s. In 1931, the Virginia Electric & Power Company (now Dominion Resources
Dominion Resources
Dominion Resources Inc. , commonly referred to as Dominion, is a power and energy company headquartered in Richmond, Virginia that supplies electricity in parts of Virginia and North Carolina and supplies natural gas to parts of West Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and eastern North Carolina...
) constructed a 30-megawatt coal-fired power station
Coal-fired power station
A coal-fired power station produces electricity, usually for public consumption, by burning coal to boil water, producing steam which drives a steam turbine which turns an electrical generator...
right along the path of the James River Line at Bremo Bluff, which did not require the connection through the Virginia Air Line Railway for coal shipments.
The railway's practice of mixing passengers and cargo amid declining traffic resulted in a $500 personal injury suit. 65-year-old farmer S. O. Butler claimed that he was injured on June 10, 1939, while disembarking from a moving train which had slowed down at Palmyra, rather than coming to a complete stop, because of its heavy load. The Supreme Court of Virginia
Supreme Court of Virginia
The Supreme Court of Virginia is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It primarily hears appeals from the trial-level city and county Circuit Courts, as well as the criminal law, family law and administrative law cases that go through the Court of Appeals of Virginia. It is one of...
ruled in favor of parent company C&O on June 8, 1942, as the conductor had discussed the circumstances ahead of time with the passengers and did not compel Butler to leave the train. By June 1954, all remaining mixed train service had come to an end.
On October 26, 1971, the Fluvanna Board of Supervisors sued C&O to keep the railway in operation. However, the Interstate Commerce Commission
Interstate Commerce Commission
The Interstate Commerce Commission was a regulatory body in the United States created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The agency's original purpose was to regulate railroads to ensure fair rates, to eliminate rate discrimination, and to regulate other aspects of common carriers, including...
permitted C&O to proceed with plans to close the line. On August 1, 1973, the final train made its round trip on the route. After a one-year delay by the Environmental Protection Agency, the Virginia Air Line was officially abandoned
Abandonment
The term abandonment has a multitude of uses, legal and extra-legal. This "signpost article" provides a guide to the various legal and quasi-legal uses of the word and includes links to articles that deal with each of the distinct concepts at greater length...
on November 3, 1975. The remaining tracks were removed by August 25, 1978. On September 2, 1987, C&O itself was merged into CSX Transportation
CSX Transportation
CSX 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...
.
Revival as a trail
In 2003, the Fluvanna Heritage Trail Foundation acquired the right-of-way of the old Virginia Air Line for adaptive re-use as a rail trailRail trail
A rail trail is the conversion of a disused railway easement into a multi-use path, typically for walking, cycling and sometimes horse riding. The characteristics of former tracks—flat, long, frequently running through historical areas—are appealing for various development. The term sometimes also...
. The pathway was cleared and publicly opened in 2004. In 2005, the foundation undertook restoration work to open a museum at the trailhead, as well as designing a replacement bridge at the Rivanna River
Rivanna River
The Rivanna River is a tributary of the James River in central Virginia in the United States. The Rivanna's tributaries originate in the Blue Ridge Mountains; via the James River, it is part of the watershed of Chesapeake Bay....
in Palmyra, to provide access to views of the area.
Route stops
- LindsayLindsay, VirginiaLindsay is an unincorporated community in Albemarle County, Virginia....
(northern junction with C&O's Piedmont Subdivision) - Whitlock / Thelma
- Zion CrossroadsZion Crossroads, VirginiaZion Crossroads is an unincorporated community in Louisa and Fluvanna counties, Virginia, at the intersection of James Madison Highway and Three Notch Road . About 2½ miles north is Green Springs National Historic Landmark District, a U.S. National Historic Landmark...
- Clarkland (renamed TroyTroy, VirginiaTroy is an unincorporated community in Fluvanna County, Virginia, United States. It lies just east of U.S. Route 15, between Zion Crossroads to the north and the county seat of Palmyra to the south. Troy's existence was defined by the Virginia Air Line Railway, which operated from 1908 to 1975...
in 1908) - WildwoodWildwood, Fluvanna County, VirginiaWildwood, Fluvanna County is an unincorporated community in Fluvanna County, in the U.S. state of Virginia.-Reference:...
- PalmyraPalmyra, VirginiaPalmyra is a census-designated place in and the county seat of Fluvanna County, Virginia, United States. The population as of the 2010 Census was 104. Palmyra lies on the eastern bank of the Rivanna River along U.S. Route 15...
- RockawayRockaway, VirginiaRockaway is an unincorporated community in Fluvanna County, in the U.S. state of Virginia.-Reference:...
- CarysbrookCarysbrook, VirginiaCarysbrook is an unincorporated community in Fluvanna County, in the U.S. state of Virginia.-Reference:...
- Fork UnionFork Union, VirginiaFork Union is an unincorporated community in southern Fluvanna County, Virginia, along U.S. Highway 15. Its ZIP code is 23055; the population within that ZIP code was 1148 according to the 2000 Census...
- Bremo BluffBremo Bluff, VirginiaBremo Bluff is an unincorporated community located on the northern bank of the James River in Fluvanna County, Virginia, United States. The locale was established by the Cocke family in 1636. During the American Civil War, the family of General Robert E. Lee sought refuge in the community...
(southern junction at Strathmore Yard with C&O's James River Line)
