Chattanooga Sub. Update(s)

[landnrailroader]

A year or so ago, I started doing the former NC&StL, now L&N, now CSX Chattanooga Div. (now Subdiv.) and the intent is to include all of the branches as far as possible. I think the only one that I haven't found data on is the Orme Br. which deviated off the Sequatchie Valley Br. a few miles north of Bridgeport, AL and went to a NC&StL quarry & coal source at Orme, TN. It has been gone so long there is no trace visible (such as disturbed earth) on Google Earth. Another which is being included is the branch which went east/northeast from Sparta, TN, climbed to the top of the Cumberland Plateau and then reached DeRossett, TN where it forked into a 7 mile branch to Clifty, TN and a 3 mile branch to Ravenscroft, TN.

My interest in this branch comes from attending the Vanderbilt U., School of Engr., Survey camp in 1957. At that time no matter your Engr. major was (mine was Elecrical) you took this course. It was discontinued the year I graduated, 1960. Well while attending the camp, after hours we would explore our surroundings a bit and when we took a path down to the bottom of the 75-90ft. bluffs that surrounded the camp, I noticed what appeared to be an old road. No, not a road, the R/W of the old branch. In fact two coal mines, both drift type, went right under the camp and there were other mines at Ravenscroft and Clifty, all owned in the early years of the 20th century by Tenn. Products & Chemical. The branch was constructed around 1890 and has grades up to 3% and many 12 degree curves. (150m radius is close, I use that). In 1929 came the depression and demand for products off the branch folded, and permission to abandon it was applied for in 1936. The branch was removed in 1938. To this day, Sparta is served by rail. Until 20 years or so ago, CSX served Sparta, now there is a shortline, the Cany Fork & Western which is headquartered in McMinnville, TN.

The image could have been taken by a drone from over TipTop which is the head of the grade up the plateau. The Vanderbilt Camp (1931-1960) would have been on top of the plateau near the right side and under it would have been (and will be) Mines 1 & 4 - don't know about 2 & 3 can't find any reference to them. The railroad grade at this section is about 2.5%.

Jerry Sullivan (retired from Southern & CSX, unretired docent, C&TS RR)
TIPTOP.jpg

[landnrailroader]

I've continued on after completing the Sparta Branch. Now, I am getting close to Palmer, TN which is (or was) the end of the Tracy City Branch. This dates from around 1890 and for those of you that travel I-24 between Nashville & Chattanooga, I believe the bridge over the highway near the Monteagle exit is still in place. The branch started at Cowan and followed the main track for a ways and then deviated to the right going south & then curved around to the north crossing over the main track right at the north portal of Cumberland Tunnel. It was abandoned in sections, with everything beyond Tracy City gone by the 1960s. It was finally abandoned in total by CSX around 1985. Again lots of sharp curves & grades to 3% on the Cowan to Monteagle sectioin. It is also the only place where I have seen compound curves that has sharper ends than the middle, like 10-8-10 degrees.

Jerry

[billworsham]

Yep, that bridge is still there. The Waffle House at that exit sits right in the path of the ROW. I've often wanted to go in there and sit in that corner seat, right in the ROW.

[landnrailroader]

Bill, you ought to do it. Best sausage in the world as far as I am concerned is at Waffle House and I love the waffles. My wife and I ate breakfast at one this morning before going on to church. You will however note that the waffles are smaller than maybe 18 months ago and the sausage is thinner.

Jerry

[landnrailroader]

With the Sparta branch and the Tracy City branch done, I have started on the Sequatchie Valley branch. This one was abandoned in pieces until nothing was left from Kimbal, TN south and that portion is still in place and serves a number of industries from that point south. The construction crew has reached Whitwell, TN or about mile 23. This was the southern end of several sections that served coal mines bored into the east side of the Cumberland Plateau, which as was seen in the Tracy City branch and the Sparta Branch, some effort was involved in reaching the coal field area which consisted in large part of the Sewanee Seam which varied from 4 feet to 6 feet in height and was typically 250 or so feet below the top of the ridge. So the image shows where the long abandoned Whitwell tipple will be and the markers going up the ridge are where there was a inclined plane with cable hauled cars on it for moving the raw coal down to the tipple where it was cleaned and loaded into coal cars. The last mine near here, which was not rail served, is the infamous mine 51 which exploded with the loss of 13 lives in 1981. The surface machinery still exists and the curious can go on Google Earth and look for Dogwood Flat which is northwest of Whitwell a few miles and there is a marker that indicates the mine location. The explosion was caused when someone lit a cigarette and did not know they were in a methane pocket. Methane is colorless and odorless and miners are prohibited by law from taking matches, lighters, etc. into a mine, but in Dec. 1981, someone did, and paid the ultimate price with 12 others.

Jerry WHITWELL_MINE.jpg

[jbtower]

Keep it up Jerry, I thoroughly enjoy the history behind your updates!

[landnrailroader]

Kevin,

I will. These lines area are all interesting and once the route is released, it would be no problem, (and I would not mind) for someone to copy only one branch to a new route setup if they wished. 3 or 4 miles further north is Shirleyton and through a large wye there, access was to the Reel Cove mine. If you look this one one up on the Internet, there is a short history of it and while it is closed now, it was active during the period of the route I am doing and was said to be a very modern operation for the time, 1950-1960 with electric hauled equipment etc. The NC&StL had a fairly long spur reaching to the processing plant which was up Griffith Creek a ways and then there was a long conveyor to the mine itself, which like the others was 250ft. or so below the plateau summit.

Jerry

[landnrailroader]

I have completed the Sequatchie Valley branch now, and the image is of the Reel Cove mine. If you look this up on the internet, the short article says that it was a modern electrically powered mine (electric trains i.e.) for the period it operated in which was the 1950s & 60s. It is long abandoned and there is no trace of the mine left visible, such as there is of the infamous Mine 21, located a few miles away. However, you can see some tree lines that are smooth in curvature etc. and there was a large wye at the junction with the main track. I load geotopo maps into Google Earth and those are close to correct, but some "simmer license" is required. The image is looking up the "holler" that contained the processing building etc.. There are two older coal mines available in the library, one for 3 tracks, and one for 2 tracks and I found that if I use 150R 5degree pieces, one turned out, and one turned in, it will spread the tracks just enough to fit the supports between the tracks. In the image I haven't placed the mine structure yet, but it is one of the things I will place in the "incomplete" route before it is released. Also I realized that I needed more terrain up the "holler" so I fired up my XP machine and added two more columns of terrain files to the west of the track. This corrected this location and a couple others like it. As I mentioned earlier, this branch was abandoned north of the south side of Jasper, TN years ago. When I release the route I hope to find the approx. dates of these abandonments and put them in the documentation folder along with track charts. (pdf files)
REEL_COVE_MINE.jpg
Now I have turned my attention to the Huntsville Branch and the off shoot of it to Fayetteville, TN. This is another long abandoned branch.

Jerry