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Richmond Washington Line and Related Railroads Richard Prince 1973 Hard Cover
Richmond Washington Line and Related Railroads by Richard Prince Florida Fast Line Capital Cities Route
1973 Copyright
306 Pages
Hard Cover
The RICHMOND-WASHINGTON LINE dates back to the year 1834 when the RICHMOND, FREDERICKS-BURG AND POTOMAC RAILROAD was incorporated in the state of Virginia and began building its line of rail northward from Richmond, through Fredericksburg to the south bank of the Potomac River at Aquia Creek, Va.
It was not until 1872 that direct rail service was established between Richmond and Washington, when the Pennsylvania Railroad completed the ALEXANDRIA & FREDERICKSBURG RR from Alexandria, Va., southward to form a connection with the RF&P RR at the new Wye near the mouth of Quantico Creek. The remaining distance to Washington, up the west or south ,bank of the Potomac River to the Long Bridge for wagon travel into Washington had been provided by the ALEXANDRIA & WASHINGTON RR, opened in 1858. The operation of these two northern connections along the railroad portion of the Long Bridge was supervised and operated by the Baltimore & Potomac RR, a subsidiary of the Pennsylvania RR that furnished all equipment.
In 1890, the WASHINGTON SOUTHERN RAILWAY was formed through the consolidation of the ALEXANDRIA & FREDERICKSBURG RR and the ALEXANDRIA & WASHINGTON RY. It was not long before the WASHINGTON SOUTHERN RY owned about 361/2 miles of track southward from Rosslyn as far as Quantico, and was operated at that time by the same Baltimore & Potomac RR Division of the Pennsylvania System that continued to furnish all locomotives and equipment.
In November 1901, the formation of the RICHMOND-WASHINGTON COMPANY brought the Washington Southern Ry under common management and operation with the RF&P RR. A short one-mile stretch of track at the Quantico Wye connecting the RF&P RR and the Washington Southern Ry had been built in 1872 to join the A&F RR and the RF&P RR, and was known as the POTOMAC RR that was merged into the WASHINGTON SOUTHERN RY in 1904. Finally, to complete the corporate history, in 1920 the RICHMOND, FREDER-ICKSBURG & POTOMAC RR absorbed the WASHINGTON SOUTHERN RY to simplify its organization and bookkeeping.
Lest we forget the steamboat operation of the POTOMAC STEAMBOAT COMPANY, for many years an affiliate of the RF&P RR, it should be stated that prior to 1872 the sole connection of the RF&P RR was provided by the river steamers of the POTOMAC STEAMBOAT COMPANY and its predecessor, the WASHINGTON & FREDERICKSBURG STEAMBOAT COMPANY. These side-paddle passenger steamboats plied the Potomac River between Washington and Aquia Creek, and later Quantico Creek. For a time they also sailed downstream to the Chesapeake Bay and up to Baltimore to provide a second connection for the RF&P RR trains. Except for a turn of events during the early 1880's, that company would have also provided train ferry service between Quantico and Shepherds Point, D. C., the terminal of the B&O RR opposite Alexandria. The POTOMAC STEAMBOAT COMPANY later was merged to form the Norfolk & Washington Steamboat Company that eventually was taken over by the Old Bay Line.
Actually, the original plans of the RF&P RR did not call for an all-rail route between Richmond and Washington. The new railroad was intended to be true to its name, THE RICHMOND, FREDERICKSBURG & POTOMAC RAILROAD, utilizing the broad Potomac River for a scenic portion of the trip between the two capital cities.
CONTENTS
EARLY HISTORY 5
II THE WAR - United States Military RR Operations on the RF&P 11
Standard Gauge Locomotives of the U. S. Military RR 19
III RF&P RR COMPANY OPERATIONS - 1861 to 1900 30
IV EARLY STEAMBOAT COMPANIES AND PREDECESSOR RAILROAD LINES
Potomac Steamboat Co. - Washington & Fredricksburg Steamboat Co.35
Washington Southern Ry 41
Presidents and Important Operating Officials of the RF&P RR 42
V RICHMOND-WASHINGTON LINE SINCE 1901 44
VI DESCRIPTION OF THE RF&P AND ITS OPERATIONS 48
Main Line 51
Yards and Engine Terminals 63
VII STEAM LOCOMOTIVES OF THE RF&P RR 75
Richmond-Washington Line Locomotives 1903-1920 80
Later RF&P locomotives 90
Derailment and Collision at Cherry Hill, Va. 155
VIII STEAM FREIGHT AND PASSENGER TRAINS
Passenger Service 157
Freight Service 195
RELATED RAILROADS AND OTHER LINES
IX SHORT LINE RAILROADS IN VIRGINIA AND NORTH CAROLINA
Potomac, Fredericksburg & Piedmont RR - Virginia Central Ry 207
Chesapeake Western Railway 217
Nelson & Albemarle Railway 223
Virginia Blue Ridge Railway 230
Norfolk & Portsmouth Belt Line RR 236
Smithfield Terminal Railway 251
Carolina Southern Railway 253
High Point, Thomasville & Denton RR 256
Winston-Salem Southbound Railway 259
X STEAM TUGS AND LOCAL PASSENGER STEAMERS 265
Clark Towing Operations 267
Wood Towing Corporation 269
ELECTRIC TRACTION COMPANIES AND STEAM FERRIES
XI ON HAMPTON ROADS AND LOWER CHESAPEAKE BAY 277
Virginia Electric & Power Comany 279
Virginia Public Service Company 286
Chesapeake Ferry Company 289
Virginia Ferry Company 297
XII STEAM LOCOMOTIVE DIAGRAMS OF THE RF&P RR 300
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