Eastern Alabama Railway, LLC is one of many

short line railroad A shortline railroad is a small or mid-sized railroad company that operates over a relatively short distance relative to larger, national railroad networks. The term is used primarily in the United States and Canada. In the former, railroads are ...

companies owned by Genesee & Wyoming, Inc. On November 26, 1990, the line was sold by

CSX CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Railroad classes, Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of trac ...

to the Eastern Alabama Railway, a subsidiary of Kyle Railways. Kyle Railways later sold the EARY to RailAmerica in 2002 and RailAmerica was acquired by Genesee & Wyoming in 2012. The line, which is long, was constructed in 1883 as a

narrow gauge railroad A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge (distance between the rails) narrower than . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curv ...

known as the Anniston and Atlantic Railroad. On July 19, 1889, the Anniston & Atlantic Railroad became part of the

Louisville and Nashville Railroad The Louisville and Nashville Railroad , commonly called the L&N, was a Class I railroad that operated freight and passenger services in the southeast United States. Chartered by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1850, the road grew into one of ...

under the

Alabama Mineral Railroad Alabama ( ) is a state in the Southeastern and Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama is the ...

. The L&N became part of the

Seaboard System The Seaboard System Railroad, Inc. was a US Class I railroad that operated from 1982 to 1986. Since the late 1960s, Seaboard Coast Line Industries had operated the Seaboard Coast Line and its sister railroads—notably the Louisville & Nashvill ...

in 1982 and the CSX in 1986. The EARY also operated a separate line running from

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

to Anniston, Alabama. The Wellington line was abandoned in November 1992. The Wellington line was also former Louisville & Nashville track and ran through Alexandria - Mahlep - Gladden Jct - Leatherwood - Blue Mountain.

Traffic

The railroad's main commodities are limestone,

urea Urea, also called carbamide (because it is a diamide of carbonic acid), is an organic compound with chemical formula . This amide has two Amine, amino groups (–) joined by a carbonyl functional group (–C(=O)–). It is thus the simplest am ...

, paper products, and food products. The EARY hauled around 15,000 carloads in 2008.

Towns served

Talladega, Alabama Talladega (, also ) is the county seat of Talladega County, Alabama, United States. It was incorporated in 1835. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 15,861. Talladega is approximately east of one of the state's la ...

Interchange with CSX *

Bemiston, Alabama Bemiston is an unincorporated community and former company town in Talladega County, Alabama, United States. Bemiston now lies within the city limits of Talladega. History Bemiston was founded in 1927, as a mill town built around the Bemis Br ...

* Sycamore, Alabama *

Sylacauga, Alabama Sylacauga is a city in Talladega County, Alabama, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 12,578. Sylacauga is known for its fine white marble bedrock. This was discovered shortly after settlers moved into the area and has bee ...

Location of Enginehouse and interchange with Norfolk Southern * Gantts Quarry, Alabama

Summary of operations

* Anniston and Atlantic Railroad 1883 - 1889 *

: 1889 - 1982 *

Seaboard System Railroad The Seaboard System Railroad, Inc. was a US Class I railroad that operated from 1982 to 1986. Since the late 1960s, Seaboard Coast Line Industries had operated the Seaboard Coast Line and its sister railroads—notably the Louisville & Nashvi ...

: 1982 - July 1, 1986 *

CSX Transportation CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of track, it is the lead ...

: July 1, 1986 - November 26, 1990

References

Sources

*Edward A. Lewis, ''American Shortline Railway Guide 5th ed.,'' (Kalmbach Books, 1996). *Mike Walker, ''SPV's Comprehensive Railroad Atlas of North America - Southern States'' (Steam Powered Publishing & SPV, 2001) Ownership and detail of rail line. *North America Railroad Map Software v 2.13, (Railway Station Productions, 2004

External links