The Palmetto Railroad was a Southeastern railroad that served

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

and

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

in the late 19th century. The Palmetto Railroad was chartered by the

South Carolina General Assembly The South Carolina General Assembly, also called the South Carolina Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of South Carolina. The legislature is bicameral and consists of the lower South Carolina House of Representatives and ...

in 1882 and the

North Carolina General Assembly The North Carolina General Assembly is the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of the Government of North Carolina, state government of North Carolina. The legislature consists of two chambers: the North Carolina Senate, Senate and the North Ca ...

in 1883. The line stretched from

Hamlet, North Carolina Hamlet is a city in Richmond County, North Carolina, Richmond County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 6,042 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History The area in Richmond County, North Carolina, Richmond County ...

, to

Cheraw, South Carolina Cheraw ( , ) is a town on the Pee Dee River in Chesterfield County, South Carolina, Chesterfield County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 5,040 at the 2020 census. The greater Cheraw area in the zip code 29520 has a populatio ...

, where it connected with the

Cheraw and Darlington Railroad The Cheraw and Darlington Railroad was a gauge shortline railroad that served South Carolina and, later, North Carolina, beginning before the American Civil War. The gauge was changed to in 1886. History The Cheraw and Darlington was chartered ...

. Construction of the 18-mile stretch was completed in 1887. That same year, the

Raleigh and Augusta Air Line Railroad The Raleigh and Augusta Air Line Railroad was a North Carolina railroad that operated in the second half of the 19th century. History Early years The Raleigh and Augusta Air Line Railroad traces its history back to the early 1850s, when the line ...

leased the Palmetto Railroad line. In 1895, the company was reorganized due to financial difficulties and renamed the Palmetto Railway. In 1900, the Raleigh and Augusta Air Line Railroad and Palmetto Railway became part of

Seaboard Air Line Railway The Seaboard Air Line Railroad , known colloquially as the Seaboard Railroad during its time, was an American railroad that existed from April 14, 1900, until July 1, 1967, when it merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, its longtime ri ...

. The line became part of Seaboard's main line. In 1967, the Seaboard Air Line merged with its rival, the

Atlantic Coast Line Railroad The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad was a United States Class I railroad formed in 1900, though predecessor railroads had used the ACL brand since 1871. In 1967, it merged with long-time rival Seaboard Air Line Railroad to form the Seaboard Coast ...

. The merged company was named the

Seaboard Coast Line Railroad The Seaboard Coast Line Railroad was a Class I railroad company operating in the Southeastern United States beginning in 1967. Its passenger operations were taken over by Amtrak in 1971. Eventually, the railroad was merged with its affiliate lin ...

.Greenspun.com
/ref> In 1980, the Seaboard Coast Line's parent company merged with the

Chessie System Chessie System, Inc. was a holding company that owned the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O), the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O), the Western Maryland Railway (WM), and Baltimore and Ohio Chicago Terminal Railroad (B&OCT). Trains operated u ...

, creating the

CSX Corporation CSX Corporation is an American holding company focused on rail transportation and real estate in North America, among other industries. The company was established in 1980 as part of the Chessie System and Seaboard Coast Line Industries merge ...

. The CSX Corporation initially operated the Chessie and Seaboard Systems separately until 1986, when they were merged into

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 ...

. The line is still in service and it is part of CSX's S Line (

Hamlet Subdivision The Hamlet Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in North Carolina and South Carolina. The line runs from Hamlet, North Carolina, to Columbia, South Carolina, for a total of 105.2 miles. At its north end it continues south f ...

Station Listing

References

Defunct South Carolina railroads Railway companies established in 1882 Railway companies disestablished in 1895 Defunct North Carolina railroads 1882 establishments in North Carolina 1885 disestablishments in North Carolina 1882 establishments in South Carolina 1885 disestablishments in South Carolina {{US-rail-company-stub