Atlanta and West Point Rail Road
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Atlanta & West Point Rail Road | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Reporting marks | AWP |
| Locale | Georgia |
| Dates of operation | 1847–1983 |
| Successor line | Seaboard System |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm) (standard gauge) |
| Headquarters | Atlanta, Georgia |
The Atlanta and West Point Railroad (AWP) was originally chartered in 1847 as the Atlanta and LaGrange Rail Road and the section from Newnan to West Point was chartered in December 1849. It was completed in 1854. The AWP name began use in 1857. In 1867, while Lemuel P. Grant ran it, here were the stops available to riders:
[edit] Distances of Depots from Atlanta
| # | Name | Miles | Notes |
| 1 | East Point, Georgia | 7 | |
| 2 | Fairburn, Georgia | 19 | |
| 3 | Palmetto, Georgia | 25 | completed on March 17, 1851 |
| 4 | Powells, Georgia | 33 | |
| 5 | Newnan, Georgia | 39 | completed on September 9, 1851 |
| 6 | Grantville, Georgia | 51 | completed on June 1, 1852 |
| 7 | Hogansville, Georgia | 58 | |
| 8 | LaGrange, Georgia | 71 | completed in February, 1853 |
| 9 | Long Cane, Georgia | 80 | Off Long Cane Rd. |
| 10 | West Point, Georgia | 86 | completed on May 15, 1854 |
Trains departed from Atlanta at 12:15PM and arrived there at 8:37AM. West Point was the connecting point further west via the Montgomery & West Point Railroad.
[edit] Today
The AWP and the Western Railway of Alabama had financial backing from the parent company of the Georgia Railroad, and from 1886 onward the AWP and the Western operated essentially as one railroad under the name "The West Point Route." In the 19th and early 20th centuries, the three were controlled through joint lease by the Central of Georgia Railroad and the Louisville and Nashville Railroad (through assignment by its majority owner, the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad). The CofG sold its interest in 1944. Through the control of the Georgia Railroad, the lines eventually fell under the control of the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad, which was the result of a merger between the ACL and the Seaboard Air Line. All of these lines plus the Clinchfield Railroad became the Family Lines System in the 1970s, though all the lines maintained separate corporate identities. Those identities became "fallen flags" when the group was renamed Seaboard System Railroad (SBD), and in 1986 SBD merged with Chessie System to form CSX Transportation.
The former AWP line remains in full service today, though passenger service ended in the 1970s when Amtrak took over most of the nation's remaining passenger trains. The AWP name came to an end in 1983 when it was absorbed into the SBD.
