Savannah, Americus and Montgomery Railway

The Savannah, Americus and Montgomery Railway (SA&M) was a historic railroad located in the U.S. states of Georgia and Alabama.

It was founded in 1888 to take over operations from the 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge Americus, Preston and Lumpkin Railroad which ran from Louvale to Abbeville.[1] In 1890, the line was extended from Abbeville to Lyons and from Louvale to the Chattahoochee River, connecting with the Savannah and Western Railroad in Savannah. During construction, the gauge of the track was converted from 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge to the 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge. By 1891 the railroad operated five riverboats on the Ocmulgee River and the Altamaha River, and the railroad reached Montgomery, Alabama. In 1892, the SA&M leased the Albany, Florida and Northern Railway which ran between Albany and Cordele.[2] At its peak, the railroad had a length of 340 miles.

In 1895, the SA&M went bankrupt and was reorganized into two separate railroads, the Georgia and Alabama Railway and the Albany and Northern Railway.

References

  1. ↑ Johnson, Edward A. "Samuel H. Hawkins Diary Historical Note". Digital Library of Georgia. Retrieved 30 December 2011.
  2. ↑ Prince, Richard E. (2000). Seaboard Airline Railway:Steamboats, Locomotives, and History. Indiana University Press. p. 81.