Mileposts of the Clinchfield Railroad
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- History: Summary | Design | Surveys | Railroad Battles | Construction | Clinchfield Coal
- Predecessors: Summary | CRRR | 3Cs | OR&C | S&W | CC&O
- Leaders: George L. Carter | M.J. Caples | John B. Dennis
- Floods: Floods and Clinchfield/CSX Reconstruction
- The Clinchfield: Maps | Mileposts | Stations | Connections | Branches/Spurs | Yards | Sidings | High Line | Bridges | Tunnels | Grades | Loops | Santa Train
- Locomotives: Summary | Diesels | Steam | Challengers | No.1 | CRR 800 | CSX Heritage Unit
- Operations: Summary | Freight | Passenger | Timetables | Wrecks | Dispatcher’s Sheet
- Corporate Couplings: Summary | Family Lines | Seaboard System | CSX | Closure/Reopening
- CSX/CRR Today: Summary | CSX Kingsport Sub | CSX Blue Ridge Sub
- Railfanning: Summary | Restaurant Guide
- Destinations: Summary | Elkhorn City | Breaks | Dante | Speers Ferry | Kingsport | Johnson City | Erwin | Nolichucky Gorge | Spartanburg | and more
- Model Railroads: Summary
- Resources: Books | Scholars | Museums
- Clinchfield.org: Editor | Site Map
- Related Websites: Appalachian-Railroads.org | Southern-Railroads.org
Clinchfield Railroad Mileposts
The mile posts and the stations of the Clinchfield Railroad have evolved over the years since 1909.
For example, the Elkhorn City Extension was added in 1915 upping the total length by 35 miles, and the Johnson City High Line removed 3 miles from the length of the railroad in 1969.
Rather than change all the mileposts on the line, the railroad opted to have the Erwin Yard hide the 3 miles by keeping the mileposts the same north and south of Erwin. Even though the Erwin Yard was only about 2 miles in length, the mileposts entering and exiting the yard would have you believe it was closer to 5 miles in length.
In 1915, until it became part of the CSX Railroad in 1986, the CC&O/Clinchfield mileposts displayed 277 miles from Elkhorn City KY to Spartanburg SC. The 277 mile post in the picture still stands near the Spartanburg Tunnel that originally was used to exchange trains with the Atlantic Coast Line and the Piedmont and Northern Railroads. Just above and to the left was the Clinchfield yard where connection was made with the Southern Railway.
South & Western Railway 1908 Mileage Chart
Initially, the Clinchfield was designed and constructed under the name of South & Western Railway. Below is its original mileage table from Dante VA to Spartanburg SC. This same year, the S&W became the Carolina Clinchfield & Ohio Railway, the CC&O. It 1924, with the rail line being co-leased by the Atlantic Coast Line and the Louisville & Nashville Railroads, it changed to what we now know as the CRR, Clinchfield Railroad.
Clinchfield Stations & Mileposts 1925 to 1969
Below are both a grid and an image of the Clinchfield’s stations and mileposts as they existed in 1925. After 1969, the Johnson City High Line removed 3 miles and grades that required helpers from the Clinchfield. Those three miles were actually subtracted from the center of the railroad at Erwin TN in the yards, so as not to require new mile posts all the way from Johnson City to Spartanburg.
| Station | Milepost |
| Elkhorn City KY | 0 |
| Bartlick VA | 8 |
| Splashdam | 10.0 |
| Haysi | 11.4 |
| Delano | 14.8 |
| Clinchco | 17.4 |
| Fremont | 21.4 |
| Allen | |
| Nora | 26.6 |
| Trammel | 32.2 |
| Dante | 35.1 |
| Hamlin | 38.6 |
| St. Paul | 42.5 |
| Burton’s Ford | 46.7 |
| Carfax | 49.6 |
| Miller Yard | 52.6 |
| Dungannon | 57.0 |
| Hardwood | 59.5 |
| Wood | 61.6 |
| Fort Blackmore | 64.4 |
| Starnes | 68.8 |
| Hill | 71.1 |
| Boulder | 77.4 |
| Speer’s Ferry | 80.1 |
| Kermit | 81.8 |
| Waycross | 87.1 |
| Frisco | |
| Rotherwood TN | 90.1 |
| Kingsport | 93.9 |
| Edgewood | 95.7 |
| Pactolus | 97.8 |
| Hemlock | 99.9 |
| Fordtown | 103.5 |
| Gray | 107.6 |
| Boone | 111.6 |
| Indian Ridge | 113.2 |
| Johnson City | 120.3 |
| Okolona | 124.7 |
| Marbleton | 127.3 |
| Unicoi | 130.8 |
| Fishery | 134.2 |
| Erwin | 136.3 |
| Chestoa | 139.5 |
| Unaka Springs | 140.2 |
| Lost Cove NC | 144.0 |
| Poplar | 148.6 |
| Huntdale | 153.0 |
| Relief | 154.5 |
| Green Mountain | 160.2 |
| Forbes | 164.0 |
| Toecane | 166.5 |
| Roses Branch | 169.1 |
| Bandana | 169.8 |
| Lunday | 172.6 |
| Kona | 173.5 |
| Boonford | 175.1 |
| Wing | 176.6 |
| Penland | 179.6 |
| Spruce Pine | 183.1 |
| Altapass | 187.0 |
| Switzerland | 190.4 |
| Ashford | 202.7 |
| Avery | 205.2 |
| Pitts | 207.5 |
| Sevier | 209.8 |
| Hankins | 214.8 |
| Marion (Clinchcross) | 218.5 |
| Glenwood | 225.7 |
| Fero | 227.1 |
| Thermal | 232.6 |
| Tate | 235.7 |
| Logan | 240.6 |
| Bostic | 246.0 |
| Forest City | 248.1 |
| Harris | 254.5 |
| Chesnee SC | 261.7 |
| Mayo | 266.6 |
| Enola | 272.3 |
| Lawson | 274.5 |
| Spartanburg | 277.3 |
Clinchfield 1925 Passenger Timetable with Mile Posts
More Clinchfield information will be added to this page and website in the days ahead. Please let me know if you have any questions, see any edits that should be made, or have any content you are willing to share. Would enjoy hearing from you if you have similar interests in the Clinchfield, the region, or model railroading.
Clinchfield.org Sources and Resources
The following are excellent resources for those of you wanting to explore and learn more about the Clinchfield Railroad. These sources of information also serve as reference and historical materials for Clinchfield.org. Much of the content on the website is verified across multiple sources.
- Associations: Carolina Clinchfield Chapter National Railway Historical Society, Louisville & Nashville Railroad Historical Society, George L. Carter Railroad Historical Society, Watauga Valley Railroad Historical Society
- Personal maps, timetables, track charts, and memorabilia
- Archives of Appalachia – ETSU, Johnson City TN
- Books – Beach: ‘The Black Mountain Railway,’ Drury: ‘The Historical Guide to North American Railroads’, Goforth: ‘Building the Clinchfield’ and ‘When Steam Ran the Clinchfield’, Graybeal: ‘The Railroads of Johnson City’, Helm: ‘The Clinchfield Railroad in the Coal Fields’, Irwin & Stahl: ‘The Last Empire Builder: The Life of George L. Carter’, King: ‘Clinchfield Country’, Marsh: ‘Clinchfield in Color’, Poole: ‘A History of Railroading in Western North Carolina’, Poteat & Taylor: ‘The CSX Clinchfield Route in the 21st Century’, Stevens & Peoples: ‘The Clinchfield No. 1 – Tennessee’s Legendary Steam Engine’, Way: ‘The Clinchfield Railroad, the Story of a Trade Route Across the Blue Ridge Mountains’, Wolfe: ‘Norfolk & Western’s Clinch Valley Line‘ and ‘Southern Railway Appalachia Division,’ and Young: ‘Appalachian Coal Mines and Railroads in Color.’ Volume 1: Kentucky, Volume 2: Virginia
- Magazines – ‘Trains‘ , ‘Classic Trains‘
- Newspaper Articles – Newspapers.com
- Online Article – Scientific American: ‘The Costliest Railroad in America‘, Classic Trains: ‘Remembering the Clinchfield Railroad‘, Railway Age: ‘This Coal Road Is Also A Speedy Bridge Line,’ Sept 1, 1952 edition, ‘Railway Signaling and Communications‘, Flanary: ‘The Quick Service Route, The Clinchfield Railroad‘, Flanary: ‘Men Against Mountains, Running Trains on the Clinchfield‘ October 2001
- Online Videos – Ken Marsh on Kingsport area railroads and region’s history Video #1, Ken Marsh on railroads and region’s history Video #2:
- Websites – Carolana.com – North Carolina Railroads, South Carolina Railroads, Johnson’s Depot hosted by StateOfFranklin.net, RailFanGuides.us for Johnson City and for Erwin, The Radio Reference Wiki, SteamLocomotive.com, VirginiaPlaces.org – Railroad History of Virginia, Multimodalways.org
Contact Us at Clinchfield.org
Would enjoy hearing from you if you have questions, suggestions, edits, or content that you are willing to share. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you have similar interests in the Clinchfield or Model Railroads.
3Cs Websites
Appalachian-Railroads.org | Clinchfield.org | Southern-Railroads.org
