Catawba Valley Railway

Catawba Valley Railway
Overview
LocaleSouth Carolina
Dates of operation1906–1909
SuccessorSeaboard Air Line Railroad
Technical
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) (standard gauge)
Length22.2 miles (35.7 km)

The Catawba Valley Railway was a shortline railway that operated in northern South Carolina in the early 20th century. The 22-mile route was begun by the Southern Power Company (later Duke Power), which built about 10 miles of track from Great Falls, South Carolina, to Fort Lawn, South Carolina, in 1906.[1] The road was taken over by the Catawba Valley Railway Company in 1907 and extended another 12 miles northward to meet the Seaboard Air Line Railroad's Abbeville Subdivision near Catawba, South Carolina.[2]

The Seaboard Air Line Railroad controlled the Catawba Valley Railway until it purchased the Catawaba Valley in 1909.[3] The Seaboard Air Line operated the line as their Catawba Subdivision.[4] In 1967, the Seaboard Air Line merged with its rival, the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, and the combined company was named the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad. The line was abandoned and removed in 1980.[5]

  1. ^ South Carolina Railroads, Catawba Valley Railway Archived 2010-09-25 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ South Carolina Railroads, Catawba Valley Railway Archived 2010-09-25 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ Seaboard Air Line Expands, New York Times, October 13, 1909
  4. ^ Seaboard Air Line Railroad Georgia Division Timetable (1955)
  5. ^ "Spence to Great Falls, SC". Abandoned Rails. Retrieved 25 July 2023.