Morgantown and Kingwood Railroad

Morgantown and Kingwood Railroad
Overview
HeadquartersMorgantown, West Virginia
Reporting markM&K
LocaleMonongalia and Preston Counties, West Virginia, United States
Dates of operation1899–1920
SuccessorBaltimore and Ohio Railroad
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Length47.9 mi (77.1 km)

The Morgantown and Kingwood Railroad (reporting mark M&K) was a railroad in West Virginia in the United States. It extended from the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) junction in Morgantown in Monongalia County via Masontown, Kingwood and Rowlesburg to the M&K junction with the B&O in Preston County, a distance of 47.9 mi (77.1 km).[1][2] The M&K also operated approximately 5 mi (8.0 km) of branch lines along the route.[3]

The M&K was completed in three stages: Morgantown to Bretz was completed in September 1903, Bretz to Kingwood in March 1906, and Kingwood to Rowlesburg in July 1907.[1] The route followed the course of Deckers Creek to Kingwood. The M&K had shops and a yard at Sabraton.[4]

The line primarily carried coal, building stone, glass sand and lumber.[1] By 1906 the line provided a twice-daily passenger service to Kingwood.[4] It was a key stimulus in the economic development of the region at the turn of the 20th century.[3]

  1. ^ a b c Hennen, Ray V.; Reger, David B.; White, I.C. (1913). West Virginia Geological Survey: Marion, Monongalia and Taylor Counties. Wheeling, West Virginia: Wheeling News Lithograph Company.
  2. ^ Kennedy, Robert F. (2008). "The B&O's M&K Branch: Tapping the Deckers Creek Valley" (PDF). The Sentinel. 30 (4). Baltimore, Maryland: Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Historical Society: 3–5. ISSN 1053-4415. Retrieved 27 January 2012.
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference prestonhistory2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b Venable, Wallace; Venable, Norma (2007). Around Morgantown. Images of America. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7385-4393-2.