Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway

Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway

NC&StL steam locomotive 576 at Centennial Park, Nashville, Tennessee
Overview
Headquarters	Nashville, Tennessee
Locale	Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia
Dates of operation	1851–1957
Predecessor	Nashville and Chattanooga Railroad
Successor	Louisville and Nashville Railroad
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Previous gauge	5 ft (1,524 mm) and 4 ft 9 in (1,448 mm)[1]
Length	1900: 1,189 miles (1,914 km)

The Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway was a railway company that operated in the U.S. states of Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia. It began as the Nashville and Chattanooga Railroad, chartered in Nashville on December 11, 1845, built to 5 ft (1,524 mm) gauge^[2] and was the first railway to operate in the state of Tennessee.^[3] By the turn of the twentieth century, the NC&StL grew into one of the most important railway systems in the southern United States.^{[4]: iii, Dedication}