Suffolk & Carolina Railway

the Suffolk & Carolina Railway was a narrow gauge railroad connecting Suffolk to the Chowan River in 1900
the Suffolk & Carolina Railway was a narrow gauge railroad connecting Suffolk to the Chowan River in 1900
Source: University of North Carolina Libraries, Railroad map of North Carolina 1900 (by Henry C. Brown, 1900)

The Suffolk & Carolina Railway started as the Nansemond Land, Lumber and Narrow-Gauge Railway Company in 1873. It was renamed to "Suffolk & Carolina Railway" a year later.

The narrow-gauge railroad carried harvested crops and forest products from the timberlands of northeastern North Carolina to Suffolk.

The Suffolk & Carolina Railway had 40 miles of broad gauge track stretching to the Chowan River in 1887. By 1902, the railroad had been constructed south to Edenton, where it connected to the "original" Norfolk Southern Railroad.

It also built a 25-mile branch to the port city of Elizabeth City, North Carolina on the Pasquotank River in 1904. That branch operated until the middle of World War II, when it was abandoned.

the Suffolk & Carolina Railway and the original Norfolk Southern Railroad did not have a connection in 1900
the Suffolk & Carolina Railway and the original Norfolk Southern Railroad did not have a connection in 1900
Source: Library of Congress, Railroad map of North Carolina, 1900 (H. C. Brown, 1900)

an extension of the Suffolk & Carolina Railway closed the gap between Beckford Junction and Elizabeth City
an extension of the Suffolk & Carolina Railway closed the gap between Beckford Junction and Elizabeth City
Source: Library of Congress, North Carolina (Rand McNally and Company, 1905)

The railroad's name was changed to Virginia & Carolina Coast Railroad in 1906. Within the same month, it was merged into the "original" Norfolk Southern Railroad and lost its corporate identity.1

the Suffolk & Carolina Railway (yellow) in 1891, with Norfolk & Carolina Railroad to the west
the Suffolk & Carolina Railway (yellow) in 1891, with Norfolk & Carolina Railroad to the west
Source: Library of Congress, Maps showing the Norfolk, Albermarle & Atlantic Railroad and its connections (G.W. & C.B. Colton & Co., 1891)

Links

the Suffolk and Carolina Railroad stopped at the mills in Suffolk, and did not connect to a shipping terminal in Portsmouth or Norfolk
the Suffolk and Carolina Railroad stopped at the mills in Suffolk, and did not connect to a shipping terminal in Portsmouth or Norfolk
Source: Library of Congress, Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Suffolk (Sanborn Map Company, April 1898)

References

1. "North Carolina Railroads - Suffolk & Carolina Railway," Carolana, http://www.carolana.com/NC/Transportation/railroads/nc_rrs_suffolk_carolina.html; H.V. & H.W. Poor, Poor's Manual of Railroads, Volume 21, 1887, p.655, https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/000636903; H.V. & H.W. Poor, Poor's Manual of Railroads, Volume 24, 1891, p.536, https://books.google.com/books?id=aMAvAQAAMAAJ; "Annual Report of the Board of Railroad Commissioners of North Carolina," 1893, p.553, https://books.google.com/books?id=jF0aAQAAIAAJ; "Beckford Junction to Elizabeth City," AbandonedRails.com, http://www.abandonedrails.com/Beckford_Junction_to_Elizabeth_City (last checked January 16, 2019)

the Suffolk & Carolina Railway was one of several railroads that brought logs from the swamps to mills in Suffolk
the Suffolk & Carolina Railway was one of several railroads that brought logs from the swamps to mills in Suffolk
Source: Library of Congress, Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Suffolk (Sanborn Map Company, April 1889)


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