Chattanooga Union Railway/CofG Alton Park Belt
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I was never really sure but I always suspected that the Central of Georgia had constructed their spur line that ran from the CofG mainline just above the TN/GA state line, west to the industrial Alton Park neighborhood where the TAG yard was located. I have a 1917 valuation map of this spur and it clearly indicates CofG ownership. There was so much traffic in the Alton Park neighborhood that even the NC&StL built an industrial spur to the area. Turns out this is not the case. I was looking at an old 1889 atlas of Chattanooga and it lists this spur as Chattanooga Union Railway trackage. It is worth noting that the builder of TAG - C. E. James - also built the Chatt. Union RY. The Chatt. UN. RY. eventually became a Southern/AGS subsidiary known as the Chattanooga Belt Railway. At some point evidently Southern(AGS) sold the spur to CofG??
In TAG employee's timetables, the area where the CofG spur entered Alton Park and connected/crossed the TAG yard was called Doty Junction. The old Atlas shows a tract of land there called "Doty"???I have a biography of TAG builder C. E. James somewhere but I can't lay my hands on it. Perhaps his wife was named Doty? The adjacent property is listed as "James"? There was also a continuation of this CofG spur track that once it crossed the TAG yard, it wrapped around the back side of the Chattanooga Glass Co. which bordered the TAG yard on its west side. Many maps indicate that this track was CofG property but Belt Railway valuation maps indicate that it was a joint CofG/Southern(AGS) property. I had understood that the CofG had built this track in conjunction with the Southern (AGS) but the same track is shown in the 1889 atlas and is listed there as belonging to the Chatt. Union RY. Perhaps the CofG purchased an interest in this track at the same time they bought the spur from their mainline?
?When the Coverdale syndicate was rebuilding the TAG mainline from 56 pound rail to 100 pound rail, every year in the annual report, they included a chart of their progress. One year some 75 pound rail was included. As it turned out, a CofG crew got carried away and exceeded their maintenance limit and laid some of their 75 pound rail into the TAG yard. With this in mind I assume that the CofG Alton Park spur was 75 pound rail???
One of the things I just can't find anything on is CofG operations in Alton Park. I have also looked for pictures of CofG passenger trains at Terminal Station (Choo Choo) and have been skunked here too.
I was discussing with someone how the junction of the Belt Railway River Division and Georgia Division just north of the TAG yard formed a wye track where TAG turned their large steam engines after they outgrew their small turntable. This sent me to my map collection to study the Belt Railway. There was also the East Lake, Boyce, St. Elmo and Citico Divisions. The Newby Division was how TAG gained access to their freight house and general office building in downtown Chattanooga. I have always wondered why the Belt was divided?in this manner? In the heyday of the Belt Railway, did AGS guys bid Belt jobs or was their a separate seniority list like there was for Chattanooga Traction folks? I wonder what of the old Belt is still active. I know the Belt into Alton Park and the old CofG spur and a portion of the East Lake line still see a little action because I have seen/photographed it. Correct me if I am wrong but doesn't TVRM own a portion of the Boyce and Citico Divisions. Just before Christmas I went by the National Cemetery to pay my respects to Bob Sironen and I noticed an active customer on the TVRM portion. How often do TVRM crews serve this customer and are there any others??
Doing a little map work, I determined our route we took the day Bob showed me the old Signal Mountain street car right of way. As you start up Signal Mountain, just as you pass the house of one of my heroes in the faith, the late Pastor Dr. Lee Roberson, you turn right. At the top of the ridge hang a right or south if you will. I'll make it back up there for a good look soon I hope.??
When you answer one Chattanooga rail question you always create ten more unanswered ones. I would have posted this to the Chattanooga list too but evidently nobody thought to create one when Yahoo groups died? The CofG list dies with Yahoo too. Hopefully someone will remedy this at some point.??
Warren d. Stephens?
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Warren Stephens