- Florida Railroad
The Florida Railroad was the first
railroad to connect the east and west coasts ofFlorida , running from Fernandina to Cedar Key. The line later became part of theSeaboard Air Line Railroad , and, where still in use, is operated byCSX Transportation and theFirst Coast Railroad . Thehighway corridor of SR 24, US 301, and SR A1A closely parallels the former Florida Railroad.History
The water route between the east coast and gulf coast of the
United States passes through theStraits of Florida , close to the Florida Reef that lies just off theFlorida Keys . Prior to the 20th century many ship were wrecked around the southern end of the Florida peninsula. A railroad across the northern end of the Florida peninsula would allow cargoes from ships in theGulf of Mexico to be transfered to ships in theAtlantic Ocean , and vice-versa, without the risk of passage through the Straits of Florida, while cutting 800 miles off the trip. [Turner. 27-8]In 1842 the
United States Congress commissioned a survey of a route for a railroad between the St. Mary's River and Cedar Key in theTerritory of Florida . In 1853 theFlorida Legislature chartered the Florida Railroad to build a rail line from Fernandina (near the mouth of the St. Mary's River) toTampa, Florida , with a branch to Cedar Key. The president and chief stockholder of the Florida Railroad was U.S. SenatorDavid Levy Yulee . Yulee decided to complete the line to Cedar Key first, leaving the connection to Tampa for later. Construction started in Fernandina in 1855. By 1858 the rail line was open between Fernandina and Palatka, but thePanic of 1857 had left the railroad on the edge of bankruptcy. Yulee had to surrender a majority interest in the railroad to a northern investment syndicate headed by Edward Dickerson to save the company. The line was completed to Cedar Key in 1860. At 156 miles in length, it was the longest railroad to be completed in Florida before the start of theAmerican Civil War . [Turner. 27-31]The Florida Railroad was adversely affected by the Civil War. The USS "Hatteras" raided Cedar Key in January 1862, destroying the railroad's rolling stock and buildings. In March 1862 a Union squadron seized Fernandina. Shells fired by the USS "Ottawa" damaged the last train leaving Fernandina, killing or injuring several passengers, and almost killing Senator Yulee. In 1864, the
Confederate States Army pulled up rails from the Florida Railroad to use on a new rail line fromLive Oak, Florida toLawton, Georgia . Union forces had also destroyed 30 miles of track leading from Cedar Key. [Turner. 34-7, 40]The Dickerson syndicate resumed operation of the Florida Railroad after the war, but with much of the railroad's equipment, facilities and trackage destroyed or seized, the company did not do well, and defaulted on its bonds to the Internal Improvement Fund in 1866. The railroad was auctioned off, and bought back by the Dickerson syndicate for twenty percent of the original value of the bonds. In 1872 the Florida Railroad was reorganized as the Atlantic, Gulf and West India Transit Company, still under the control of the Dickerson syndicate. The newly reorganized company began construction of the long-promised line to Tampa through subsidiary companies: the Peninsular Railroad operated the line from the connection with the Florida Railroad at Waldo to Ocala and Silver Springs, while the Tropical Florida Railroad ran from Ocala to Wildwood. In the meantime, the Atlantic, Gulf and West India Transit Company had leased the
Fernandina and Jacksonville Railroad , providing a connection from its tracks at Hart's Road (laterYulee, Florida ) toJacksonville, Florida . Due to financial difficulties, the Atlantic, Gulf and West India Transit Company was reorganized as the Florida Transit Company in 1881, under the control of SirEdward James Reed . The company was restructured again as the Florida Transit and Peninsular Railroad in 1883. [Turner. 40-1, 47, 49-52]The Florida Transit and Peninsular Railroad was merged with the
Florida Central and Western Railroad , Fernandina and Jacksonville Railroad andLeesburg and Indian River Railroad in 1884-85 to form theFlorida Railway and Navigation Company . [Turner. 52]ee also
*
Cross Florida Barge Canal Notes
References
*Turner, Gregg. (2003) "A Short History of Florida Railroads." Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 0-7385-2421-2
External links
* [http://www.knology.net/~qed/USSFHpdf/LastTrainFromFernandina.pdf The Last Train from Fernandina]
* [http://www.yuleerailroaddays.org/ Yulee Railroad Days]
* [http://www.amelianow.com/fall05-railroad.htm Florida's First Cross-State Railroad]
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