Blue Ridge Railroad (1849-1870)

Blue Ridge Railroad

Greenwood Tunnel constructed by the Blue Ridge Railroad
Locale	Virginia – Albemarle County, Nelson County, Augusta County
Dates of operation	1849–1870
Successor	Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad
Track gauge	4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge

The Blue Ridge Railroad was incorporated by the Commonwealth of Virginia in March 1849 to provide a state-financed crossing of the Blue Ridge Mountains for the Virginia Central Railroad, which it became a part of after completion.

The early railroads in Virginia were privately owned, but often received partial state-funding through investments by the Virginia Board of Public Works, which was always keen to help with internal improvements in the state's transportation infrastructure. The Louisa Railroad Company (renamed Virginia Central in 1850) was chartered by the Commonwealth in 1836 and had reached a western point around Mechum's River by 1852. This railroad, which was planned to link the Piedmont region of Virginia with the Shenandoah Valley and points west, had found a planned crossing at Swift Run Gap to be financially unfeasible.

To protect its investment and enable transportation, the Virginia General Assembly then incorporated and financed the Blue Ridge Railroad to accomplish the hard and expensive task of crossing the Blue Ridge mountain barrier to the west. Rather than attempting the more formidable Swift Run Gap, the Blue Ridge Railroad built over the mountains at the next gap to the south, Rockfish Gap near Afton Mountain, from an eastern point around Blair Park to a western point near Waynesboro. Under the leadership of the great early civil engineer Claudius Crozet, the railroad bored four tunnels, from east to west: Greenwood Tunnel, Brooksville Tunnel, Little Rock Tunnel, and the 4,273-foot Blue Ridge Tunnel at the top of the pass, then one of the longest tunnels in the world. The tunnel was 'holed-through' on December 29, 1856, and was less than six inches off perfect alignment, as construction had proceeded from either end. Rail service didn't begin until April 1858, although temporary tracks over the top of the gap were placed in operation by the Virginia Central as early as 1854. This line enabled the Virginia Central to offer rail service over its entire length, which had reached a western point around Jackson's River Station, near present-day Clifton Forge, by 1857. Due to the extreme grade of the temporary tracks (approximately 5.6%), the first train to cross over the mountain wrecked on its return journey eastwards the following day. The completion of the Blue Ridge Tunnel eliminated this grade.