Laurel Fork Railway
The Laurel Fork Railway was a small, standard-gauge logging railroad that operated entirely in Carter County, Tennessee from 1912 to 1927. Built by the Pittsburgh Lumber Company to serve a double-band sawmill in Braemar,
the Laurel Fork at its peak totaled no more than 17 miles of rail. Lines and spurs carried timber from 12,000 acres of the mountainous watershed of the Laurel Fork of the Doe River that was estimated to contain 150 million board feet of lumber. A proposed interchange with the East Tennessee and North Carolina Railroad failed over inability to negotiate rates favorable to both companies. As a result, the Laurel Fork was incorporated as a common carrier and a six-mile line into Elizabethton was built to carry finished lumber to an interchange with the Virginia and Southwestern Railway. The LF Rwy locomotive roster included three 70-3 Shay geared steam locomotives, road numbers Nos. 1, 2, and 3 (c/n 2390, 2391, and 2760, respectively)
and two 13-2 Shays (c/n 187 and 2195.) The equipment roster included two log loaders; a steam shovel; 40 flat cars; 12 service cars; and a Model T Ford on dump car wheels that was used for inspection trips. As a freight-only carrier, the Laurel Fork owned no passenger equipment.
A June 13, 1924 flood washed away much track and roadbed. Coupled with diminished production from the mill, this led to a November 7 filing for abandonment that year with the Interstate Commerce Commission. Some operations continued but all logging ceased by 1927.
| Road no. | Shay Class | c/n | Ship/purchase date | Fuel | Cylinders | Gauge | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13-2 | 2195 | 1910 | wood | 2-6x10 | 36" | Shipped 7/3/09 to White Lumber Co., Elk Park, N.C. Bought by Laurel Fork Railway in 1910. Converted to standard gauge at LF shops. Sold to E. L. Bruce & Co., Memphis, in 1914. Operation was on Jefferson Hardwood Lumber Co., Pine Bluff, Ark. Subsequent owners were the Norton Wheeler Stone Co. and Wheeler Lumber Co., both of Almyra, Ark. Was offered for sale 4/19/22; no record thereafter. | |
| 1 | 70-3 | 2390 | November 23, 1910 | coal | 3-12x15 | std. | Shipped new to Laurel Fork Railway. Sold to Conasauga River Lumber Co., Conasauga, Tenn. Date of sale unknown. Records confirm engine at Conasauga on 1/13/28. Was still operating in 1949: scrapped in 1954. |
| 13-2 | 187 | 1911 | wood | 2-7x12 | 36" | Shipped 9/29/1887 to Rice & Lummis, Montgomery, Tex. Bought by Pittsburgh Lumber Company in 1911. Converted to standard gauge by LF shops. Listed in Lima dead file in 1922. Scrapped in Elizabethton, Tenn. | |
| 2 | 70-3 | 2391 | June 1, 1911 | coal | 3-12x15 | std. | Shipped new to Laurel Fork Railway. Transferred to Freehold Lumber Co., Flinn, Va. by 7/1/22. (Records indicate attempt to acquire loco as early as 3/14/22 and expressed interest a year earlier.) Loco was advertised for sale 9/10/24. No record thereafter. |
| 3 | 70-3 | 2760 | April 28, 1914 | coal | 3-12x15 | std. | Shipped new to Laurel Fork Railway. Sold to Lutcher & Moore Lumber Co., Orange, Tex., 4/21/26 through Birmingham Rail & Locomotive Co. Operations were in Fal, La. This operation moved to New Mexico in 1929 but fate of No. 3 is unknown. |
References
- Waskiewicz, Fred. “Logging Along the Laurel Fork.” National Railway Bulletin. Vol. 63, No. 1, 1998.
