The Charleston and Western Carolina Railway (C&WC) was formed in 1896 to operate the lines of the former Port Royal and Augusta Railway (PR&A) and the Port Royal and Western Carolina Railway (PR&WC). The PR&A and PR&WC had originally been part of the Central of Georgia Railroad but the South Carolina Legislature had forced the railroad to give up the subsidiary lines. The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad (ACL) took over the C&WC in 1897 but operated it as a subsidiary until 1959 when the ACL fully absorbed it. Much of the original system is still in use by ACL successor CSX Transportation.
Origins
When the Charleston & Western Carolina Railway was created in 1896, it combined two existing railroads, the Port Royal and Augusta Railway and the Port Royal and Western Carolina Railway into a single entity. The oldest portion of the line, the PR&A, ran from Port Royal to Augusta, a distance of following its completion in 1873. It was financed by the Georgia Railroad of Augusta, which sought to extend its own network and gain access to a port on the east coast. Fearing its port at Savannah would be compromised by any expansion of the facilities at Port Royal, the Central of Georgia Railway took control of the Port Royal & Augusta in 1881.
The Central of Georgia sought to expand into the western portion of South Carolina in order to funnel traffic through their lines out of Augusta. In order to accomplish this goal, the Central leased the Augusta and Knoxville Railroad in 1883, which owned a line from Augusta to Greenwood. Shortly thereafter, the Central financed construction of three new lines; the first was an extension from Greenwood to Spartanburg, completed in 1885, the second a branch from McCormick to Anderson, , and a final branch from Laurens to Greenville, . In 1886, all of these branches including the Augusta & Knoxville were merged to create the Port Royal and Western Carolina Railway. Financial trouble in 1894 caused the Central of Georgia to lose control of both companies.
Finally, in 1896, the Charleston & Western Carolina Railway was organized to consolidate both railroads into a single entity. The result was a railroad network covering most of western South Carolina. In 1897, the Atlantic Coast Line took control of the C&WC and operated the railroad as an independent company.
The C&WC operated passenger train service between Augusta and Port Royal, with a major transfer stop at Yemassee, South Carolina. At the Yemassee passengers could transfer to ACL trains to Savannah and to Charleston. Passenger service ended between 1954 and 1957.
The ACL formally absorbed the C&WC in 1959. From there, the trackage of the former C&WC moved through the merger tree, first to the Seaboard Coast Line in 1967, followed by the Seaboard System in 1983, and finally CSX Transportation in 1986. Most of the original C&WC system survives under CSX Transportation, which includes the Augusta Subdivision, McCormick Subdivision, and the Spartanburg Subdivision. The remains of the former Laurens to Greenville branch survives as the Carolina Piedmont Railroad.
Historic stations +Main LineStateMilepostCity/LocationStationAtlantic Coast Line Railroad Charleston Division Timetable (1964)Connections and notesSCAMJ 468.1Port RoyalPort RoyalAMJ 463.8BeaufortBeaufortAMJ 462.1BurtonAMJ 455.2SeabrookAMJ 453.9Coosawjunction with Seaboard Air Line Railroad Charleston SubdivisionAMJ 450.0SheldonA 443.3YemasseeYemasseejunction with Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Main LineAMH 449.0Early BranchAMH 453.4CummingsAMH 459.9VarnvilleVarnvilleAMH 461.9HamptonHamptonjunction with Hampton and Branchville RailroadAMH 462.6Mauldins MillAMH 468.4BrunsonBrunsonAMH 471.9FairfaxFairfaxjunction with Seaboard Air Line Railroad Main LineAMH 477.3AllendaleAllendalejunction with Carolina Midland Railway (SOU)AMH 485.6BeldocAMH 489.2MartinAMH 492.7MillettAMH 501.2AK 431.2Robbinsjunction with Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Florence—Robbins LineAK 438.6EllentonAK 445.2JacksonJacksonAK 448.4KathwoodAK 454.3Beech IslandGAAK 459.5AugustaAugusta Union Stationjunction with:AK 461.5Broad StreetAK 468.2MartinezAK 472.0EvansSCAK 472.6GriffinAK 476.8WoodlawnAK 483.5Clark HillAK 488.4ModocAK 492.3ParksvilleParksvilleAK 497.7Plum BranchPlum BranchAK 502.9McCormickMcCormickjunction with Anderson BranchAK 509.5TroyTroyAK 513.8BradleyAK 523.3SalakAK 524.8MaxwellAK 527.8GreenwoodGreenwoodjunction with:AK 534.3CoronacaAK 542.1WaterlooAK 553.8IrbyAK 554.7LaurensLaurensjunction with:AK 561.6OraAK 566.7EnoreeAK 570.1KilgoreAK 574.4WoodruffWoodruffAK 580.2SwitzerAK 582.8MooreAK 586.7RoebuckAK 592.7SpartanburgSpartanburgjunction with:
+Anderson BranchMilepostCity/LocationStationConnections and notesAKH 502.9McCormickMcCormickjunction with Main LineAKH 510.8BordeauxAKH 515.1WillingtonAKH 519.2Mount CarmelAKH 527.6Calhoun FallsCalhoun Fallsjunction with Georgia, Carolina and Northern Railway (SAL)AKH 537.8LowndesvilleLowndesvilleAKH 545.5IvaIvaAKH 551.2StarrStarrAKH 553.1DeansAKH 561.4AndersonAndersonjunction with Blue Ridge Railway
+Greenville BranchMilepostCity/LocationStationConnections and notesAKJ 554.7LaurensLaurensjunction with Main LineAKJ 558.9DoublingAKJ 561.8BarksdaleAKJ 565.1Gray CourtGray CourtAKJ 566.8OwingsAKJ 572.6Fountain InnFountain InnAKJ 577.3SimpsonvilleSimpsonvilleAKJ 582.9MauldinMauldinAKJ 590.7GreenvilleGreenvillejunction with:
References