The prototype

What makes Lynchburg interesting for me is that there were three major railroads and a lot of history in a small space.  In order of appearance, there was Southern, N&W, and C&O, all of which shared a Union Station and track right downtown on the James River.  Lynchburg is located on Southern's original main line between Washington and Atlanta, just a few miles south of Monroe (a crew change point, and where Steve Brody of Old 97 fame went on duty).  It is also on the N&W's main line between Roanoke and Norfolk.  I know less about the C&O, but I believe the line up the James River was a major one for them as well.

Southern was first, with the line from the north (the Orange & Alexandria) being in place before the Civil War.  The line to the south (Lynchburg & Danville) was built in the early 1870s.  The old main line came down into the James River Valley, crossed the river, there was a yard on the river, and then the line climbed and twisted its way back up out of the valley and went on south.  The main line went through the Jefferson St. tunnel right down town, and did so until it was finally rerouted in the late 1970s or early '80s.  About 1911, a new double track main line was built which completely bypassed the valley, downtown, Union Station, and the Jefferson St. tunnel (although it too went through a tunnel before crossing the river).  The new main line crosses the river on an impressive steel bridge.  The old main line north of Lynchburg was abandoned in 1937, but the south portion is still in service today as an interchange between NS and CSX.

The N&W came through before the Civil War as well, and line Southern it dropped down into the valley, crossed the river, and then climbed back out the other side.  The old main line went through a yard which was on Percival Island in the middle of the James River.  The N&W also had a line which ran south, from Lynchburg to Durham, NC.  Also around 1910, the N&W built a new main line to avoid the steep grades into and out of the valley.  The original main line was in use into the 1960s at least, and Percival Island today is a walking trail, with the bridges at either end of the island still intact.

With the construction of the new Southern & N&W main lines, a pair of new yards and a double wye were built to connect them, and those yards are in use today as NS's Montview and Kinney yards, under the control of a single yardmaster.

I know less about the C&O, but I do know that, unlike the other two, it came unto Lynchburg up the James River, and therefore had no severe grades to deal with.  The line follws the river bank for many miles.  Though they are gone today, at one time both Southern and N&W crossed the C&O main line at grade in Lynchburg.

In addition to the three major main lines, there were a number of branches, spurs, etc, all of which seemed to be so interwoven as to tie themselves in knots.  Take a trip on the old Southern main line, and you'll see tracks going along side, over, and under, with a number of interesting bridges all over the place.  I can only imagine what the place would have been line in its heyday, with named trains running on all three railroads, and a number of locals, yard jobs, and switchers running around switching the industries in the area.

The model

If I were going to model Lynchburg, I think it would have to be with six staging yards (or three double ended yards), so that I could model all of the traffic coming into and out of town, and only model the connection itself.  I cannot think of a layout where the main lines have been so abbreviated, with focus just on a terminal or connection.  It would certainly not have much in the way of main line running, but it could easily keep a large number of operators busy (depending on size, of course).  I have tried a couple times to come up with a track plan which would fit in some reasonable space, but I'm not sure how to pull off three different railroads in one room, with full operations for each one.

I think it would be a fascinating layout to build and operate.  It would also probably require a small fortune and an army to complete and maintain, but that's why it's just a dream.

A thought...

I would certainly be

I would certainly be interested in seeing the final layout and how it could be operated my different crews for each railroad

Lynchburg

Ken,

     I'm currently trying to come up with a track plan to model the N&W in Lynchburg but I like your idea of connecting all three.  I assume it would be all interchange traffic.  Any more thoughts on this topic?  Also,  any idea where to get track diagrams of the Lynchburg area?  Any input would be appreciated.,

                                               Erwin Jack

Big job

Erwin,

I'm not sure where to get track diagrams.  My usual first approach is to try to find an old map, and to follow the remains of the track in aerial or satellite photography - Goggle maps is great for that!  You can find a lot of old topo maps on line, here's one for Lynchburg in 1944: http://historical.mytopo.com/quad.cfm?quadname=Lynchburg&state=VA&series=15 Specifically, check out the northwest quadrant of the map.  The N&W historical society might have some good maps.  The SRHA might as well, but good luck getting anything out of them.  I know nothing about the C&O historical society, but since the C&O track is pretty much still there, you might not need maps from them.  Other than that, it takes a lot of searching, piecing together clues and snippets of information from various sources, and more than a little educated guesswork.

As far as operation, I would assume that there would be plenty of through traffic, with passenger trains stopping but probably not doing any switching.  The N&W and C&O both had yards in town, so plenty of block swapping and other switching would be done.  Southern had their main yard north of Lynchburg, in Monroe, and they had a small interchange yard south of town, where they interchanged with the N&W (and possibly also switched cars to be taken downtown to the C&O interchange, but that's just a guess).  Both Southern and the N&W built bypass routes around downtown Lynchburg early in the 20th century, although in the '40s and '50s there was still plenty of operation in town.

For me, a layout built around downtown Lynchburg would require plenty of staging to get through trains on and off layout for three different railroads.  The bulk of the operation would be yard and local switching, and interchange traffic.  I expect it could keep quite a few people busy, including possibly three separate dispatchers and at least three clerks.  Done right, it would basically REQUIRE a large crew to operate, but it would be an impressive operation!

passenger trains ... probably not doing any switching.

The power for the Memphis to Washington DC Tennessean was often switched at Lynchburg (Monroe). From the first run of the Tennessean into 1942 the consist was pulled from Bristol, TN/VA to Lynchburg by an N&W J where it was switched to the streamlined SR Pacific #1380 for the run into Washington. Throughout much of the trains operation at least the Diner-Lounge was switched at Lynchburg, and there was also some switching of power and cars on the Birmingham Special. The odds are that the other roads also did significant passenger equipment switching in Lynchburg. As Ken R noted ... it takes a lot of searching, piecing together ... the actual operations. I have modeled Tennessean switching at Bristol and Lynchburg where is looks so nice to mix SR E6 AB sets and DL109/110 AB sets with N&W Js and SR #1380.

N&W J pulling Tennessean

SR Pacific #1380 pulling Tennessean

Maps

Erwin,

Ken R noted http://historical.mytopo.com/quad.cfm?quadname=Lynchburg&state=VA&series=15 as a map reference. I find that the USGS Historical Topographic Maps collection (where mytopo gets many of their maps) an invaluable resource. The maps are listed by year and maps down to a resolution of 7.5 minutes are available for Lynchburg and show a great deal of the track work.

Go the the link below, zoom in and follow the instructions on the right side of the page to mark points, list and download maps. Map Locator & Downloader

Test: Can you find the double wye SR - N&W interchange South West of Lynchburg in the maps?

Here's One

Mike Burgett modeled Lynchburg on his Clifton Forge Division, emphasizing the C&O, but also modeling the NW crossing  http://www.cliftonforgediv.com/index.html .  The website doesn't see much updating, but a lot has been done to represent prototype operations, including a full-scale representation of an electro-pneumatic interlocking plant for the crossing and adjacent turnouts.  The "tower" is built into the detached garage, with no physical connection to the layout room other than the wiring, and has to be seen to be believed.

I'm not sure if the e-mail on the site is current, but if so perhaps you could ask Mike about maps or diagrams CandOCTC@comcast.net .

I might be wrong but I

I might be wrong but I thought a guy I am thinking his name is Chuck and he used to model Santa fe, changed to a switching layout that has three or more railroads represented on it. It seems he models real large industries and yard to yard transfers, I thought the yards were in the KC area.

Another individual modeled Pittsburgh Pa and the Pennsy, B&O and I think the Union railroad as well as possibly others in the area. He has also changed to a more western theme with the same layout, only the names were changed. This layout was in one of MRs annuals and was called industrial strength railroading or something like that.

I think the idea you have presented itself to others who have also undertaken a similar multi railroad layout. I am planning something similar that will involve my freelanced version of the W&LE and Virginian as well as visits by the Pennsey and B&O in Wheeling WV and the line South along the Ohio River.

It sounds like a good concept as it would allow lots of interchange and lots of different equipment to be used, and just might allow one to have some of those locomotives that are appealing but the wrong prototype for your favorite road.

Did I pass the test?

Find it?  I was switching on it just a couple hours ago!  It's still there, though now it's an interchange between divisions on NS, rather than between railroads.

Ken Not quite what I as after, but

OK Ken I guess sitting on it is as good as finding it on a map. I was passing through Lynchburg earlier this year and did stop to watch some switching.

With the industrial sidings off the connection track and other interesting features, I have always thought that this would make track work would make an interesting addition to a switching layout.

Lynchburg

All,

    Thanks for your input.  I was able to get a track diagram showing downtown Lynchburg and all three yards.  It also listed all the industries switched by the 3 railroads and the interchange tracks.  The map is dated 1934.  I'm thinking about modeling the 3 yards, the industries served by each yard and the interchanges.  All the activity would be right there in Lynchburg along the James river.  It would be a 2 man crew for each yard,  N&w, C&O and Southern.  Still trying to figure how the yards would be fed.  ,

                                                                              Erwin Jack

Had to pop in on this ancient thread

Had to pop in on this ancient thread when I saw the early references left out the most important railroad of it's day in Lynchburg - the Virginia & Tennessee Railroad which was a predecessor to the Atlantic, Mississippi & Ohio Railroad... which was bankrupted and taken over by the Clark Brothers to be incorporated into their little venture known as the Norfolk & Western Railway.

To leave out General Wm. Mahone and his AM&O RR in Lynchburg history is like leaving out track on your right-of-way 'to-do' list.

Picture is of Southern switching cars in Lynchburg coming out of an old tunnel beneath the street from yet another forgotten railroad. Other end of the tunnel comes out beside old location of V&T RR (then AM&O RR) roundhouse and yards.

Yes... I know it's an old thread... but I model the AM&O as if it avoided being absorbed into the N&W - https://www.facebook.com/AMORailroad/?ref=settings