The
Florida Central and Western Railroad was a
railroad companyA railway company or railroad company is an entity that operates a railroad track and/or trains. Such a company can either be private or public...
that was the 1882 reincarnation of the
Jacksonville, Pensacola and Mobile RailroadThe Jacksonville, Pensacola and Mobile Railroad was a Florida railroad line charted in 1869. It consisted of the former Pensacola and Georgia Railroad, which ran east from Quincy, Florida through Tallahassee to Lake City, Florida, and the subsequently consolidated Florida Central Railroad, which...
(JP&M), which ran from
Lake City, FloridaLake City is the county seat of Columbia County, Florida, in the United States. In 2009, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated the city's population at 12,614. In addition, it is the Principal City of the Lake City Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is composed of Columbia County, and had an...
, west to
Chattahoochee, FloridaChattahoochee is a city in Gadsden County, Florida, United States. The population was 3,287 at the 2000 census. According to the U.S Census estimates of 2005, the city had a population of 3,720. It is part of the Tallahassee, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Chattahoochee is...
(including a component line from
Tallahassee, FloridaTallahassee is the capital of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County, and is the 128th largest city in the United States. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2010, the population recorded by...
south to
St. Marks, FloridaSt. Marks is a city in Wakulla County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Tallahassee, Florida, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 272 at the 2000 census. As of 2004, the population estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau is 299 .-Geography:...
), and JP&M affiliate the
Florida Central RailroadThe Florida Central Railroad was a railroad company that was originally established as the Florida, Atlantic and Gulf Central Railroad in 1851, and was renamed the Florida Central upon its purchase by carpetbagger George W. Swepson in 1868. It operated a railroad line between Jacksonville,...
, which ran from
Jacksonville, FloridaJacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...
, east to Lake City. In 1884, its owner,
Sir Edward ReedSir Edward James Reed , KCB, FRS, was a British naval architect, author, politician, and railroad magnate. He was the Chief Constructor of the Royal Navy from 1863 until 1870...
, placed the company along with other Florida railroads he controlled under the umbrella of the Florida Railway and Navigation Company, which in 1888 was renamed the
Florida Central and Peninsular RailroadThe Florida Central and Peninsular Railroad was the final name of a system of railroads throughout Florida, becoming part of the Seaboard Air Line Railway in 1900...
(FC&P). In 1900, a year after purchasing the majority of FC&P stock, the newly organized
Seaboard Air Line RailwayThe Seaboard Air Line Railroad , which styled itself "The Route of Courteous Service," was an American railroad whose corporate existence extended from April 14, 1900, until July 1, 1967, when it merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, its longtime rival, to form the Seaboard Coast Line...
(now
CSX TransportationCSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...
) leased the FC&P and, in 1903, acquired it outright.