Tennessee and Pacific Railroad
Encyclopedia
The Tennessee and Pacific Railroad was a 19th-century American
company that operated a rail line from Lebanon, Tennessee
, to Nashville, Tennessee
.
The state of Tennessee
chartered the railroad on May 24, 1866. The original plans were to build a line from Knoxville
eastward through Lebanon, Nashville, and Memphis
to Jackson, Mississippi
, where it would interconnect with westward-leading railroads to the Pacific Coast
. Hauling coal from the nearby Cumberland Mountains
to western markets was an important intended source of operation income, as well as from passenger service and produce and freight hauls.
Among the early investors and executives was former Confederate
general George Maney
, who would serve for nine years as the president of the Tennessee & Pacific, starting in 1868 when he succeeded the late James D. B. DeBow
, the well known publisher of DeBow's Review
.
Plagued by difficulties in raising enough financing, the company finally began construction in June 1869 of the 29-mile line between Lebanon and Nashville. Funds were generated to commission the Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works
to manufacture two 4-4-0
locomotive
s for the new T&P, which were delivered in 1870. These were named the "Wilson County" and the "J.D.B. DeBow."
The segment opened in September 1871 in time to convey passengers to the Wilson County Fair. Headquartered in Lebanon, the fledgling railroad erected a sprawling Victorian
-style passenger and freight station, combined with the general offices. Major cargo from local farmers included lumber, butter, flour, and other agricultural products which were shipped to markets in Nashville, where another station house was erected in 1872.
However, the financial problems resurfaced and management could not repay the railroad company's debts. In 1877, the state revoked the charter and seized the Tennessee & Pacific. The company and its assets were sold on March 1 to the Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway
. The T&P stayed in operation under its old name until 1888, when it became the NC&StL Lebanon Branch. Passenger service continued on the old line until 1935, when the last train departed Lebanon.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
company that operated a rail line from Lebanon, Tennessee
Lebanon, Tennessee
Lebanon is a city in Wilson County, Tennessee, in the United States. The population was 20,235 at the 2000 census. It serves as the county seat of Wilson County. Lebanon is located in middle Tennessee, approximately 25 miles east of downtown Nashville. Local residents have also called it...
, to Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
.
The state of Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
chartered the railroad on May 24, 1866. The original plans were to build a line from Knoxville
Knoxville, Tennessee
Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...
eastward through Lebanon, Nashville, and Memphis
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
to Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...
, where it would interconnect with westward-leading railroads to the Pacific Coast
Pacific Coast
A country's Pacific coast is the part of its coast bordering the Pacific Ocean.-The Americas:Countries on the western side of the Americas have a Pacific coast as their western border.* Geography of Canada* Geography of Chile* Geography of Colombia...
. Hauling coal from the nearby Cumberland Mountains
Cumberland Mountains
The Cumberland Mountains are a mountain range in the southeastern section of the Appalachian Mountains. They are located in southern West Virginia, western Virginia, eastern edges of Kentucky, and eastern middle Tennessee, including the Crab Orchard Mountains...
to western markets was an important intended source of operation income, as well as from passenger service and produce and freight hauls.
Among the early investors and executives was former Confederate
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
general George Maney
George Maney
George Earl Maney was an American soldier, politician, railroad executive and diplomat. He was a general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War and a postbellum U.S...
, who would serve for nine years as the president of the Tennessee & Pacific, starting in 1868 when he succeeded the late James D. B. DeBow
James Dunwoody Brownson DeBow
James Dunwoody Brownson DeBow was an American publisher and statistician, best known for his influential magazine DeBow's Review, who also served as head of the U.S...
, the well known publisher of DeBow's Review
DeBow's Review
DeBow's Review was a widely circulated magazine of "agricultural, commercial, and industrial progress and resource" in the American South during the upper middle of the 19th century, from 1846 until 1884. It bore the name of its first editor, James Dunwoody Brownson DeBow DeBow's Review was a...
.
Plagued by difficulties in raising enough financing, the company finally began construction in June 1869 of the 29-mile line between Lebanon and Nashville. Funds were generated to commission the Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works
Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works
Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works was a 19th-century manufacturer of railroad steam locomotives based in Paterson, in Passaic County, New Jersey, in the United States. It built more than six thousand steam locomotives for railroads around the world. Most railroads in 19th-century United States...
to manufacture two 4-4-0
4-4-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-4-0 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles , four powered and coupled driving wheels on two axles, and no trailing wheels...
locomotive
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
s for the new T&P, which were delivered in 1870. These were named the "Wilson County" and the "J.D.B. DeBow."
The segment opened in September 1871 in time to convey passengers to the Wilson County Fair. Headquartered in Lebanon, the fledgling railroad erected a sprawling Victorian
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
-style passenger and freight station, combined with the general offices. Major cargo from local farmers included lumber, butter, flour, and other agricultural products which were shipped to markets in Nashville, where another station house was erected in 1872.
However, the financial problems resurfaced and management could not repay the railroad company's debts. In 1877, the state revoked the charter and seized the Tennessee & Pacific. The company and its assets were sold on March 1 to the Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway
Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway
The Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway was a railway company operating in the southern United States in Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia...
. The T&P stayed in operation under its old name until 1888, when it became the NC&StL Lebanon Branch. Passenger service continued on the old line until 1935, when the last train departed Lebanon.