I think it was Jim Wrinn who was writting a book
on the Graham County Railroad. Any word on when
this book will be complete and available for sale?

I will be headed to western NC next week and wondered how much if anything of the railroad
was still around.

Bill Miller

Ebteng18@aol.com

Part of the sawmill is still standing and the furniture plant is still in operation. The Bear Creek depot is a private home now. Other than that it is mostly just the roadbed, some bridge abutments, and some rails in a few of the old road crossings. Unless you know where it is the roadbed can be quite hard to see in places. Part of the logging railroad to the junction is a dirt road now and the narrow gage lines are trails that lead out from the junction.

JW is still working on the book. I don't think I have heard a projected date of completion.

John Bohon

jhbohon@yahoo.com

> JW is still working on the book. I don't
> think I have heard a projected date of
> completion.

Brother John is correct... it's still in the can (or should I say Gateway) and worked on as time allows between firing the 1925 (as I did today) and home and work but it is moving along... some interesting details to come about the Robbinsville mill, the Big 4 and all that other good stuff. Best, Jim

http://nctrans.org
Wrinnbo@aol.com

> I think it was Jim Wrinn who was writting a
> book
> on the Graham County Railroad. Any word on
> when
> this book will be complete and available for
> sale?

> I will be headed to western NC next week and
> wondered how much if anything of the
> railroad
> was still around.

> Bill Miller

Bill,

I'll expand a little on what John Bohon said if you want a little more detail on the miniscule pieces to track down. As John said, there really isn't much railroad left, even if you know where it was. In the summer, it is even harder to find. Here is what is left that can be found...or at least the easier things. If you have a DeLorme NC Atlas or Street Atlas USA, it still has the railroad, which will make things easier to find. Here is most of what is there though...

coming west from Topton on 129...

turn on Ledbetter Road
first driveway on the right that goes up the hill about 10 feet will get you to the overlook of the "S" Curve. There is a house built there now on the far curve going away towards Topton, but you can look down and see the curve standing on their driveway/old US 129.

next driveway down on your right, will take you up to the Gap. Switch to the runaround track was just after exiting the cut. You can walk through the cut to the old tourist overlook, and down the mountain if you want to. Bit of a rockslide at the overlook, and an even bigger one at the 2nd curve below the overlook, but both are passable. Last time I was there, you could literally walk all the way down to the SR (now GSMR) interchange if you wanted to. They seem to keep the weeds cut pretty good. Hiked it a few times, never met anyone. Might want to take a big stick just in case you run into some local wildlife, being the summer and all.

keep going down the hill on Ledbetter Road and you will see the crossing where the passing/runaround track at Talula Gap was. Sometimes the gate on the left/west side is open, and you can drive a mile or two down west towards Bear Creek. Gets 4wd after a while, and then abruptly ends (with a fence across "road"), but just dirt for a while and rather pleasant scenery if you luck out and get an open gate. If open, I would turn around at the end of the dirt road section. Hard to turn around once the 4wd section starts.

Back on 129 heading to Topton...

Next big thing is Bear Creek Junction. Station is still there if you want to drive in. The little tourist shop and cabins are still there also. If you turn left and go to the Bear Creek Baptist Church, you can see the bridge abutments over the creek, and there is still rail in the crossing. The little bridge going east of BCJ towards Topton is now paved, and you can drive over it. There are a lot of homes built at Bear Creek Junction and no traces of the water tower or any other railroad stuff leftover from the museum.

West of Bear Creek...track is pretty close to the road for a while

1st road on your right (forget what it is called)...cross the river and the tracks were right there. There are a few ties and spikes still in the ground, and a bridge abutment on the left, but hard to see in the summer. Gets overgrown pretty quick.

Back on the main road, next thing noticable is the curve at Jutts Creek. You can still see the "tree tunnel", and the two little bridges right on the side of the road. There is a fairly good size bridge in the field going away, though not sure how visible it is. It gets overgrown pretty good in the summer months. Last time I was up there was in mid-May, so I don't know how bad it is right now.

After Jutts Creek, track goes into a field that you can see from the road, but can't really get close to it for a little while. Next place really is Anthony Branch, with a nice old-time gas station on the corner. Go down, cross the bridge, and tracks were right there paralleling the road for about a hundred feet or so. Another bridge down in there about 50ft from the road--lotsa railroad bridges around Graham County. This is the bridge where they had the derailment covered in Ron Ziel's Twilight of Steam Locomotives book. You would have to walk down the back side of the the little garden to see it--bridge not visible from the main road.

Keep going west towards Robbinsville and tracks are fairly near the road. Turn in at Sweetgum and go to the church. Crossing with rails still very visable. Paved over, but the rails in the crossing were never removed.

West of Sweetgum, track is further away, and more has changed. Hard to find it from here on until you get just outside of Robbinsville.

Next road that will get you to the tracks crosses the creek and puts you out at another church on your left at what was the airport. May be called Airport Road. It's the first road on your right to cross the river. Railroad crossed right at the far edge of the church parking lot, and fairly traceable looking back east also into the field. Was a road down there into the field on the creek side of the railroad at one point, but that is long gone also. Road on the bank on the left side of the tracks is still there.

Next easy point is Sweetwater Road (last road just before the stoplight coming into Robbinsville). Turn right, cross the bridge and park at the storage facility on your left. Oil dealer (at one time Esso, then Veach-Wilson) still there. Most traces of track gone. If you stand on the bridge looking towards Robbinsville, you can see the big bridge that washed out in the 1975 flood. You can also walk around the back side of the storage facility and access the bridge. Also a side road near the Wendys and across from Microtel once you get into Robbinsville that will take you to the bridge also.

Take the road beside the Biltmore drug store and hotel and turn left--this was railroad street at one time, now renamed. About 50 feet past the end of the parking lot is an yellow/orange road sign. The station in Robbinsville was located VERY close to this point. Nothing left unfortunately.

Keep driving up the hill past the tenis (?) court, and that open area on your right just before the road starts to climb is where the coal dock was. The main railroad line is climbing up the hill and crosses right at the road intersection at the top of the hill, and curved on the left side of the road. Cross the street and follow the road around the curve (with the rock wall and Robbinsville High School on your right). Railroad keeps curving around towards the left, and will cross the street. Crossing is fairly noticable, and railroad grade on the far side is obvious.

Turn left here, and then take the first street to your right. It will essentially dead-end into another street, and right at the intersection is a railroad crossing with ties/rail still there on the right side (looking back towards downtown). Turn left on this side street and you can go down a block or two. Railroad will be on your left, then curves right into the field going to the right. Turn left, go one block, then right on Atoah Street. keep going past the furniture factory on your right, and you will get to Milltown and the old Bemis Sawmill (now a recycling center). Most of the sawmill is still standing, though in various stages of disrepair. Park up at the road at the last pulloff, but you can walk down into the complex usually. The old railroad shop building is still standing (big metal structure with sliding doors), and there are a few pieces of railroad equipment left derelict in the field, but you have to look to find them. One piece that sorta looks like a transfer table that is about 5ft long with railroad wheels and rails. Nothing much else.

There really is less there than you would think, but the tracks have been gone for about 15 years, and most areas have been regarded or otherwise to eliminate most evidence there was ever a railroad there.

As John Bohon said, there is more if you want to check out the logging operations going out over IU Gap towards Junction, but better to ask Jim Wrinn directly on that one. Plenty of hiking trails going west from Junction into the mountains over the 3ft-gauge logging railroad, and amazingly, even some ties that are still there in the ground. I don't know enough on that area, to give any advice though.

Hope this is of some use if you decide to check out what is there...
Kevin

k_gilliam@bellsouth.net

John,

Thanks for the detailed post. There was a brief discussion on the remains of the railroad here last summer.

Just thought I'd mention that if you you like driving twisty roads, US 129 above Robbinsville is some of the best driving in the U.S. Above Topton it goes through Deals Gap and turns into what is known as "the Tail of the Dragon"- 318 curves in 11 miles. It is pretty much "motorcyclist Mecca" in the U.S. If you don't like driving on curvy roads, STAY OFF!

The Cherohala Skyway which runs westward not far from Robbinsville is also a great drive, but not quite as radical as US 129.

Regards,
Hugh Odom
The Ultimate Steam Page
http://www.trainweb.org/tusp

> Bill,

> I'll expand a little on what John Bohon said
> if you want a little more detail on the
> miniscule pieces to track down. As John
> said, there really isn't much railroad left,
> even if you know where it was. In the
> summer, it is even harder to find. Here is
> what is left that can be found...or at least
> the easier things. If you have a DeLorme NC
> Atlas or Street Atlas USA, it still has the
> railroad, which will make things easier to
> find. Here is most of what is there
> though...

> Hope this is of some use if you decide to
> check out what is there...
> Kevin


Tail of the Dragon
whodom2001@yahoo.com

> Bill,

> I'll expand a little on what John Bohon said
> if you want a little more detail on the
> miniscule pieces to track down. As John
> said, there really isn't much railroad left,
> even if you know where it was. In the
> summer, it is even harder to find. Here is
> what is left that can be found...or at least
> the easier things. If you have a DeLorme NC
> Atlas or Street Atlas USA, it still has the
> railroad, which will make things easier to
> find. Here is most of what is there
> though...

> coming west from Topton on 129...

> turn on Ledbetter Road
> first driveway on the right that goes up the
> hill about 10 feet will get you to the
> overlook of the "S" Curve. There
> is a house built there now on the far curve
> going away towards Topton, but you can look
> down and see the curve standing on their
> driveway/old US 129.

> next driveway down on your right, will take
> you up to the Gap. Switch to the runaround
> track was just after exiting the cut. You
> can walk through the cut to the old tourist
> overlook, and down the mountain if you want
> to. Bit of a rockslide at the overlook, and
> an even bigger one at the 2nd curve below
> the overlook, but both are passable. Last
> time I was there, you could literally walk
> all the way down to the SR (now GSMR)
> interchange if you wanted to. They seem to
> keep the weeds cut pretty good. Hiked it a
> few times, never met anyone. Might want to
> take a big stick just in case you run into
> some local wildlife, being the summer and
> all.

> keep going down the hill on Ledbetter Road
> and you will see the crossing where the
> passing/runaround track at Talula Gap was.
> Sometimes the gate on the left/west side is
> open, and you can drive a mile or two down
> west towards Bear Creek. Gets 4wd after a
> while, and then abruptly ends (with a fence
> across "road"), but just dirt for
> a while and rather pleasant scenery if you
> luck out and get an open gate. If open, I
> would turn around at the end of the dirt
> road section. Hard to turn around once the
> 4wd section starts.

> Back on 129 heading to Topton...

> Next big thing is Bear Creek Junction.
> Station is still there if you want to drive
> in. The little tourist shop and cabins are
> still there also. If you turn left and go to
> the Bear Creek Baptist Church, you can see
> the bridge abutments over the creek, and
> there is still rail in the crossing. The
> little bridge going east of BCJ towards
> Topton is now paved, and you can drive over
> it. There are a lot of homes built at Bear
> Creek Junction and no traces of the water
> tower or any other railroad stuff leftover
> from the museum.

> West of Bear Creek...track is pretty close
> to the road for a while

> 1st road on your right (forget what it is
> called)...cross the river and the tracks
> were right there. There are a few ties and
> spikes still in the ground, and a bridge
> abutment on the left, but hard to see in the
> summer. Gets overgrown pretty quick.

The first road is Jack Branch Road.

> Back on the main road, next thing noticable
> is the curve at Jutts Creek. You can still
> see the "tree tunnel", and the two
> little bridges right on the side of the
> road. There is a fairly good size bridge in
> the field going away, though not sure how
> visible it is. It gets overgrown pretty good
> in the summer months. Last time I was up
> there was in mid-May, so I don't know how
> bad it is right now.

> After Jutts Creek, track goes into a field
> that you can see from the road, but can't
> really get close to it for a little while.
> Next place really is Anthony Branch, with a
> nice old-time gas station on the corner. Go
> down, cross the bridge, and tracks were
> right there paralleling the road for about a
> hundred feet or so. Another bridge down in
> there about 50ft from the road--lotsa
> railroad bridges around Graham County. This
> is the bridge where they had the derailment
> covered in Ron Ziel's Twilight of Steam
> Locomotives book. You would have to walk
> down the back side of the the little garden
> to see it--bridge not visible from the main
> road.

> Keep going west towards Robbinsville and
> tracks are fairly near the road. Turn in at
> Sweetgum and go to the church. Crossing with
> rails still very visable. Paved over, but
> the rails in the crossing were never
> removed.

> West of Sweetgum, track is further away, and
> more has changed. Hard to find it from here
> on until you get just outside of
> Robbinsville.

> Next road that will get you to the tracks
> crosses the creek and puts you out at
> another church on your left at what was the
> airport. May be called Airport Road. It's
> the first road on your right to cross the
> river. Railroad crossed right at the far
> edge of the church parking lot, and fairly
> traceable looking back east also into the
> field. Was a road down there into the field
> on the creek side of the railroad at one
> point, but that is long gone also. Road on
> the bank on the left side of the tracks is
> still there.

I think this used to be Plant Road named for the uniform factory but the name may have been changed.

> Next easy point is Sweetwater Road (last
> road just before the stoplight coming into
> Robbinsville). Turn right, cross the bridge
> and park at the storage facility on your
> left. Oil dealer (at one time Esso, then
> Veach-Wilson) still there. Most traces of
> track gone. If you stand on the bridge
> looking towards Robbinsville, you can see
> the big bridge that washed out in the 1975
> flood. You can also walk around the back
> side of the storage facility and access the
> bridge. Also a side road near the Wendys and
> across from Microtel once you get into
> Robbinsville that will take you to the
> bridge also.

> Take the road beside the Biltmore drug store
> and hotel and turn left--this was railroad
> street at one time, now renamed. About 50
> feet past the end of the parking lot is an
> yellow/orange road sign. The station in
> Robbinsville was located VERY close to this
> point. Nothing left unfortunately.

The name of the street was Depot Steet not Railroad Street. The railroad scale was just to the east of the depot. The name of the drug store is Ditmore Drug.

> Keep driving up the hill past the tenis (?)
> court, and that open area on your right just
> before the road starts to climb is where the
> coal dock was. The main railroad line is
> climbing up the hill and crosses right at
> the road intersection at the top of the
> hill, and curved on the left side of the
> road. Cross the street and follow the road
> around the curve (with the rock wall and
> Robbinsville High School on your right).
> Railroad keeps curving around towards the
> left, and will cross the street. Crossing is
> fairly noticable, and railroad grade on the
> far side is obvious.

> Turn left here, and then take the first
> street to your right. It will essentially
> dead-end into another street, and right at
> the intersection is a railroad crossing with
> ties/rail still there on the right side
> (looking back towards downtown). Turn left
> on this side street and you can go down a
> block or two. Railroad will be on your left,
> then curves right into the field going to
> the right. Turn left, go one block, then
> right on Atoah Street. keep going past the
> furniture factory on your right, and you
> will get to Milltown and the old Bemis
> Sawmill (now a recycling center). Most of
> the sawmill is still standing, though in
> various stages of disrepair. Park up at the
> road at the last pulloff, but you can walk
> down into the complex usually. The old
> railroad shop building is still standing
> (big metal structure with sliding doors),
> and there are a few pieces of railroad
> equipment left derelict in the field, but
> you have to look to find them. One piece
> that sorta looks like a transfer table that
> is about 5ft long with railroad wheels and
> rails. Nothing much else.

> There really is less there than you would
> think, but the tracks have been gone for
> about 15 years, and most areas have been
> regarded or otherwise to eliminate most
> evidence there was ever a railroad there.

> As John Bohon said, there is more if you
> want to check out the logging operations
> going out over IU Gap towards Junction, but
> better to ask Jim Wrinn directly on that
> one. Plenty of hiking trails going west from
> Junction into the mountains over the
> 3ft-gauge logging railroad, and amazingly,
> even some ties that are still there in the
> ground. I don't know enough on that area, to
> give any advice though.

I think the road to the Junction is Big Snowbird Road.

> Hope this is of some use if you decide to
> check out what is there...
> Kevin


jhbohon@yahoo.com

> The first road is Jack Branch Road.

> I think this used to be Plant Road named for
> the uniform factory but the name may have
> been changed.

> The name of the street was Depot Steet not
> Railroad Street. The railroad scale was just
> to the east of the depot. The name of the
> drug store is Ditmore Drug.

> I think the road to the Junction is Big
> Snowbird Road.

Thanks John...combination of a late night and trying to remember places and names from Street Atlas and some pictures that don't exactly show was I was looking for. I'm horrible at remember road names (and rarely use them when giving directions!), and all the maps were showing was something like "route 1206", even though I seriously remembered a name being there.

Speaking on the railroad scale, I've never been able to find any foundations for it or anything. Anything left must either be under the gravel parking, or the paved lot for Ditmore Drugs. Whole area has changed SO much, that the only way I could pinpoint the depot was matching the downtown buildings in the background up on the hill. There is just nothing there anymore.

Kevin

k_gilliam@bellsouth.net

The depot was just about behind Carrangers trailer park. The scale was something like 300 feet to the east with it's own track.

I am sure glad it was you doing all the typing of directions and not me!

John



jhbohon@yahoo.com

> The depot was just about behind Carrangers
> trailer park. The scale was something like
> 300 feet to the east with it's own track.

got a guess how far it was from the main Cx? Sounds like it would be under the paved parking lot now.

> I am sure glad it was you doing all the
> typing of directions and not me!

Just got a little more free time now that Spencer has pushed the release date on the tape back to August 14.

Kevin

k_gilliam@bellsouth.net

> got a guess how far it was from the main Cx?
> Sounds like it would be under the paved
> parking lot now.

I have never seen the parking lot your are refering to and would really be guessing how far from the crossing it would have been. From the center of the back of the trailer park I would think it would be within 400 feet or so to the east. You are asking a lot of my old brain today. Perhaps if JW can tear himself away from that shay he could remember better than I. Wayne Laepple may also remember better than I. If I can find a picture I might be able to take a better guess.

> Just got a little more free time now that
> Spencer has pushed the release date on the
> tape back to August 14.

> Kevin

Using the new release date I will try to find something on the scale for you.

John


jhbohon@yahoo.com

> I have never seen the parking lot your are
> refering to and would really be guessing how
> far from the crossing it would have been.
> From the center of the back of the trailer
> park I would think it would be within 400
> feet or so to the east. You are asking a lot
> of my old brain today. Perhaps if JW can
> tear himself away from that shay he could
> remember better than I. Wayne Laepple may
> also remember better than I. If I can find a
> picture I might be able to take a better
> guess.

When we were up there last January (?) for the B&S hike, things had changed enough that even Jim couldn't pinpoint the location of the station. Had to do that a month or two later matching buildings on pictures. Check your e-mail for a pic of present-day Rville. May look a LITTLE different than you remember though!

> Using the new release date I will try to
> find something on the scale for you.

This is more for personal interest as opposed to the tape. Video shows the scale, and that may be the best way to count distance. Interesting to try and find the locations then and now.

Kevin

k_gilliam@bellsouth.net

> Just thought I'd mention that if you you
> like driving twisty roads, US 129 above
> Robbinsville is some of the best driving in
> the U.S. Above Topton it goes through Deals
> Gap and turns into what is known as
> "the Tail of the Dragon"- 318
> curves in 11 miles. It is pretty much
> "motorcyclist Mecca" in the U.S.
> If you don't like driving on curvy roads,
> STAY OFF!

Fun in Miatas too. Had a big Miata rally there a while back.

dave

irondave@bellsouth.net

Is there still half (or less) of a locomotive in the bushes in or near Robbinsville? Seems like it had a tree growing in the middle of it.



http://www.steamvalley.com
mail@steamvalley.com

of the 1926 which was moved to southern PA by Michael Miller along with the American log loader about 14 years ago. Jim


http://nctrans.org
Wrinnbo@aol.com

> of the 1926 which was moved to southern PA
> by Michael Miller along with the American
> log loader about 14 years ago. Jim

ty, what was location, specific as possible, where i saw it?
jwc

http://www.steamvalley.com
mail@steamvalley.com