Georgia & Florida Railway
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The Georgia & Florida Railway (G&F) was a regional railroad in Georgia and Florida with a main line extending from Augusta, Georgia south through Valdosta, Georgia to Madison, Florida. It had branches extending to Tennille, Statesboro, Millen, Belee, Sparks, Adel and Moultrie, Georgia. Late in its history it continued to Greenwood, South Carolina on the old Charleston & Western Carolina line from Augusta north.(rp) The G&F Railway was organized in 1906 for the purpose of |  Georgia & Florida Employee Timetable September 6, 1964 purchasing,
building, and operating railroads in Georgia and Florida. Most of the G&F was assembled by John Skelton Williams, former president of the Seaboard Air Line Railway, between 1906 and 1911 (ss). | The G&F operated a passenger train on it's main line between Augusta and Valdosta 281 miles, and mixed trains between Valdosta and Madison, 43 miles, and also on branch lines and leased lines to Tennille, Statesboro, Adel, Moultrie, and other Georgia locations. All these were in the 30's. Branch line service diminished through the 40's and by the early 50's were gone. However, the main line experienced a resurgence in the 50's increasing the mainline service to two trains from Greenwood, SC south through Augusta, one to Douglas and one to Valdosta. In 1955 this had further increased when another Augusta to Douglas daily was added. By i960 all was gone and freight only existed, and branches were cut back. History of the Georgia & Florida Railway | |
| the 53-mile Millen & Southwestern Railroad (Millen-Pendleton-Vidalia); | |
| the 30-mile Augusta and Florida Railway (Keysville-Midville); | |
| the 20-mile Atlantic and Gulf Short Line Railroad (Midville-Swainsboro); | |
| the 87-mile Douglas, Augusta and Gulf Railway (Hazlehurst-Nashville and Barrows Bluff-Broxton); | |
| the 12-mile Nashville and Sparks Railroad (Nashville-Sparks); | |
| and the 28-mile Valdosta Southern Railway (Valdosta-Madison, Florida). |
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1906 - Williams obtained trackage rights on the Augusta Southern Railroad between Keysville and Augusta. 1906-10 - He connected his various acquisitions with three new lines: from Swainsboro to Pendleton, from Hazlehurst to Vidalia, and from Nashville to Valdosta. The result was a north-south line across Georgia from Augusta to Madison, Florida. post 1910 - To straighten a jog in the line in Coffee County, he built a shortcut from Douglas to Garrant (near West Green), abandoning the older tracks between Broxton and Garrant. This left Broxton off the main line, but the town remained on a branch that connected to the new main line at Douglas. 1911 - The Sparks Western Railway was purchased, and with trackage rights agreements, and construction of short connectors, the G&F established a branch to Moultrie The G&F also built a 2.2-mile branch from Sparks to Adel in 1911. 1915 - G&F eenters receivership but remains intact. 1919 - The G&F acquired the Augusta Southern (Augusta-Sandersville), over which it had obtained trackage rights between Keysville and Augusta. 1924 - G&F leases the Midland Railway in 1924, and adds a branch line to Statesboro. It connected with the main line at Stevens Crossing. 1926 - After a reorganization in 1926, the G&F was renamed the Georgia and Florida Railroad . 1930 - Most of the branch line from Millen to Pendleton (on the former Millen & Southwestern) was abandoned. (The section from Garfield to Summit-Graymont remained open.) 1934 - The former Augusta Southern between Sandersville and Keysville was abandoned. 1950 - The branch line between Stevens Crossing and Statesboro was abandoned. 1954 - The Valdosta-Madison line was sold |
 Georgia & Florida - 1931 |
1958 - The last remaining section of the Broxton branch was abandoned.
1963 - The Southern Railway acquired the G&F but did not stop the slow dismemberment.
cir 1963 - The name was changed to Georgia & Florida Railway. (see 1964 timetable).
1966 - Section of line between Hephzibah and Midville abandoned, (except for a short section near Gough).
1967-68 - The Nashville-Sparks section of the Moultrie branch is abandoned.
1971 - , Southern merged the remnants of the G&F into its subsidiary Central of Georgia Railway.
Our Sources
Private Collection of Richard R. Parks(rp)
Wikipedia the free Encyclopedia [web](wik)
Official Guide- Various editions
http://railga.com/gafl.html(ss)
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April 27, 2009, revised May 31, 2011