Wikipedia:WikiProject Trains/ICC valuations/Charleston and Western Carolina Railway

Interstate Commerce Commission, Valuation Reports, Volume 121

Location and General Description of Property
The railroad of Charleston & Western Carolina Railway Company, hereinafter called the carrier, is a single-track standard-gauge steam railroad, which traverses western South Carolina, crossing into and out of Georgia a few miles north and south of Augusta, Ga. This railroad extends from Port Royal, S. C, in a northeasterly direction to Spartanburg, S. C, with a branch from Laurens to Greenville, S. C, and another from McCormick to Anderson, S. C. The following constitutes the mileage of lines owned by the carrier:

Of the 320.967 miles of all tracks shown above for the main line from Port Royal to Spartanburg, 20.191 miles of main track and 19.806 miles of yard tracks and sidings, or a total of 39.997 miles of all tracks, are located in Georgia. The remainder of the main line and the two branch lines, above referred to, are located within South Carolina. In addition to the owned mileage, the carrier, under trackage agreements, uses 1.61 miles of main tracks and, under lease, 2.183 miles of yard tracks and sidings of other carriers, all of which are located in Augusta, Ga.

Corporate History
The carrier was incorporated under the general laws of South Carolina on September 16, 1896, to acquire, own, and operate the property, rights, and franchises of The Port Royal and Western Carolina Railway Company, to extend and build branches thereto, and to purchase, own, and operate other railroads. The principal office of the carrier is at Charleston, S. C. The time and manner of acquisition of the property, rights, and franchises of the Port Royal and Western Carolina Railway Company, and subsequently of the Port Royal and Augusta Railway Company, the Carolina, Knoxville and Western Railway Company, and The Augusta Terminal Railway Company are described in Appendix 2. The Atlantic Coast Line Company owns all of the outstanding capital stock of the carrier, except the necessary qualifying shares of the directors, by reason of which it has controlled the carrier since February, 1908.

Development of Fixed Physical Property
The railroad of the carrier constitutes a consolidation of properties formerly owned and operated by the Port Royal and Western Carolina Railway Company, the Port Royal & Augusta Railway Company, the Augusta Terminal Railway Company, and the Carolina, Knoxville & Western Railway Company. No railway mileage was acquired from the Carolina, Knoxville & Western Railway Company. The property acquired from the Port Royal and Western Carolina Railway Company embraced the line from Augusta to Spartanburg, together with the Anderson and Greenville branches, a total of 228.12 miles of track. This property constitutes a consolidation of the properties of the following companies:

The lines of the first three companies above named were constructed by agents of the Central Railroad and Banking Company of Georgia, some construction work having been done on the line of the Savannah Valley Railroad Company prior to 1884, on the lines of the Greenville and Laurens Railroad Company and the Greenwood, Laurens & Spartanburg Railroad Company prior to 1882, and construction having been completed on the line of the Savannah Valley Railroad Company sometime in 1886, on the line of the Greenville and Laurens Railroad Company, September 8, 1886, and on the line of the Greenwood, Laurens & Spartanburg Railroad Company, September 23, 1885. The Augusta and Knoxville Railroad Company effected a consolidation and completed the construction of properties owned by two other corporations, which had been organized for construction purposes. This line was opened for operation on May 1, 1882.

On October 27, 1886, the properties of all the companies above listed were consolidated to form the Port Royal and Western Carolina Railway Company, which consolidation was ratified by a special act of the Legislature of Georgia, approved September 21, 1887. On September 26, 1896, the carrier acquired from Thomas and Ryan the property, rights, and franchises of the Port Royal and Western Carolina Railway Company, which had been secured by them at foreclosure sale. A deed of release was executed by the Port Royal and Western Carolina Railway Company to the carrier on November 14, 1896.

The property acquired from the Port Royal and Augusta Railway Company embraces 112.75 miles of track from Augusta, Ga., to Port Royal, S. C. The original owner of this property was the Port Royal Railroad Company. Construction was begun in 1870. From Port Royal to Yemassee, S. C., 25 miles of road was opened for operation in 1871, and the remaining 87.75 miles from Yemassee, S. C., to Augusta, Ga., in 1873. A receiver was appointed on May 19, 1875, who operated the property until it was sold at foreclosure on June 6, 1878, to the Union Trust Company of New York. The trust company held the property for the benefit of the bondholders until July 10, 1878, when it was conveyed by deed to the Port Royal and Augusta Railway Company. The incorporators of the Port Royal and Augusta Railway Company were bondholders of its predecessor. A majority of the outstanding securities of the Port Royal and Augusta Railway Company were owned by the Central Railroad and Banking Company of Georgia. During the year 1892 the Port Royal and Augusta Railway Company was placed in the hands of a receiver, and so continued until October 3, 1896, when it was sold under foreclosure proceedings to the carrier as assignee of Thomas and Ryan.

The property acquired from the Augusta Terminal Railway Company consisted of 3.49 miles of yard tracks and a warehouse in Augusta, Ga., together with certain equipment. The construction of this track was completed from a point on the line of the carrier to McIntosh Street, Augusta, in December, 1897, and in 1901 an extension was built to connect with the Southern Railway. Prior to its purchase, under a contract dated April 1, 1897, the carrier had leased this property for a term of 99 years, a 30-year franchise granted the Augusta Terminal Railway Company by the city of Augusta having previously been transferred to the carrier on March 23, 1897. On March 20, 1906, the property, rights, and franchises of the Augusta Terminal Railway Company were purchased by the carrier on consideration of the assumption of all liabilities of the Augusta Terminal Railway Company.

The property acquired from the Carolina, Knoxville and Western Railway Company was confined to a quantity of rails, equipment, and certain lands and rights in the city of Greenville, S. C. As previously stated, it embraced no railway mileage. The Carolina, Knoxville and Western Railway Company represents a consolidation of the Carolina, Knoxville and Western Railway Company, the Pennsylvania and Haywood Railroad Company, and the Atlantic, Greenville and Western Railway Company. The purpose of the consolidated company was to build a line from Augusta, Ga., to Knoxville, Tenn. Considerable grading was done, and 10 miles of road was completed and turned over to the Carolina, Knoxville and Western Railway Company in August, 1888. About 3.5 additional miles of road appears to have been completed by January, 1889, when the company which had contracted to perform the construction was placed in the hands of receivers. A receiver was appointed for the Carolina, Knoxville and Western Railway Company in May, 1891, and on April 19, 1899, the portion of the property to which reference has already been made was conveyed by deed to the carrier.

Leased Railway Property
On date of valuation the carrier used property of other carriers jointly with them and permitted the joint use of its property, as is shown in the following statement. Mention is also made of property leased for sole operation.

The property owned and operated by other carriers and used jointly with them by the carrier is as follows:
 * At Augusta, Ga.:

The property owned and operated by the carrier and used jointly with it by other carriers is as follows:

The property of others solely operated by the carrier is as follows: