Atlanta, Knoxville and Northern Railway

Atlanta, Knoxville and Northern Railway

Company type	Railway company
Industry	Rail transport
Predecessor	Marietta and North Georgia Railway
Founded	1896
Defunct	1902
Fate	Acquired by Louisville and Nashville Railroad
Headquarters	United States
Area served	Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee
Products	Rail transport services

Nicknamed the Hiwassee Route due to its picturesque alignment alongside the Hiawassee River, the Atlanta, Knoxville and Northern Railway was established in 1896 as the successor to the Marietta and North Georgia Railway, which had entered receivership in 1891. This railway formed a segment of a transportation network extending from Elizabeth, near Marietta, Georgia, northward to Murphy in western North Carolina, and onward to Delano, close to Etowah in southeastern Tennessee.

History

Originally incorporated in 1854 under the name Ellijay Railroad, the company later changed its name to the Marietta, Canton & Ellijay Railroad, and subsequently to the Marietta and North Georgia Railroad. Construction commenced in 1874. Beginning at the connection with the Western & Atlantic Railroad in Elizabeth (now part of Marietta), the line extended through several Georgian communities including Blackwells, Noonday, Woodstock, Lebanon/Toonigh, Holly Springs, and Canton by 1879. The railway reached Marble Cliff in 1883, Ellijay by 1884, and finally Murphy in 1887. Following a merger with the Georgia and North Carolina Railroad, it was rebranded as the Marietta and North Georgia Railway.

By 1890, the track gauge had been converted from three-foot (775mm) narrow gauge to standard gauge up to Blue Ridge, Georgia, with extension to Murphy completed by 1897. The establishment of a southern connection from Etowah/Delano by the Knoxville Southern Railroad—a subsidiary of M&NGR—resulted in a continuous rail corridor between Atlanta and Knoxville. This route traced the Hiwassee River northward to Farner, Tennessee, then proceeded south along the Tennessee-North Carolina border through Ducktown, Copperhill/McCaysville, and Epworth before reconnecting at Blue Ridge.

During construction, engineers initially implemented a double switchback, which restricted trains to hauling only four cars at once and caused operational inefficiencies. This arrangement was eventually replaced by the Hiwassee Loop, where trains circled nearly twice around Bald Mountain on a wooden trestle that crossed over their own tracks. This innovative design earned the nickname "Hook and Eye Line," with the "hook" referring to another switchback located in Georgia and the "eye" representing the loop itself; both these features were later bypassed prior to cessation of service.

In 1902, control of most AK&N shares was acquired by the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, providing L&N with a direct rail link from Atlanta to Cincinnati via Knoxville. The L&N subsequently moved its Atlanta division headquarters to Etowah; today, its former train station there functions as a museum owned by the city.

After formation of CSX Transportation in the 1980s, much of the original M&NGR/AK&N trackage was divested. Currently, three separate companies manage portions of the main line running from Marietta to Etowah: freight operations from Elizabeth Yard to Ellijay are handled by the Georgia Northeastern Railroad; since 1998, passenger excursions between Blue Ridge and McCaysville have been operated by the Blue Ridge Scenic Railway, a subsidiary of GNRR; and since 2004, the Tennessee Valley Railroad has managed service from Copperhill to Delano. The northern segment beyond Ellijay is owned by the Georgia Department of Transportation after acquisition from GNRR. Glen Sprigs Holdings has preserved critical infrastructure including the Bald Mountain trestle and loop situated between the McMinn/Polk county line and the Tennessee-Georgia border; this portion is leased to the Tennessee Overhill Association.

Apart from its east-west alignment along the Hiwassee River valley, this railroad closely follows a single highway designated as Georgia 5 and Tennessee 68.

External links

• Atlanta, Knoxville and Northern Railway (RailGA.com)