I’ve grown particularly fascinated by the people who worked on and shaped the Western & Atlantic Railroad.
One of those was Sanford Luilem Bell, who served with the railroad for 45 years.
Born in Anderson, South Carolina, on December 15, 1824, he joined the Western & Atlantic on April 20, 1852, as a conductor on a freight train. Reports suggest Georgia’s then-Governor Howell Cobb appointed him to the post.
In his obituary, The Atlanta Journal reported that he “ran” the first Western & Atlantic train into the city, but that is likely incorrect. After three years, he began as a passenger train conductor.
His tenure included service during the Civil War. He bridged the railroad’s earliest years and continued into the early years of its lease to a private company.
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This article was published by Tales from the Rails and is republished here with permission. Click here to view the original.
