Today, Athens, Georgia, is known for the University of Georgia, music, and football. But for nearly 45 years, streetcars were a defining part of daily life in the Classic City.
By late 1859, after years of surveys, grading, and frustrated waiting, the Memphis, Clarksville & Louisville Railroad reached a long‑anticipated milestone: it began operating trains.
Among the many changes to the Western & Atlantic Railroad since its inception, the change of the line’s gauge in 1886 ranks among the most significant — and also among the most misunderstood.
In early May, Railfanning.org Publisher and Editor Todd DeFeo will explore a chapter of railroad history that is often mentioned, but seldom fully examined.
If you’re expecting a railfanning video to open with a locomotive in the background, this one may throw you off. There are no trains in the shot. No flashing signals. No horn echoing off the buildings.