Mail transportation on the N&W Tug Fork Branch

[NW Mailing List]

I am not aware of any dedicated local freight service on the Tug Fork Branch 
or other branch lines in McDowell County.  I think there was local freight 
on the Dry Fork Branch that ran between Iaeger and Cedar Bluff, but I would 
have to check through notes to confirm that.

While there was no local freight there was a lot of freight traffic that was 
normally delivered when the mine runs brought in empty coal cars to the 
outlying operations.  Examples of local freight would be mine timbers, mine 
equipment, mules and other livestock, livestock feed, lubricants, sand, 
company store supplies, construction supplies, etc.  Most company stores had 
a railroad siding.

Mainline trains would haul the freight cars to the servicing yard such as 
Wilcoe, Auvil, and Eckman and the freight would be dispatched from these 
yards to the mining operations.  The volume of freight traffic probably 
dropped off after the mid-1920s as the state and county road was 
constructed.

After March 3, 1924 the early mail to Gary was delivered by truck from Welch 
because the mail on train No. 4 was delayed because the Gary train waited 
until train No. 15 left Welch.  United States Coal & Coke that ran the 12 
operations in Gary at the time insisted on an earlier delivery because most 
of their mail came from the west.  If they waited on train mail delivery 
they couldn't get answers off until the following day.  The post office 
accommodated the company by the one-way truck delivery.

Most supplies and equipment to construct the mining operations were hauled 
over mountains and down streams by horse/mule pulled wagons.  In some cases 
postal roads had been constructed such as along the Tug Fork.  The road came 
across the mountain from Tazewell, down the South Fork towards present day 
Black Wolf, along the Tug Fork through present day Gary, Wilcoe, Havaco and 
on down to Welch to Browns Creek where it continued to Oceana in Wyoming 
County.  The road, constructed btween 1851 and 1855, was known as the Abbs 
Valley and Tug Road Turnpike.

There was also a wagon road from Tazewell up the Dry Fork to Iaeger. 
Letters from George Wolfe, first superintendent at Berwind, indicates 
supplies to construct the mining operation were hauled in from Tazewell.

A lumber railroad was constructed down the Clear Fork so the old right of 
way could have been used to haul supplies to construct Coalwood.

Once the railroad was constructed up Simmons Creek (or even before) it would 
be relatively easy to haul materials over the mountain into Maybeury and 
down the Elkhorn Creek Valley.

Early history of Pocahontas indicates supplies and material was hauled to 
the site from Saltville and Whyteville.

Since most of the structures were wooden the first thing hauled in was 
probably a portable boiler to power a sawmill along with axes and saws. 
Coal Mining was based on black powder, picks, shovels and labor and could be 
supplied by pack horse.  Coke ovens were probaly built after the railroad 
could bring in fire brick.

Railroads could also be built relatively quickly in a few months to reach 
the new operation once branch lines started being put in.

Alex Schust


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "NW Mailing List" <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org>
To: <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org>
Sent: Thursday, October 22, 2009 11:24 AM
Subject: Mail transportation on the N&W Tug Fork Branch



> Date: Wed, 21 Oct 2009 19:55:20 -0400

> From: NW Mailing List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org>

> Subject: N&W in 1910--Mail service

>

> Bluefield Daily Telegraph

> April 7, 1910

>

> NEW MAIL SERVICE

> ------

> Inaugurated on Tug Fork Branch of Norfolk and Western

>

> The Norfolk and Western has inaugurated a new mail service on the Tug Fork 

> branch.  Two mails a day now go to Anawalt and this service is greatly 

> appreciated.  The people along the Anawalt section now want an opportunity 

> to get the train to lay over at Pageton or Anawalt at night instead of at 

> Gary as they figure in this way they will be able to go to Welch or some 

> other point and return the same day.  An effort will also be made to get a 

> local freight service on the line.  There are eighteen or twenty mines on 

> the Tug Fork branch and the coal companies along the line feel that enough 

> business goes to and from these operations to warrant a local freight.  It 

> is likely that a petition will be prepared asking for such an extension of 

> the local freight service.

> ------

> [If there were no local freight service on Tug Fork branch how did these 

> eighteen or so mines get the material for the tipples and mine material 

> such as rails, cars, etc?  As far as that goes how did any mines get 

> started before the railroad reached the mine location?]

>

> Gordon Hamilton

>

>

> October 23, 2009

>

> Hello, Gordon:

>

> Wasn't "local freight" service primarily for carload and less-than-carload 

> merchanidise freight?  My recollection is that "mine runs" on the N&W were 

> not considered local freight.

>

> Regarding the mail service, the Railway Mail Service Third Division would 

> have made a determination that mail volume and dispatches warranted mail 

> being handled on a second train.  Although there were frequent 

> communications between a railroad's manager of mail (who also usually 

> handled the express company service relationships, too) and the district 

> RMS staff, the added service would have been initiated by the RMS, not the 

> N&W.

>

> Good morning,

>

> Frank Scheer

> f_scheer at yahoo.com

>

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