The Anniston and Atlantic Railroad was a 53-mile narrow gauge railroad built between Anniston, Alabama

Anniston, Alabama

Anniston is a city in Calhoun County in the state of Alabama, United States.As of the 2000 census, the population of the city is 24,276. According to the 2005 U.S. Census estimates, the city had a population of 23,741...

 and Sylacauga, Alabama

Sylacauga, Alabama

Sylacauga is a city in Talladega County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 12,616.Nicknames for Sylacauga include: "The Marble City," "Buzzard's Roost" and "Sly Town"....

, via Talladega, Alabama

Talladega, Alabama

Talladega is a city in Talladega County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 15,143. The city is the county seat of Talladega County. Talladega is approximately 50 miles east of Birmingham, Alabama....

 and Murphy, Alabama.

It was built to a gauge of . It was founded by A.L. Tyler of Anniston, who obtained a charter on August 17, 1883 and opened the 30 mile stretch between Anniston and Talladega on May 15, 1884. An extension to Sycamore, Alabama was opened on September 15, 1884 and to Sylacauga, Alabama

Sylacauga, Alabama

Sylacauga is a city in Talladega County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 12,616.Nicknames for Sylacauga include: "The Marble City," "Buzzard's Roost" and "Sly Town"....

 on December 1, 1886. The line was built to haul timber

Timber

Timber may refer to:* Timber, a term common in the United Kingdom and Australia for wood materials * Timber, Oregon, an unincorporated community in the U.S...

, charcoal

Charcoal

Charcoal is the dark grey residue consisting of carbon, and any remaining ash, obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances. Charcoal is usually produced by slow pyrolysis, the heating of wood or other substances in the absence of oxygen...

 and iron ore to Anniston, where it could be transferred to the standard-gauge Southern Railway

Southern Railway (US)

The Southern Railway is a former United States railroad. It was the product of nearly 150 predecessor lines that were combined, reorganized and recombined beginning in the 1830s, formally becoming the Southern Railway in 1894...

.

The Louisville and Nashville Railroad

Louisville and Nashville Railroad

The Louisville and Nashville Railroad was a Class I railroad that operated freight and passenger services in the southeast United States.Chartered by the state of Kentucky in 1850, the L&N, as it was generally known, grew into one of the great success stories of American business...

 purchased the line in 1890 along with the associated standard-gauge Anniston and Cincinnati Railroad. To this, the L&N added the Shelby Iron Company's railroad to create the Alabama Mineral Railroad. The A&A's narrow gauge track was converted to standard gauge later that year. Much of the right-of-way still exists as part of the CSX Corporation

CSX Corporation

CSX Corporation was formed in 1980 by the merger of Chessie System and Seaboard Coast Line Industries and eventually merged the various railroads owned by those predecessors into a single line that became known as CSX Transportation. Based in Richmond, Virginia, USA after the merger, in 2003...

's trackage in the area.