Winchester and Potomac Railroad
Encyclopedia
The Winchester and Potomac Railroad (W&PRR) was an historic railroad in the Southern United States
, which ran from Winchester, Virginia
to the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
(B&ORR) junction at Harpers Ferry
on the Potomac River
. The W&P Railroad is now incorporated into the modern CSX Transportation
Class I railroad
. It played a key role in early train raids of the B&ORR during the beginning months of the American Civil War
.
and Norfolk, Virginia
. Towns west of the Blue Ridge Mountains
needed rail transportation to connect with port cities but were hampered by the ability to cross the mountains. When the newly formed B&ORR was planned to cut across the northern end of the lower Shenandoah Valley
, the Virginia General Assembly
chartered the W&P Railroad in 1831. Routes were then surveyed by the U.S. Topographical Engineers of the U.S. Army Engineering Corps from 1831 to 1832. After the B&ORR was completed to Harpers Ferry in 1834 construction of the W&PRR began in 1835 and was completed by 1836, beginning its first operations on March 14 of that year. Final rail connection into the B&ORR was completed in January 1837 when the Winchester and Potomac was connected by the first B&O Railroad Bridge was completed across the Potomac River tying the lines together in a junction on the Virginia side of the river.
The W&PRR was a 4 foot 8.5 inch gauge with rails of 16.5 pounds-per-yard flat bar constructed upon ties cut from white oak and locust. The line ran 32 miles with another 2.5 miles of sidings and turnouts. The railroad terminated at the corner of Water and Market Streets in Winchester. The Winchester depot immediately became a key economic hub serving merchant traders in Winchester for commodities such as wheat, hide, fur, tobacco and hemp. The north end of the rail line also served the thriving industrial town of Virginius Island
, which sat astride the Shenandoah Canal on the south side of Harpers Ferry.
This connection to the B&ORR caused much concern politically, since this potentially enabled all farming and industrial produce in the Great Appalachian Valley
region of Virginia to ship out of ports in Baltimore, Maryland and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
rather than through Virginian ports. Therefore this railroad was not authorized for connections further south. Those southern portions of the Shenandoah Valley were served later by other railways such as the Manassas Gap Railroad
which connected Mount Jackson, Virginia
to the Manassas Junction on the Orange and Alexandria Railroad
and the Virginia Central Railroad
which connected Staunton, Virginia
to Richmond, Virginia
.
shutdown and control of both the W&PRR and B&O in connection with the raid in 1859.
By the start of the Civil War in 1861, W&PRR owned six locomotives: Ancient, Pocahontas, Farmer, President, Virginia and Potomac, all of which were 4x4x0 except for Farmer which was 4x2x0. Rolling stock included four passenger cars, one mail/baggage car, forty freight cars and eight repair cars. Officers of the company included William L. Clark, President and Chief Engineer Thomas Robinson Sharp. On June 18, 1861 the W&PRR Chief Engineer Sharp was commissioned a Captain in the Confederate States Army
and was instrumental in various railroad operations, constructions and raids for the Confederacy and the Army of Northern Virginia
, especially under Stonewall Jackson
.
The W&PRR was a key asset used during the Great Train Raid of 1861
when Stonewall Jackson raided the B&ORR removing, capturing or burning a total of 67 locomotives and 386 railway cars, and taking 19 of those locomotives and at least 80 railroad cars onto Confederate railroads. After initially trapping this rolling stock on the Virginia-controlled portion of the B&ORR, Jackson immediately "helped himself to four small locomotives not too heavy for the flimsy flat-bar rails of the Winchester & Potomac, and had them sent to Winchester" where they were disassembled near Fort Collier
, mounted onto special dollies and wagons, and hauled by 40-horse teams "down the Valley turnpike to the [Manassas Gap] railroad at Strasburg", reassembled and placed back on the tracks "which connected with the Virginia Central and the entire railroad system of the Confederacy.". Through this event, the Chief Engineer of the W&PRR, Thomas R. Sharp, became heavily involved with what was later referred to as the "railroad corps" of the Confederacy, disassembling and moving other locomotives, cars, rails, ties, and machinery from the B&ORR to Winchester for storage and subsequent removal deeper into Confederate territory. His success in the raid at the end of May, 1861 by taking the four small locomotives over his railroad to Winchester earned him a commission as a Captain in the quartermaster service on June 18, 1861, and the new task of removing as many as possible of the remaining locomotives and rail cars still stranded up in Martinsburg
.
Throughout the summer and fall of 1861, Capt Thomas Sharp was busy supervising the removal of trains, equipment, rails and ties from the B&ORR, the "South's one unfailing source of supply". After the big summer campaigns of 1861 were mostly finished, Stonewall Jackson returned to Winchester and continued in his devotion of energy to "uprooting track west of Martinsburg" and were "able to deliver 3,000 tons of Baltimore & Ohio rails to the Winchester & Potomac Railroad in December, 1861."
. The W&PRR at that point, however, had very little transportation value for either Confederate or Union forces for the rest of the war, and was not used by the Confederacy anymore after the spring of 1862 when it was seized by Union forces under Major General Nathaniel P. Banks
.
Both the western portion of the Manassas Gap Railroad
and the W&P Railroad were effectively under the control of Banks in the spring, and were going to be used as part of a plan developed by Major General George B. McClellan
to support Union operations in that area. McClellan's plan was to connect the Manassas Gap Railroad and the W&PRR with a line between Winchester, Virginia and Strasburg, Virginia
, creating a "complete circle of rails" from the Union capital at Washington, D.C.
to the Shenandoah Valley
by either the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad or the Orange and Alexandria Railroad
.
Sometime in 1862, likely when McClellan occupied and controlled the W&PRR, its locomotives Ancient and President were captured, and later sold after the war. The Ancient was sold to J. Neilson in 1865 and the President was sold to the West Jersey and Atlantic Railroad.
Late in May, as Stonewall Jackson was busy routing the Fifth Corps
under Banks, the B&ORR was shipping troops forward to Banks. "A troop train, in fact, arrived at Winchester [on the W&PRR] just as Banks began his retreat. Three companies got off and the remainder of the regiment rode back to Harpers Ferry." As Banks retreated from Winchester, the Confederates occupied the northern Shenandoah Valley, burned the W&PRR's principal bridges, and tore up all the track. After Jackson evacuated the area in early June, the Union Army
began repairing the W&PRR, but heavy rains washed the bridges out, and the W&PRR was not restored to service until June 20, 1862.
In August 1862, as Major General John Pope
was busy retreating and being defeated by General Lee in the Northern Virginia Campaign
, Confederate intelligence learned that the W&PRR and the Baltimore & Ohio were being used to bring reinforcements to Pope. Reverend J. W. Jones of Charles Town, Virginia reported that the Northern government was using the railroad for that purpose, and this was confirmed three days later when Major General J.E.B. Stuart
captured papers and letters belonging to Pope in a raid on his headquarters.
Also in August, Confederate Lieutenants George Baylor and Milton Rousss of Company B, 12th Virginia Cavalry, led a small raid attacking the W&PRR between Summit Point and Cameron's Depot, capturing eight Union soldiers, $4,000 in cash and food supplies.
Following the Battle of Sharpsburg in the 1862 Maryland Campaign
, the Confederate States Army
once again controlled the northern Shenandoah Valley for a brief time. The Confederates wanted to remove all the new rails laid down on the W&PRR, but due to a lack of wagons, were unable to take it.. Therefore, General Robert E. Lee
ordered Major General Lafayette McLaws
' division to once again destroy the W&PRR in order to foil any attempt by McClellan to follow the Army of Northern Virginia
. McClellan, meanwhile, on October 10, was making arrangements with the Baltimore & Ohio to reconstruct the W&PRR with heavier duty T-rails, locomotives and trains for planned future Union Army
operations. The Baltimore & Ohio evaluated McClellans plan, and replied that they did not have either the ties or rails to do the job, and that it would take at least six weeks to do the job, recommending that the Manassas Gap Railroad be repaired instead. McClellan then abandoned his plan to upgrade the W&PRR on October 12, and after a reconnaissance by Brigadier General A. A. Humphreys on October 19, the Union Army discovered that the W&PRR had been destroyed by the Confederates, making the upgrade plan even more unfeasible. In late October, General Robert E. Lee reported removal of the iron from the railroad for use elsewhere in the Confederacy.
, who made no use of the railroad. Resistance to occupation in the Valley began to grow, and the 43rd Battalion Virginia Cavalry
was stood up in that area under Major John S. Mosby
, also known as the "Gray Ghost". On June 15, after a sweeping rout of Milroy in the Second Battle of Winchester, the Confederates once again controlled the northern Shenandoah Valley as they marched to the Potomac River
during the Gettysburg Campaign
. Two days later "Captain T. B. Lee of the Corps of Engineers, C.S.A., was ordered to proceed to the lines of the Winchester & Potomac and the Baltimore & Ohio to collect any machinery, tools, rolling stock, or portions thereof which fell into Confederate hands. He was instructed to arrange with Lee's chief quartermaster, Colonel J. L. Corley, for men and wagons to transport the material down the Valley turnpike." By the end of 1863 the W&PRR had been practically and nearly completely destroyed by the actions of armies on both sides, and the Confederates, who remained in loose control of the Valley, had no desire to repair or use the railroad, but rather desired to keep it inoperational.
, were surveying the W&PRR and began repairing the road and laying rails, in preparation for advancements into the Valley. This report was relayed by Major General J.E.B. Stuart
to General Robert E. Lee saying “It is stated that preparations are making to rebuild the [W&P] railroad from Harper’s Ferry to Winchester, which would indicated a reoccupation of the latter place. The Baltimore & Ohio Railroad is very closely guarded along its whole extant. No ingress or egress from their lines is permitted to citizens as heretofore, and everything shows secrecy & preparation.” The W&P Railroad was not actually re-opened by the Union for service until later in 1864.
After Major General Philip Sheridan
pursued Lieutenant General Jubal A. Early
south in the Shenandoah Valley, clearing the north end of Confederate forces, the Union Army set about, once again, and for the last time, repairing the W&PRR, reconstructing 26 miles of roadway to serve Sheridan.
The W&PRR remained in Union Army control through the first half of 1865, and was the next to last of the Virginia railroads to be turned over to the Virginia Board of Public Works, sometime after June 30.
in place at Strasburg, Virginia
enabling a connection up the Shenandoah Valley to Harrisonburg, Virginia
. Eventually the Baltimore & Ohio "purchased the Winchester & Potomac" and "constructed a line the length of the Valley" to Lexington, Virginia
where it joined a spur of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad. Throughout Reconstruction northern railroad companies were able to charter new lines and construct railroads that connected the entire Shenandoah Valley north into Pennsylvania
and south into Tennessee
and North Carolina
.
In 1896 the United States Supreme Court ruled in a lawsuit, overturning a previous judgment in favor of W&P Railroad Company for $30,340 for the value of the iron rails that were removed in 1862 during the American Civil War. The W&P Railroad Company claimed that its stock owners were loyal citizens during the war, and that the United States had taken possession and control of the valley up to Winchester, and then had removed its strap and T rails over to the Manassas Gap Railroad for service, as well as storage in Alexandria, Virginia
and they were never returned. Furthermore, W&P Railroad had paid Manassas Gap Railroad $25,000 in 1874 for rails that had been put on to the W&P Railroad.
In 1902 the W&P Railroad was acquired by B&O Railroad, marking 71 years of total existence for the W&P Railroad. Later the B&O Railroad sold the railine to the Roanoke, Belmont and Occidental Railroad and was used in their Eastern Division until 1964. The line finally became a line under the Shenandoah Subdivision
of CSX Transportation
.
After the Civil War, the Winchester & Potomac RR was repaired with financial assistance from the Baltimore & Ohio which was rebuilding and expanding anew. In 1867 they B&O and the W&P executed a lease agreement which essentially permanently made the W&P a part of the B&O and its successors, something which has continued to the present day, as of this writing, mid-2009. The Winchester & Strasburg RR connecting those two cities was chartered in 1867, opened in June 1870 and has always been total controlled by the B&O and its successors as of July 2009.
Southern United States
The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive area in the southeastern and south-central United States...
, which ran from Winchester, Virginia
Winchester, Virginia
Winchester is an independent city located in the northwestern portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the USA. The city's population was 26,203 according to the 2010 Census...
to the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which...
(B&ORR) junction at Harpers Ferry
Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
Harpers Ferry is a historic town in Jefferson County, West Virginia, United States. In many books the town is called "Harper's Ferry" with an apostrophe....
on the Potomac River
Potomac River
The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...
. The W&P Railroad is now incorporated into the modern CSX Transportation
CSX Transportation
CSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...
Class I railroad
Class I railroad
A Class I railroad in the United States and Mexico, or a Class I rail carrier in Canada, is a large freight railroad company, as classified based on operating revenue.Smaller railroads are classified as Class II and Class III...
. It played a key role in early train raids of the B&ORR during the beginning months of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
Founding and early history
Most railroads built in Virginia before the American Civil War connected farming and industrial centers to ports such as Alexandria, VirginiaAlexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2009, the city had a total population of 139,966. Located along the Western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately six miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.Like the rest of northern Virginia, as well as...
and Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
. Towns west of the Blue Ridge Mountains
Blue Ridge Mountains
The Blue Ridge Mountains are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Mountains range. This province consists of northern and southern physiographic regions, which divide near the Roanoke River gap. The mountain range is located in the eastern United States, starting at its southern-most...
needed rail transportation to connect with port cities but were hampered by the ability to cross the mountains. When the newly formed B&ORR was planned to cut across the northern end of the lower Shenandoah Valley
Shenandoah Valley
The Shenandoah Valley is both a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and West Virginia in the United States. The valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the eastern front of the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians , to the north by the Potomac River...
, the Virginia General Assembly
Virginia General Assembly
The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the oldest legislative body in the Western Hemisphere, established on July 30, 1619. The General Assembly is a bicameral body consisting of a lower house, the Virginia House of Delegates, with 100 members,...
chartered the W&P Railroad in 1831. Routes were then surveyed by the U.S. Topographical Engineers of the U.S. Army Engineering Corps from 1831 to 1832. After the B&ORR was completed to Harpers Ferry in 1834 construction of the W&PRR began in 1835 and was completed by 1836, beginning its first operations on March 14 of that year. Final rail connection into the B&ORR was completed in January 1837 when the Winchester and Potomac was connected by the first B&O Railroad Bridge was completed across the Potomac River tying the lines together in a junction on the Virginia side of the river.
Virginius Island
Virginius Island is an island on the Shenandoah River in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. The island is formed by the Shenandoah Canal, constructed by the Patowmack Company between 1806 and 1807, which separates it from the town of Harpers Ferry...
, which sat astride the Shenandoah Canal on the south side of Harpers Ferry.
| Station | Distance |
|---|---|
| Harpers Ferry, West Virginia Harpers Ferry, West Virginia Harpers Ferry is a historic town in Jefferson County, West Virginia, United States. In many books the town is called "Harper's Ferry" with an apostrophe.... |
0 miles |
| Halltown, West Virginia Halltown, West Virginia Halltown is an unincorporated community along Flowing Springs Run in Jefferson County, West Virginia, USA. Halltown is located off of US 340 on West Virginia Route 230 between Charles Town and Bolivar. A few houses, a fork in the road, a tiny post office, and the large Halltown Paper Plant are the... |
6 miles |
| Charlestown, West Virginia | 10.5 miles |
| Cameron's/Aldridge, West Virginia | 14 miles |
| Summit Point, West Virginia Summit Point, West Virginia Summit Point is an unincorporated community in Jefferson County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. It lies along the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad at the intersection of West Virginia Secondary Route 1 and Summit Point Pike. According to the 2000 census, the Summit Point community has a population... |
18 miles |
| Wadesville, Virginia Wadesville, Virginia Wadesville is an unincorporated community in Clarke County in the U.S. state of Virginia. Wadesville is located along Opequon Creek.... |
21 miles |
| Stephenson, Virginia Stephenson, Virginia Stephenson is an unincorporated community in Frederick County, Virginia. Stephenson is located on U.S. Route 11 north of Winchester.... |
26 miles |
| Winchester, Virginia Winchester, Virginia Winchester is an independent city located in the northwestern portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the USA. The city's population was 26,203 according to the 2010 Census... |
31.5 miles |
This connection to the B&ORR caused much concern politically, since this potentially enabled all farming and industrial produce in the Great Appalachian Valley
Great Appalachian Valley
The Great Valley, also called the Great Appalachian Valley or Great Valley Region, is one of the major landform features of eastern North America. It is a gigantic trough — a chain of valley lowlands — and the central feature of the Appalachian Mountain system...
region of Virginia to ship out of ports in Baltimore, Maryland and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
rather than through Virginian ports. Therefore this railroad was not authorized for connections further south. Those southern portions of the Shenandoah Valley were served later by other railways such as the Manassas Gap Railroad
Manassas Gap Railroad
The Manassas Gap Railroad was an historic intrastate railroad in the Southern United States which ran from Mount Jackson, Virginia to the Orange and Alexandria Railroad at a junction called "Manassas Junction", which later became the city of Manassas, Virginia...
which connected Mount Jackson, Virginia
Mount Jackson, Virginia
Mount Jackson is a town in Shenandoah County, Virginia, United States. The population was 1,994 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Mount Jackson is located at in the southern part of Shenandoah County, Virginia at...
to the Manassas Junction on the Orange and Alexandria Railroad
Orange and Alexandria Railroad
The Orange and Alexandria Railroad was an intrastate railroad in Virginia, United States. It extended from Alexandria to Gordonsville, with another section from Charlottesville to Lynchburg...
and the Virginia Central Railroad
Virginia Central Railroad
Virginia Central Railroad was chartered as the Louisa Railroad in 1836 by the Virginia Board of Public Works and had its name changed to Virginia Central Railroad in 1850. It connected Richmond with the Orange and Alexandria Railroad at Gordonsville in 1854, and had expanded westward past the Blue...
which connected Staunton, Virginia
Staunton, Virginia
Staunton is an independent city within the confines of Augusta County in the commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 23,746 as of 2010. It is the county seat of Augusta County....
to Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
.
John Brown's raid
The W&PRR was threatened during the events following John Brown's raid, and was a possible avenue for either an invasion into Virginia, or for a rescue operation of John Brown and other prisoners. The Governor of Virginia sent this notice to John Garrett, president of the Baltimore & Ohio, concerning Virginia MilitiaVirginia Militia
The Virginia militia is an armed force composed of all citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia capable of bearing arms. The Virginia militia was established in 1607 as part of the British militia system. Militia service in Virginia was compulsory for all free males...
shutdown and control of both the W&PRR and B&O in connection with the raid in 1859.
American Civil War
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
and was instrumental in various railroad operations, constructions and raids for the Confederacy and the Army of Northern Virginia
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...
, especially under Stonewall Jackson
Stonewall Jackson
ຄຽשת״ׇׂׂׂׂ֣|birth_place= Clarksburg, Virginia |death_place=Guinea Station, Virginia|placeofburial=Stonewall Jackson Memorial CemeteryLexington, Virginia|placeofburial_label= Place of burial|image=...
.
1861
The W&PRR was of potential value to the Confederates for any need to attack Harpers Ferry, and did serve a useful roll in the movement of Virginia Militia troops to defensives positions in and about Harpers Ferry. Although it could potentially be used to feed Confederate forces into the defenses of western Virginia via the B&ORR, by running along the northern border of the Confederate States, it would have been vulnerable to attack, possibly stranding large units to the west. So, due to its very northern location, and mere spur-like connection to the B&ORR, its overall potential usefulness to the Confederacy was not great.. The greatest use and value in the W&PRR came in the first eight months of the war, from May, 1861 to January 1862 when it was utilized to ship light machinery from the Harpers Ferry arsenal down to Winchester, and from there overland to Strasburg and the Manassas Gap Railroad. The real shame was that the light strap rails did not permit heavy shipments and this was a constant factor until late in the War.The W&PRR was a key asset used during the Great Train Raid of 1861
Great Train Raid of 1861
Colonel Thomas Jackson's operations against the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1861 were aimed at disrupting a critical railroad used by the opposing Union Army as a major supply route and capturing the maximum number of locomotives and cars. During this point in the war, the state of Maryland's...
when Stonewall Jackson raided the B&ORR removing, capturing or burning a total of 67 locomotives and 386 railway cars, and taking 19 of those locomotives and at least 80 railroad cars onto Confederate railroads. After initially trapping this rolling stock on the Virginia-controlled portion of the B&ORR, Jackson immediately "helped himself to four small locomotives not too heavy for the flimsy flat-bar rails of the Winchester & Potomac, and had them sent to Winchester" where they were disassembled near Fort Collier
Fort Collier
Built by Confederate Lieutenant Collier and Virginia militia with the aid of Federal prisoners, this redoubt guarded the north entrance of Winchester, Virginia on the east side of the Martinsburg Pike. During later Federal occupations, it was known as Battery No. 10. The fort was set on low ground,...
, mounted onto special dollies and wagons, and hauled by 40-horse teams "down the Valley turnpike to the [Manassas Gap] railroad at Strasburg", reassembled and placed back on the tracks "which connected with the Virginia Central and the entire railroad system of the Confederacy.". Through this event, the Chief Engineer of the W&PRR, Thomas R. Sharp, became heavily involved with what was later referred to as the "railroad corps" of the Confederacy, disassembling and moving other locomotives, cars, rails, ties, and machinery from the B&ORR to Winchester for storage and subsequent removal deeper into Confederate territory. His success in the raid at the end of May, 1861 by taking the four small locomotives over his railroad to Winchester earned him a commission as a Captain in the quartermaster service on June 18, 1861, and the new task of removing as many as possible of the remaining locomotives and rail cars still stranded up in Martinsburg
Martinsburg, West Virginia
Martinsburg is a city in the Eastern Panhandle region of West Virginia, United States. The city's population was 14,972 at the 2000 census; according to a 2009 Census Bureau estimate, Martinsburg's population was 17,117, making it the largest city in the Eastern Panhandle and the eighth largest...
.
Throughout the summer and fall of 1861, Capt Thomas Sharp was busy supervising the removal of trains, equipment, rails and ties from the B&ORR, the "South's one unfailing source of supply". After the big summer campaigns of 1861 were mostly finished, Stonewall Jackson returned to Winchester and continued in his devotion of energy to "uprooting track west of Martinsburg" and were "able to deliver 3,000 tons of Baltimore & Ohio rails to the Winchester & Potomac Railroad in December, 1861."
1862
In the opening months and winter of 1862 most of the Baltimore & Ohio rolling stock and rail ties that had been captured and stored in Winchester, with the help of W&P Railroaders, were evacuated and used in various other Confederate railroads, such as the Centreville Military RailroadCentreville Military Railroad
The Centreville Military Railroad was a 5.5 mile spur running from the Orange and Alexandria Railroad east of Manassas Junction across Bull Run and up the south side of the Centreville Plateau. Built by the Confederate States Army between November 1861 and February 1862, it was the first...
. The W&PRR at that point, however, had very little transportation value for either Confederate or Union forces for the rest of the war, and was not used by the Confederacy anymore after the spring of 1862 when it was seized by Union forces under Major General Nathaniel P. Banks
Nathaniel Prentice Banks
Nathaniel Prentice Banks was an American politician and soldier, served as the 24th Governor of Massachusetts, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives and as a Union general during the American Civil War....
.
Both the western portion of the Manassas Gap Railroad
Manassas Gap Railroad
The Manassas Gap Railroad was an historic intrastate railroad in the Southern United States which ran from Mount Jackson, Virginia to the Orange and Alexandria Railroad at a junction called "Manassas Junction", which later became the city of Manassas, Virginia...
and the W&P Railroad were effectively under the control of Banks in the spring, and were going to be used as part of a plan developed by Major General George B. McClellan
George B. McClellan
George Brinton McClellan was a major general during the American Civil War. He organized the famous Army of the Potomac and served briefly as the general-in-chief of the Union Army. Early in the war, McClellan played an important role in raising a well-trained and organized army for the Union...
to support Union operations in that area. McClellan's plan was to connect the Manassas Gap Railroad and the W&PRR with a line between Winchester, Virginia and Strasburg, Virginia
Strasburg, Virginia
Strasburg is a town in Shenandoah County, Virginia, United States, which was founded in 1761 by Peter Stover. It is the largest town, population-wise, in the county and is known for its pottery, antiques, and Civil War history...
, creating a "complete circle of rails" from the Union capital at Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
to the Shenandoah Valley
Shenandoah Valley
The Shenandoah Valley is both a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and West Virginia in the United States. The valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the eastern front of the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians , to the north by the Potomac River...
by either the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad or the Orange and Alexandria Railroad
Orange and Alexandria Railroad
The Orange and Alexandria Railroad was an intrastate railroad in Virginia, United States. It extended from Alexandria to Gordonsville, with another section from Charlottesville to Lynchburg...
.
Sometime in 1862, likely when McClellan occupied and controlled the W&PRR, its locomotives Ancient and President were captured, and later sold after the war. The Ancient was sold to J. Neilson in 1865 and the President was sold to the West Jersey and Atlantic Railroad.
Late in May, as Stonewall Jackson was busy routing the Fifth Corps
V Corps (ACW)
The V Corps was a unit of the Union Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War.-1862:The corps was first organized briefly under Nathaniel P. Banks, but then permanently on May 18, 1862, designated as the "V Corps Provisional"...
under Banks, the B&ORR was shipping troops forward to Banks. "A troop train, in fact, arrived at Winchester [on the W&PRR] just as Banks began his retreat. Three companies got off and the remainder of the regiment rode back to Harpers Ferry." As Banks retreated from Winchester, the Confederates occupied the northern Shenandoah Valley, burned the W&PRR's principal bridges, and tore up all the track. After Jackson evacuated the area in early June, the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
began repairing the W&PRR, but heavy rains washed the bridges out, and the W&PRR was not restored to service until June 20, 1862.
In August 1862, as Major General John Pope
John Pope
John Pope is the name of:*John Pope , U.S. soldier, traveler, and author*John Pope , U.S. politician, senator for Kentucky, and governor of Arkansas Territory...
was busy retreating and being defeated by General Lee in the Northern Virginia Campaign
Northern Virginia Campaign
The Northern Virginia Campaign, also known as the Second Bull Run Campaign or Second Manassas Campaign, was a series of battles fought in Virginia during August and September 1862 in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. Confederate General Robert E...
, Confederate intelligence learned that the W&PRR and the Baltimore & Ohio were being used to bring reinforcements to Pope. Reverend J. W. Jones of Charles Town, Virginia reported that the Northern government was using the railroad for that purpose, and this was confirmed three days later when Major General J.E.B. Stuart
J.E.B. Stuart
James Ewell Brown "Jeb" Stuart was a U.S. Army officer from Virginia and a Confederate States Army general during the American Civil War. He was known to his friends as "Jeb", from the initials of his given names. Stuart was a cavalry commander known for his mastery of reconnaissance and the use...
captured papers and letters belonging to Pope in a raid on his headquarters.
Also in August, Confederate Lieutenants George Baylor and Milton Rousss of Company B, 12th Virginia Cavalry, led a small raid attacking the W&PRR between Summit Point and Cameron's Depot, capturing eight Union soldiers, $4,000 in cash and food supplies.
Following the Battle of Sharpsburg in the 1862 Maryland Campaign
Maryland Campaign
The Maryland Campaign, or the Antietam Campaign is widely considered one of the major turning points of the American Civil War. Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's first invasion of the North was repulsed by Maj. Gen. George B...
, the Confederate States Army
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
once again controlled the northern Shenandoah Valley for a brief time. The Confederates wanted to remove all the new rails laid down on the W&PRR, but due to a lack of wagons, were unable to take it.. Therefore, General Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
ordered Major General Lafayette McLaws
Lafayette McLaws
Lafayette McLaws was a United States Army officer and a Confederate general in the American Civil War.-Early life:...
' division to once again destroy the W&PRR in order to foil any attempt by McClellan to follow the Army of Northern Virginia
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...
. McClellan, meanwhile, on October 10, was making arrangements with the Baltimore & Ohio to reconstruct the W&PRR with heavier duty T-rails, locomotives and trains for planned future Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
operations. The Baltimore & Ohio evaluated McClellans plan, and replied that they did not have either the ties or rails to do the job, and that it would take at least six weeks to do the job, recommending that the Manassas Gap Railroad be repaired instead. McClellan then abandoned his plan to upgrade the W&PRR on October 12, and after a reconnaissance by Brigadier General A. A. Humphreys on October 19, the Union Army discovered that the W&PRR had been destroyed by the Confederates, making the upgrade plan even more unfeasible. In late October, General Robert E. Lee reported removal of the iron from the railroad for use elsewhere in the Confederacy.
1863
During the first half of 1863 the terminus of the W&PRR, Winchester, Virginia, was occupied by Major General Robert H. MilroyRobert H. Milroy
Robert Huston Milroy was a lawyer, judge, and a Union Army general in the American Civil War, most noted for his defeat at the Second Battle of Winchester in 1863.-Early life:...
, who made no use of the railroad. Resistance to occupation in the Valley began to grow, and the 43rd Battalion Virginia Cavalry
43rd Battalion Virginia Cavalry
The 43rd Battalion, Virginia Cavalry, also known as Mosby's Rangers, Mosby's Raiders or Mosby's Men, was a battalion of partisan cavalry in the Confederate army during the American Civil War...
was stood up in that area under Major John S. Mosby
John S. Mosby
John Singleton Mosby , nicknamed the "Gray Ghost", was a Confederate cavalry battalion commander in the American Civil War...
, also known as the "Gray Ghost". On June 15, after a sweeping rout of Milroy in the Second Battle of Winchester, the Confederates once again controlled the northern Shenandoah Valley as they marched to the Potomac River
Potomac River
The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...
during the Gettysburg Campaign
Gettysburg Campaign
The Gettysburg Campaign was a series of battles fought in June and July 1863, during the American Civil War. After his victory in the Battle of Chancellorsville, Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia moved north for offensive operations in Maryland and Pennsylvania. The...
. Two days later "Captain T. B. Lee of the Corps of Engineers, C.S.A., was ordered to proceed to the lines of the Winchester & Potomac and the Baltimore & Ohio to collect any machinery, tools, rolling stock, or portions thereof which fell into Confederate hands. He was instructed to arrange with Lee's chief quartermaster, Colonel J. L. Corley, for men and wagons to transport the material down the Valley turnpike." By the end of 1863 the W&PRR had been practically and nearly completely destroyed by the actions of armies on both sides, and the Confederates, who remained in loose control of the Valley, had no desire to repair or use the railroad, but rather desired to keep it inoperational.
1864
In March and April 1864 Union forces, observed by Colonel John S. MosbyJohn S. Mosby
John Singleton Mosby , nicknamed the "Gray Ghost", was a Confederate cavalry battalion commander in the American Civil War...
, were surveying the W&PRR and began repairing the road and laying rails, in preparation for advancements into the Valley. This report was relayed by Major General J.E.B. Stuart
J.E.B. Stuart
James Ewell Brown "Jeb" Stuart was a U.S. Army officer from Virginia and a Confederate States Army general during the American Civil War. He was known to his friends as "Jeb", from the initials of his given names. Stuart was a cavalry commander known for his mastery of reconnaissance and the use...
to General Robert E. Lee saying “It is stated that preparations are making to rebuild the [W&P] railroad from Harper’s Ferry to Winchester, which would indicated a reoccupation of the latter place. The Baltimore & Ohio Railroad is very closely guarded along its whole extant. No ingress or egress from their lines is permitted to citizens as heretofore, and everything shows secrecy & preparation.” The W&P Railroad was not actually re-opened by the Union for service until later in 1864.
After Major General Philip Sheridan
Philip Sheridan
Philip Henry Sheridan was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close association with Lt. Gen. Ulysses S...
pursued Lieutenant General Jubal A. Early
Jubal Anderson Early
Jubal Anderson Early was a lawyer and Confederate general in the American Civil War. He served under Stonewall Jackson and then Robert E. Lee for almost the entire war, rising from regimental command to lieutenant general and the command of an infantry corps in the Army of Northern Virginia...
south in the Shenandoah Valley, clearing the north end of Confederate forces, the Union Army set about, once again, and for the last time, repairing the W&PRR, reconstructing 26 miles of roadway to serve Sheridan.
1865
Post Bellum
Following the war, in 1866 the railroad was returned to the company and stock holders, who decided to simply lease the right–of-way to the B&O Railroad. Then, in 1870 the new Winchester and Strasburg Railroad was built which connected Harpers Ferry, West Virginia to the Manassas Gap RailroadManassas Gap Railroad
The Manassas Gap Railroad was an historic intrastate railroad in the Southern United States which ran from Mount Jackson, Virginia to the Orange and Alexandria Railroad at a junction called "Manassas Junction", which later became the city of Manassas, Virginia...
in place at Strasburg, Virginia
Strasburg, Virginia
Strasburg is a town in Shenandoah County, Virginia, United States, which was founded in 1761 by Peter Stover. It is the largest town, population-wise, in the county and is known for its pottery, antiques, and Civil War history...
enabling a connection up the Shenandoah Valley to Harrisonburg, Virginia
Harrisonburg, Virginia
Harrisonburg is an independent city in the Shenandoah Valley region of Virginia in the United States. Its population as of 2010 is 48,914, and at the 2000 census, 40,468. Harrisonburg is the county seat of Rockingham County and the core city of the Harrisonburg, Virginia Metropolitan Statistical...
. Eventually the Baltimore & Ohio "purchased the Winchester & Potomac" and "constructed a line the length of the Valley" to Lexington, Virginia
Lexington, Virginia
Lexington is an independent city within the confines of Rockbridge County in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 7,042 in 2010. Lexington is about 55 minutes east of the West Virginia border and is about 50 miles north of Roanoke, Virginia. It was first settled in 1777.It is home to...
where it joined a spur of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad. Throughout Reconstruction northern railroad companies were able to charter new lines and construct railroads that connected the entire Shenandoah Valley north into Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
and south into Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
and North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
.
In 1896 the United States Supreme Court ruled in a lawsuit, overturning a previous judgment in favor of W&P Railroad Company for $30,340 for the value of the iron rails that were removed in 1862 during the American Civil War. The W&P Railroad Company claimed that its stock owners were loyal citizens during the war, and that the United States had taken possession and control of the valley up to Winchester, and then had removed its strap and T rails over to the Manassas Gap Railroad for service, as well as storage in Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2009, the city had a total population of 139,966. Located along the Western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately six miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.Like the rest of northern Virginia, as well as...
and they were never returned. Furthermore, W&P Railroad had paid Manassas Gap Railroad $25,000 in 1874 for rails that had been put on to the W&P Railroad.
Modern Times
Shenandoah Subdivision
The Shenandoah Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation in the U.S. states of West Virginia and Virginia. The line runs from Harpers Ferry, West Virginia southwest to Strasburg, Virginia along a former Baltimore and Ohio Rail Road line...
of CSX Transportation
CSX Transportation
CSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...
.
- Winchester & Potomac after the American Civil War
After the Civil War, the Winchester & Potomac RR was repaired with financial assistance from the Baltimore & Ohio which was rebuilding and expanding anew. In 1867 they B&O and the W&P executed a lease agreement which essentially permanently made the W&P a part of the B&O and its successors, something which has continued to the present day, as of this writing, mid-2009. The Winchester & Strasburg RR connecting those two cities was chartered in 1867, opened in June 1870 and has always been total controlled by the B&O and its successors as of July 2009.