Louisville & Nashville Railroad in South Central Kentucky

by Kevin Comer

At the midpoint of the 19th century, people and goods moved by river or muddy roads, which made traveling difficult; a stagecoach trip from Louisville to Nashville took 36 hours. Railroads were coming into prominence at the time, and the Louisville and Nashville Railroad was chartered in 1850. It was completed between the namesake cities in 1859, overcoming many obstacles such as Muldraugh's Hill, Green River, and Tennessee Ridge. The line became a pawn during the Civil War, used by both Union and Confederate forces, and endured heavy damages to survive and prosper. The Louisville and Nashville Railroad would grow into one of America's great success stories, expanding to nearly 7,000 miles of track throughout the Southeast. This volume covers the L&N Main Line in southern Kentucky and northern Tennessee, the Memphis Line, the Mammoth Cave Railroad, the Glasgow Railway, the Portage Railroad, and a branch to Scottsville.

128 pages, Paperback

First published March 12, 2012

Reviews

[M.J. Rodriguez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anyone who is a fan of the L&N Railroad will really enjoy this book! It is a celebration of the L&N Railroad in southern Kentucky and northern Tennessee, from the birth of the L&N and the Civil War years, through the steam-to-diesel transition, to the formation of mega-system CSX. This book concludes with a chapter on the railroad museum in the L&N Station in Bowling Green, the home of sinkholes, restaurant critic Duncan Hines and the Chevy Corvette.