More about Railroads in Atlanta's Civil War Story

The story of Atlanta was intertwined with

the growth of railroads from the very

beginning.  The establishment of the

zero milepost of the Atlantic and Western

Railroad assured that commerce would one

day thrive in that location.  Of course, it wasn't

known as Atlanta then.  It was Marthasville.

And the original settlers set up shop around

seven streets and the railroad tracks.  One of

those seven streets was Loyd Street, now

known as Central Avenue.

In 1862, Atlantans got their first taste of wartime

drama when a band of Union soldiers disguised as

civilians stole the locomotive General.  Click on

the page below to read the exciting tale.  It was

later retold in the Buster Keaton silent film,

"The General," which was historically accurate

for the most part.

The following two maps show how

three important railroads intersected in

the heart of Atlanta at the time of the

Civil War.  They were the Atlantic and

Western, The Macon and Western, and

the Georgia Railroad, which passed near

Stone Mountain.

Because of these railroads, Atlanta was the

central artery for transportation of southern

war materials.  This also made it a strategic

target for General Sherman's assault.

The hustle and bustle of pre-war Atlanta's

train depot and area.

This photo was actually taken after the war,

when the trains were back in operation.  The

roundhouse on which they are positioned had

been destroyed by Sherman's army.

If you are familiar with modern Atlanta, you

may recognize some street names or other

landmarks on this map.

No, that's not a Civil War era locomotive below.

It's a modern diesel CSX engine.  I include it

here because in my book I refer to the love

my brother Buddy and I have always had

for trains.  After church at Prospect Methodist,

we could cross the road and watch the big

engines switching boxcars and flatcars on the

side tracks.  And I'm happy to say that everywhere

I've lived in my life I could hear the happy sound

of a train whistle at night.

A closing note about trains.  I was delighted

to find in the town of Sanford, North Carolina,

less than 30 miles from my home, an old steam

locomotive on display.

Imagine my amazement when I saw that it

was an Atlantic and Western locomotive!

I want to learn more about the history of

this old steam engine and how it ended up

in Sanford, North Carolina.

This dear old relic reminded me once again

how the history of railroads is tightly interwoven

with the story of our whole nation, not

just Atlanta.