Virginia is planning an east-west rail route connecting the Blue Ridge Mountains to the beach

[mahatmakanejeeves]

2. That's the old Virginia Central, aka the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway's Piedmont Subdivision.

You start your journey in Richmond at the Main Street station. Go north for about twenty miles, and then turn left. You cross the RF&P at Doswell. Keep going to the WNW through Bumpass, Louisa, and Gordonsville. Make another left turn and head SSW to Charlottesville.

A picture is worth a thousand words:

Chesapeake & Ohio Piedmont Subdivision

A Quick Tour

The Piedmont Sub began in Richmond’s 17th Street Yard, a little north and west of Main Street Station. From there, it headed north, roughly parallel to the RF&P. Eventually the line turned west, crossing the RF&P at Doswell. It then headed west and slightly north through Mineral and Louisa to Gordonsville. The line in this area was mostly single track and ran through lands forested with a mix of deciduous and evergreen trees. Gordonsville was the junction with the C&O’s Washington Sub. Past Gordonsville, the line ran south and west through Lindsay and Keswick. The Piedmont Sub ended in Charlottesville (but see here), where the C&O’s name trains had their consists shifted for the run over the Mountain Sub.

The Piedmont Sub was the oldest section of the C&O: it was chartered as the Louisa Railroad in 1836. This site is intended to chronicle the history and development of the Piedmont Sub. If you have information or photos you would be willing to share, please contact me at the address listed below. If I can collect sufficient information, I’d eventually like to publish this material in book form.

Map