Cheney RR & other South shortlines

[Anonymous]

can anyone tell me anything about southern shortlines like the cheney, missouri central, and columbia & northern? i had heard that the cheney itself was abandoned and wondered what commodities it hauled while in business.

[Anonymous]

I assume you are talking about the line CSX sold to Cheney Lime, ran from Birmingham to gadsden, AL. Cheney stopped operations some 5 or 6 years ago, donated the land to several govt entities for trails, etc. Cheney hauled lime and cement to their packaging plant in Allgood, AL Not much other business, maybe occasional lumber, logs. There is a large feed mill on the line, could have been a Cheney customer, now it is served from Gadsden by CSX on a short section of the track, about branching off the Gadsden to Guntersville CSX branch.