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6
The Western & Atlantic Rail
road’s Terminals, Sidetracks,
Etc.
There is not, probably, in all Amer
ica, a railroad which has such magnifi
cent terminals and such an abundance
of sidetracks, at all necessary points
along its line, as the Western & At
lantic.
The main line of the Western <fe
Atlantic, from Atlanta to Chattanooga,
is 138 miles long; but it has 42 miles
of sidetracks in Atlanta, Chattanooga,
Dalton and at other points along its
line, making a total mileage, of main
line and sidetracks, of 180 miles.
By reason of this profusion of side
tracks, between Chattanooga and At
lanta, there is practically no difficulty
in changing freight and passenger
schedules and making different meet
ing points for the various trains.
One trouble about some railroad lines
is that they have such a scarcity of
sidetracks between their terminals,
that when they are handling a pretty
fair amount of business their freight
trains are unable to get into the scant
supply of sidetracks at meeting points,
and the result is that passenger trains
have to take the sidetracks to allow
freights to pass, or else the passenger
and freight trains get mixed up and
have to “see-saw,” thus killing some
times many minutes, and, probably,
an hour, before they can go forward
on an unobstructed track.
Herein is a great strength of the
Western & Atlantic. Although there
are, in the busy season, frequent instan
ces of where it runs from six to eight
trains on a schedule, yet passenger
trains are never put to any inconve
nience from this cause. When they
arrive at meeting points the freight
trains are in the long sidetracks, and
the mail tra'ns rush by as if there was
not a freight train within a hundred
miles of them.
Passengers going over the Western
& Atlantic, therefore, have reason
able assurance that there will be none
of those petty annoyances in the matter
of delays which sometimes, and on
some lines, frequently cause the miss
ing of schedules with theirconnections.
The perfect system with which the
Western Atlantic Railroad is
worked ; the thorough understanding
and almost brotherly feeling that ex
ists between its officers and employes,
make it the strongest road for its size
in the country, or as it has been said,
“The biggest th Ing for its size in Arner
iky.”
The terminals of the Western &
Atlantic are especially and notably su
perior. In Chattanooga, for instance,
its passenger trains run into the union
depot, and its freight depot and yards
are immediately alongside Market
street, the business thoroughfare of
the city.
In addition to this, the East Ten
nessee, Virginia & Georgia Railway Co.
rents from the Western & Atlantic
the right to run its trains through
the Western & Atlantic’s yard, thus
connecting its Memphis & Charles
ton division with the other divisions.
I
ATLANTA, GA.
MAP SHOWING THE BUSINESS PORTION OF THE CITY, ETC.
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REFERENCES.
1. Union Passenger Depot.
2. —Kimball House.
3. Artesian Well.
4. —Western Union Telegraph Office,
Southern Express Office, Wholesale
Dry-Goods, Drug and Hardware
Houses.
5. —Markham House.
6. —Georgia Railroad Freight Depot.
7.8, 9.—Wholesale Grain, Hay, Meat,
Flour, etc., Houses.
10. —Newspaper and Job Printing Offices.
11, 12, 13.—Six State and National Banks,
wholesale Grocery Houses, and South
ern Telegraph Oilice.
14. —Fulton County Court House.
15. Atlanta Chamber of- Commerce.
16. 17. —Baptist, Catholic, Episcopal and
Presbyterian Churches.
18. —New Georgia State Capitol (being
erected).
19. DeGive's Opera House, Telephone Ex-
change.
20. —Post-office, Custom House, U. S.
Circuit Court, and Hotel Weinmeister.
21. —Present Georgia State Capitol.
The following are the Railroads centering in the Union Passenger Depot, viz.: Western
& A ILA Naic, Central of Georgia, Atlanta & West Point, Georgia, Richmond & Dan
ville, and Georgia Pacific.
There is .no omnibus transfer between these roads, all changes being made in Union
Depot.
All Si reet-car Lines in Atlanta either start from, or pass within, one square of Union
Passenger Depot.
The accompanying map shows the business portion of Atlanta. The Union Passenger
Depot is in the exact center of the city, the city limits being one mile and a half distant.
Scale of distance, one-fourth of a mile to one inch. Street-car Lincs indicated thus -- - -
The Cincinnati Southern Railway
Co. also pays a like rental to the West
ern & Atlantic Railroad Co., for
privileges in Chattanooga.
At Dalton, the Western & Atlan
tic passenger trains stop at the union
depot immediately by the hotels, and
its freight depot is within thirty steps
of the union passenger depot.
The East Tennessee, Virginia &
Georgia Railway Co. also rents from
the Western A Atlantic Railroad Co.
the use of nearly 1,400 feet of the
Western A Atlantic track in Dalton,
and runs its trains over this portion
of the Western <fc Atlantic Railroad,
with the proviso that if its trains are
behind time they are not to proceed
over this track against W. A A. R. R.
trains which are due.
Some of the leading business estab
lishments in Dalton are also along the
Western & Atlantic sidetracks.
At Cartersville the Western &
Atlantic Railroad Co. allows the East
A West Railroad of Alabama to run
upon its right of way down into the
centerof the little city. It also allows
the same privileges to the Marietta &
North Georgia Railroad, at Marietta.
In Atlanta the Western & Atlan-
THE KENNESAW GAZETTE!.
22. —Western & Atlantic Railroad Gen-
eral Offices, Freight Depot, Round
house and Car Shops.
The vacant space here shown is oc
cupied by railroad tracks, etc., and no
vehicles can go across. A ravine di
vides the southwest side.
23. —Central Railroad of Ga., and At-
lanta & West Point Railroad
Freight Depot.
24. East Tennessee, Virginia & Georgia
Railroad Passenger Depot.
25. —East Tennessee, Virginia & Georgia
Railroad Freight Depot.
26. Georgia Pacific Railway Freight De-
pot.
27. —Governor’s Mansion.
28. —Richmond & Danville Railroad
Freight Depot.
29. 30. 31. 32. —Manufacturing Establish-
mentsand Grain Elevator.
33. —Capitol City Club.
34. —Southern R’y and Steamship Associa-
tion Offices, Cannon House, National
Hotel.
tic Railroad passenger trains enter the
union depot, being the only transpor
tation line from the west which enjoys
this privelige.
Its freight depot and general offices
are within a couple of hundred yards
of the geographical center of the city,
and its sidetracks run behind the great
wholesale houses directly across the
street from the Kimball and Markham
houses and other hotels. A majority
of the leading manufacturing estab
lishments of Atlanta are also located
on the line of the Western & A tian
tic Railroad.
In Atlanta, the Georgia Pacific Rail
way Co. rents from the Western A
Atlantic Railroad Co. the privilege of
running its passenger trains over the
Western A Atlantic Railroad into
the union depot. The East Tennessee,
Virginia A Georgia Railroad Co. has
also arranged with the Western &
Atlantic Railroad Co. to transfer the
freights of the East Tennessee, Vir
ginia A Georgia Railway through
the Western A Atlantic yard to
connecting lines in Atlanta.
Thus it will be seen, that the West
ern and Atlantic is master of the sit
uation in Georgia so far as concerns
physical advantages in the matter of
handling and delivering freight, and
maintaining the comfort and conven
ence of passengers.
“The Office Pets.”
In the office of the General Freight
and Passenger Agent of the Western
& Atlantic Railroad there are three
birds, which are very well known to
the many who frequently or occasion
ally go therein.
First is the canary bird, “Bob,” so
called from Lotta’s play of the same
name. “Bob” is quite a pet. He is
several years old and was formerly a
great singer; but during the past win
ter he seems to have almost lost his
voice. He is very playful, and is em
phatically the pet of the office. He is
quite a railroad bird, and seems de
lighted with the sound of passing trains,
and of their bells.
In another cage are the two Austra
lian paroquets, these are frolicsome
as kittens, and are always apparently
engaged in a most animated and good
humored discussion between them
selves. These are both called “Jack,”
or “the two Jacks,” they are sometimes
termed. They are very fond of play
ing with some little bells which hang
in the cage. Occasionally these are
rung by them for several minutes at
the time. Some of their antics are
ludicrous, and arc the source of daily
amusement.
One of the occupants of the office
said, one day to us, “Sometimes
write and figure so long and closely
that my brain becomes tired, and I
get rather muddled, but if I then stop
and look a few minutes at the capers
those chaps are cutting up, and the
make-believe ‘sassing’ that one is giv
ing the other, it amuses and rests me,
and I am soon clear and readv forbusi
ness again.”
When you go up to the General
Freight Agent’s office, pay “Jack” a
(*all, and you will more than get your
money’s worth.
Mr. Brown also has the finest bird in
Atlanta, which is a trained bullfinch,
named “Hans.” His notes are won
derfully sweet, and have been the ad
miration of all who have ever heard
him. He is kept at Senator Brown’s
residence, and is the pet of the family.
A Bootless Swap.
Just before Stonewall Jackson’s fa
mous charge at Chancellorsville, where
he routed a portion of the Federal ar
my in front of him, the Confederates
were drawn up in two lines and were
waiting the command to charge.
A freshly arrived conscript happen
ed to be placed in the front rank, and
after standing there a moment or so,
he turned around and somewhat ner
vously said to one of the men in the
second rank, who, by the way, is now
a very popular agent of the Western
A Atlantic railroad:
“You have been in the field longer
than I have, and understand this busi
ness better than 1 do, would you ob
ject to swapping places with me?”
The other, with a smile, seeing that
the conscript supposed that probably
only the first line was going to take
part in the charge, said :
“0, no, I have no objection, I’ll
swap with you,” and did so.
Within about a couple of minutes
thereafter, however, the command was
given and both lines were rushing for
ward pell-mell with the wildest sort of
“Rebel yell” toward the Federal lines.