List of North Carolina railroads

The following railroads operate in the U.S. state of North Carolina.

Common freight carriers[]

Aberdeen, Carolina and Western Railway (ACWR)
Aberdeen and Rockfish Railroad (AR)
Alexander Railroad (ARC)
Atlantic and Western Railway (ATW)
Blue Ridge Southern Railroad (BLU)
Caldwell County Railroad (CWCY)
(CF)
Carolina Coastal Railway (CLNA)
- (Operates the Nash County Railroad)
Chesapeake and Albemarle Railroad (CA)
(CTR)
CSX Transportation (CSXT)
Great Smoky Mountains Railroad (GSM)
High Point, Thomasville and Denton Railroad (HPTD)
Kinston and Snow Hill Railroad (KSH)
Laurinburg and Southern Railroad (LRS)
Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) including subsidiaries Camp Lejeune Railroad (CPLJ) and State University Railroad (SUR)
- (Operates the North Carolina Railroad) (NCRR)
North Carolina and Virginia Railroad (NCVA)
(RJCS)
Thermal Belt Railway (TBRY)
Virginia Southern Railroad (VSRR)
Wilmington Terminal Railroad (WTRY)
Winston-Salem Southbound Railway (WSS)
Yadkin Valley Railroad (YVRR)

Passenger carriers[]

North Carolina rail stations

Legend

to New York City

(seasonal)

Burlington

Fayetteville

Crescent

to New York City

Palmetto

to Savannah

|

Silver Meteor

to Miami

(seasonal)

Silver Star

to Miami

Kannapolis

Charlotte

Gastonia

Crescent

to New Orleans

Defunct railroads[]

Name	Mark	System^{[nb 1]}	From	To	Successor	Notes
Aberdeen and Asheboro Railroad		NS	1897	1912	Raleigh, Charlotte and Southern Railway
Aberdeen and Briar Patch Railway	ABPR		1983	1987	Aberdeen, Carolina and Western Railway
		NS	1889	1897	Aberdeen and Asheboro Railroad
Air Line Railroad in South Carolina		SOU	1868	1870	Atlanta and Richmond Air–Line Railway
		NS	1887	1891	Norfolk and Southern Railroad
		ACL	1883	1894	Wilmington and Weldon Railroad
				1911
			1908	1935	N/A
		NS	1896	1897	Aberdeen and Asheboro Railroad
		SOU	1889	1941	Southern Railway
		SOU	1905	1941	Southern Railway
Asheville and Spartanburg Railroad		SOU	1881	1902	Southern Railway – Carolina Division
Atlanta and Charlotte Air Line Railway		SOU	1877	1996	Norfolk Southern Railway
Atlanta, Knoxville and Northern Railway		L&N	1896	1905	Louisville and Nashville Railroad
Atlanta and Richmond Air–Line Railway		SOU	1870	1876
			1914	1948	N/A
Atlantic Coast Line Railroad	ACL	ACL	1898	1967	Seaboard Coast Line Railroad
Atlantic and Danville Railway	AD	N&W	1889	1962	Norfolk, Franklin and Danville Railway
Atlantic and East Carolina Railway	AEC	SOU	1939	2003	Norfolk Southern Railway
Atlantic and French Broad Valley Railroad		SOU	1881	1882	Carolina, Cumberland Gap and Chicago Railway
		NS	1905	1906	Norfolk and Southern Railway
Atlantic and North Carolina Railroad	ANC	NS	1852	1989	North Carolina Railroad
Atlantic, Tennessee and Ohio Railroad		SOU	1855	1894	Southern Railway
Atlantic and Western Railroad			1889	1927	Atlantic and Western Railway
Atlantic and Yadkin Railway		SOU	1899	1950	Southern Railway
	BMH		1937	1998	North Carolina Railroad
	BMH		1991	2002
		ACL/ L&N	1910	1955	Yancey Railroad
		SOU	1901	1909	Tallulah Falls Railway
			1908	1932	N/A
		SOU	1893	1910	Carolina and Northwestern Railway
		SCL	1898	1903	Durham and Southern Railway
Cape Fear and Yadkin Valley Railway		ACL, SOU	1879	1898	Atlantic and Yadkin Railway, Wilmington and Weldon Railroad
		NS	1912	1931	N/A
Carolina, Atlantic and Western Railway		SAL	1914	1915	Seaboard Air Line Railway
		SAL	1880	1901	Seaboard Air Line Railway
		SAL	1873	1880
Carolina, Clinchfield and Ohio Railway	CC&O	ACL/ L&N	1908	1990	CSX Transportation
		NS	1903	1906	Norfolk and Southern Railway
Carolina, Cumberland Gap and Chicago Railway		SOU	1882	1895	N/A	Sold at foreclosure; no property in North Carolina
			1919	1927
		ACL/ N&W	1905	1907
		SOU	1872	1873	Chester and Lenoir Narrow Gauge Railroad
			1917	1931
			1931	1934	N/A
Carolina Northern Railroad		SAL	1899	1905	Raleigh and Charleston Railroad
Carolina and Northwestern Railway	CRN	NS	1994		Caldwell County Railroad	Line from Hickory to Lenoir purchased by Caldwell County Economic Development Commission; Leased to CWCY.
Carolina and Northwestern Railway	CRN	SOU	1982	1988	Southern Railway
Carolina and Northwestern Railway	CRN	SOU	1897	1974	Norfolk Southern Railway
	CRIJ		1986	2005	Morehead and South Fork Railroad
			1926	1961	N/A
		SOU	1902	1944	N/A
		ACL/ N&W	1907	1909
		ACL/ N&W	1912	1923	High Point, Thomasville and Denton Railroad
			1886	1920
		NS	1907	1922	N/A
			1893
			1883
			1887	1893
Chapel Hill Iron Mountain Railroad		SOU	1873	1879	State University Railroad
Charleston, Cincinnati and Chicago Railroad		ACL/ L&N, SOU	1886	1893	Ohio River and Charleston Railway
Charlotte, Columbia and Augusta Railroad		SOU	1869	1894	Southern Railway
Charlotte and South Carolina Railroad		SOU	1847	1869	Charlotte, Columbia and Augusta Railroad
		SAL	1861	1871	Raleigh and Augusta Air Line Railroad
Cheraw and Coalfields Railroad		ACL	1867	1868	Cheraw and Salisbury Railroad
Cheraw and Darlington Railroad		ACL	1882	1898	Atlantic Coast Line Railroad
Cheraw and Salisbury Railroad		ACL	1868	1882	Cheraw and Darlington Railroad
Chester and Lenoir Narrow Gauge Railroad		SOU	1873	1897	Carolina and Northwestern Railway
		ACL	1883	1886
	ACL		1886	1889
Cliffside Railroad	CLIF		1905	1987	N/A
Clinchfield Railroad	CRR	ACL/ L&N	1924	1983	Seaboard System Railroad
		ACL	1881	1885
		ACL	1885	1888	Wilmington and Weldon Railroad
		SOU	1879	1880
		SOU	1881	1883
		SOU	1880	1899
		SOU	1873	1890
	D&W	SOU	1891
			1896	1941	N/A
			1905	1930	N/A
	DER		1987	1989	Aberdeen and Rockfish Railroad
Durham and Charlotte Railroad		NS	1893	1912	Raleigh, Charlotte and Southern Railway
		SAL	1887	1901	Seaboard Air Line Railway
		N&W	1885	1887
Durham and South Carolina Railroad		NS	1905	1993	New Hope Valley Railway
Durham and Southern Railway	DS	SCL	1904	1981	Seaboard Coast Line Railroad
		N&W/ SAL/ SOU	1904	1965	N/A
Duval Transportation of the Carolinas			1987	1987	Mid Atlantic Railroad
East Carolina Railway		ACL	1898	1965	N/A
East Carolina Land and Railway Company		ACL	1887	1894
East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad	ETWN		1866	1950	N/A
		NS	1888	1902
Egypt Railway		NS	1892	1910	Sanford and Troy Railroad
Elizabeth City and Norfolk Railroad		NS	1870	1883	Norfolk Southern Railroad
		NS	1899	1902
			1920	1931	N/A
			1907	1919
Florence and Fayetteville Railroad		ACL	1862	1881	Cape Fear and Yadkin Valley Railway
			1985	1990		LRS subsidiary; operated ex-SAL Franklinton-Louisburg branch (originally Louisburg Railroad); to NCDOT after shutdown, trail lease/rail bank
			1919	1925	N/A (leased the )
Georgia, Carolina and Northern Railway		SAL	1887	1901	Seaboard Air Line Railway
		L&N	1871	1887
Glendon and Gulf Mining and Manufacturing Company		NS	1891	1896	Durham and Charlotte Railroad
Goldsboro Union Station Company		ACL/ NS/ SOU	1908	1968	N/A
Graham County Railroad	GC		1905	1984	N/A
Great Smoky Mountains Railway	GSM		1988	1999	Great Smoky Mountains Railroad
		ACL	1834	1855	Petersburg Railroad
		SOU	1855	1874	Spartanburg and Asheville Railroad
			1887	1896
		ACL	1834	1837	Wilmington and Raleigh Railroad
		SOU	1891	1897
		SOU	1883	1887
		SOU	1887			Still exists as a lessor of the Norfolk Southern Railway
			1883
		NS	1903	1905
		NS	1901	1907	Aberdeen and Asheboro Railroad
		NS	1918	1929	N/A
		NS		1909
		NS	1910	1918
Kinston and Snow Hill Railroad		NS		1913
Lawndale Railway and Industrial Company			1903	1943	N/A
			1896	1899
			1899	1940	N/A (owned by East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad)
		SAL	1881	1901	Raleigh and Gaston Railroad
Louisville and Nashville Railroad	L&N, LN	L&N	1905	1983	Seaboard System Railroad
		SOU	1891	1893
		N&W	1887	1896
			1910	1925	N/A
		L&N	1887	1895	Atlanta, Knoxville and Northern Railway
	MA&S		1911	1937	N/A
Mid Atlantic Railroad	MRR		1987	1995	Carolina Southern Railroad
		ACL	1873	1884	Wilmington and Weldon Railroad
			1876	1894	N/A
			1945	1948	N/A
			1924	1945
			1893	1904	N/A
		SOU	1879	1879	Cape Fear and Yadkin Valley Railway
			1899	1910
		SOU	1871	1879
		NS	1904	1905	Durham and South Carolina Railroad
		ACL	1889	1900	Atlantic Coast Line Railroad
Norfolk, Franklin and Danville Railway	NFD	N&W	1962	1983	Norfolk and Western Railway
		N&W	1896	1896	Norfolk and Western Railroad
		N&W	1896	1896	Norfolk and Western Railroad
Norfolk Southern Railroad	NS	NS	1910	1942	Norfolk Southern Railway
Norfolk Southern Railroad		NS	1883	1891	Norfolk and Southern Railroad
Norfolk and Southern Railroad		NS	1891	1906	Norfolk and Southern Railway
Norfolk Southern Railway	NS	NS	1942	1982	Carolina and Northwestern Railway
Norfolk and Southern Railway		NS	1906	1910	Norfolk Southern Railroad
Norfolk and Western Railroad		N&W	1892	1896	Norfolk and Western Railway
Norfolk and Western Railway	N&W, NW	N&W	1896	1998	Norfolk Southern Railway
North Carolina Railroad		SOU	1849			Still exists as a lessor of the Norfolk Southern Railway
		SOU	1877	1877	Atlanta and Charlotte Air Line Railway
			1905	1907
		SOU	1880			Still exists as a lessor of the Norfolk Southern Railway
		ACL/ N&W	1903	1905
	NCPR		1979	2002	North Carolina State Ports Authority
		SOU	1899	1940	N/A
North and South Carolina Railway		SAL	1910	1914	Carolina, Atlantic and Western Railway
		SOU	1868	1894	Southern Railway
			1891	1908
			1909	1917
Ohio River and Charleston Railway		ACL/ L&N, SOU	1894	1902	South Carolina and Georgia Extension Railroad, South and Western Railway
		SOU	1885	1894	Southern Railway
		SAL	1891	1906	Seaboard Air Line Railway
		SOU	1871	1894	Southern Railway
Palmetto Railroad		SAL	1883	1895	Palmetto Railway
Palmetto Railway		SAL	1895	1901	Seaboard Air Line Railway
		ACL	1909	1910
Petersburg Railroad		ACL	1831	1898	Atlantic Coast Line Railroad
		SOU	1862	1894	Southern Railway
		ACL/ N&W	1909	1912
Piedmont and Northern Railway	P&N		1914	1969	Seaboard Coast Line Railroad	Electric until 1954
			1906	1931	N/A
		SAL	1885	1899	Raleigh and Augusta Air Line Railroad
Portsmouth and Roanoke Railroad		SAL	1833	1846	Seaboard and Roanoke Railroad
Raleigh and Augusta Air Line Railroad		SAL	1871	1901	Seaboard Air Line Railway
		NS	1898	1905
Raleigh, Charlotte and Southern Railway		NS	1911	1913	Norfolk Southern Railroad
Raleigh and Charleston Railroad		SAL	1906	1941	N/A
Raleigh and Eastern North Carolina Railroad		NS	1903	1903	Raleigh and Pamlico Sound Railroad
Raleigh and Gaston Railroad		SAL	1835	1901	Seaboard Air Line Railway
Raleigh and Pamlico Sound Railroad		NS	1903	1906	Norfolk and Southern Railway
		NS	1905	1912	Raleigh, Charlotte and Southern Railway
Raleigh and Western Railway		NS	1893	1908	N/A	Leased the Egypt Railway
			1906	1907
			1907	1924
Richmond and Danville Railroad		SOU	1866	1894	Southern Railway
Richmond, Petersburg and Carolina Railroad		SAL	1892	1900	Seaboard Air Line Railway
		SAL	1847	1849	Seaboard and Roanoke Railroad
			1907	1919
		N&W	1887	1896
		SAL	1885	1911	Seaboard Air Line Railway
			1855	1863	N/A
Rockingham Railroad	RKG	ACL	1910	1968	N/A
		ACL	1910	1910	Rockingham Railroad
		N&W	1881	1887
		N&W	1879	1881
		ACL/ L&N, SOU	1881	1886	Charleston, Cincinnati and Chicago Railroad
		NS		1910	Sanford and Troy Railroad
Sanford and Troy Railroad		NS	1910	1912	Raleigh, Charlotte and Southern Railway
Seaboard Air Line Railroad	SAL	SAL	1946	1967	Seaboard Coast Line Railroad
Seaboard Air Line Railway		SAL	1900	1945	Seaboard Air Line Railroad
Seaboard Air Line System		SAL	1893	1900	Seaboard Air Line Railway
Seaboard Coast Line Railroad	SCL		1967	1983	Seaboard System Railroad
		ACL	1873	1883
Seaboard and Roanoke Railroad		SAL	1846	1911	Seaboard Air Line Railway
Seaboard System Railroad	SBD		1983	1986	CSX Transportation
	SMN		1905	1927	N/A
South Carolina and Georgia Extension Railroad		SOU	1898	1902	Southern Railway – Carolina Division
South and Western Railroad		ACL/ L&N	1905	1908	Carolina, Clinchfield and Ohio Railway
South and Western Railway		ACL/ L&N	1901	1906	South and Western Railroad
Southeastern Railroad		ACL	1897	1900	Atlantic Coast Line Railroad
Southern Railway	SOU	SOU	1894	1990	Norfolk Southern Railway
Southern Railway – Carolina Division		SOU	1902	1996	Norfolk Southern Railway
Spartanburg and Asheville Railroad		SOU	1874	1881	Asheville and Spartanburg Railroad
		SOU	1887	1894	Southern Railway
		NS	1884	1906	Norfolk and Southern Railway
Tallulah Falls Railway	TF	SOU	1909	1961	N/A
			1903	1920
			1920	1951	N/A
			1905	1911
			1919	1933	N/A
		SOU	1899
			1920	1945	N/A
		SAL	1883	1892	Richmond, Petersburg and Carolina Railroad
Virginia–Carolina Railway		N&W	1911	1919	Norfolk and Western Railway
Virginia and Carolina Southern Railroad		ACL	1903
			1920		N/A	Never operated
	WAR		1876	1985	N/A
Washington and Plymouth Railroad		NS	1901	1904	Norfolk and Southern Railroad
		ACL	1903	1944	Atlantic Coast Line Railroad
			1907	1917
			1893	1926
Western Railroad		ACL, SOU	1852	1879	Cape Fear and Yadkin Valley Railway
Western North Carolina Railroad		SOU	1855	1894	Southern Railway
		ACL/ SAL	1866	1956	Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, Seaboard Air Line Railroad
			1907	1945	N/A
Wilmington and Carolina Railroad		ACL	1870	1870	Wilmington, Columbia and Augusta Railroad
Wilmington, Chadbourn and Conway Railroad		ACL	1887	1895	Wilmington and Conway Railroad
		ACL	1883	1887	Wilmington, Chadbourn and Conway Railroad
		SAL	1855	1855
		SAL	1855	1873
Wilmington, Columbia and Augusta Railroad		ACL	1870	1898	Atlantic Coast Line Railroad
Wilmington and Conway Railroad		ACL	1895	1896	Wilmington, Columbia and Augusta Railroad
Wilmington and Manchester Railroad		ACL	1847	1870	Wilmington and Carolina Railroad
		ACL	1897	1897	Wilmington and Weldon Railroad
		ACL	1893	1897
Wilmington, Onslow and East Carolina Railroad		ACL	1885	1893
Wilmington and Raleigh Railroad		ACL	1834	1855	Wilmington and Weldon Railroad
		ACL	1861	1873
Wilmington and Weldon Railroad		ACL	1855	1900	Atlantic Coast Line Railroad
		SOU	1879	1880
		SOU	1878	1880
		ACL/ N&W/ SOU	1922	1972	Norfolk and Western Railway, Southern Railway, Winston-Salem Southbound Railway
			1889
		SOU	1871			Still exists as a lessor of the Norfolk Southern Railway
Yancey Railroad	YAN		1955	1982	N/A

Electric railways

Piedmont and Northern Railway (P&N)

Private carriers

Experimental Railroad

Not completed

Notes[]

^ This is one or more of the Class I railroads that the railroad became part of, if any.

References[]

Association of American Railroads (2003), Railroad Service in North Carolina (PDF). Retrieved May 11, 2005.

[1] This is one or more of the Class I railroads that the railroad became part of, if any.

[nb 1]

v t Railroads of North Carolina
Common carriers	Aberdeen, Carolina and Western Railway Aberdeen and Rockfish Railroad Alexander Railroad Atlantic and Western Railway Blue Ridge Southern Railroad Caldwell County Railroad Carolina Coastal Railway Carolina Southern Railroad Chesapeake and Albemarle Railroad CSX Transportation Great Smoky Mountains Railroad Laurinburg and Southern Railroad North Carolina Railroad North Carolina and Virginia Railroad Nash County Railroad Norfolk Southern Railway State University Railroad Thermal Belt Railway Virginia Southern Railroad Winston-Salem Southbound Railway Wilmington Terminal Railroad Yadkin Valley Railroad
Passenger carriers	Amtrak
See also: Former carriers in North Carolina · List of United States railroads by political division

v t State of North Carolina
Raleigh (capital)
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Major towns	Beaufort Boone Brevard Carrboro Clayton Cornelius Dunn Fuquay-Varina Harrisburg Holly Springs Hope Mills Huntersville Indian Trail Kernersville Knightdale Leland Matthews Midland Mint Hill Mooresville Morehead City Morrisville Mount Pleasant Oxford Shallotte Smithfield Southern Pines Tarboro Waynesville Winterville
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v t List of United States railroads by political division
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