Accession Number: 63
Norfolk & Western Railroad Records, 1881-1979
Bulk Dates, 1883-1946
4.0 linear ft.
Online Catalog Record (BANC)

Overview
History
Series I - History
Series II - Annual Reports
Series III - Rules and Bylaws
Series IV - Legal Documents
Series V - Subject Files

Access and Use:

Provenance: Berea College Special Collections purchased the Norfolk and Western Railroad Records in the mid-90s.

Preferred Citation: Norfolk and Western Railroad Records, Berea College Special Collections & Archives, Berea, Ky.

Overview of the Collection

Records in this collection include agreements, annual fiscal reports, annual reports, annual reports to shareholders, articles of consolidation and merger, bills of sale, bonds, certificates, contracts, deeds, deeds of assignment, deeds of contracts and lease, deeds of conveyance, deeds of release, deeds of trust or mortgage, indentures, leases, lawsuits, petitions, plan of organization, power of attorney, releases, rule and by-law booklets, and subject files. All of these records, including the legal documents, are printed copies which would have been available to stockholders and regulatory agencies.

Related Archives

History

Chartered in 1881, the Norfolk and Western Railroad was created and organized when Clarence H. Clark and his associates purchased the property and franchises belonging to the Atlantic, Mississippi and Ohio Railroad Company. The combined track length owned by Clark and associates, after the rights had been bought in a public sale, was just over 400 miles. By the year 1900 another 1,100 miles had been added, including a branch as far north as Columbus, Ohio. Growth was limited for the railroad until after the close of World War II. In 1959 Norfolk and Western acquired another 600 miles of track, used primarily for coal transport, from the then defunct Virginia Railway. In 1964 N&W added another 2,100 miles to its already large network of tracks by buying up the franchise rights of the Nickel Plate Railroad. Finally, six years later in 1970, N&W took over full control of the Wabash Railroad, which added yet another 2,400 miles. This stretched its lines to over 7,600 miles and included such cities as Norfolk, Buffalo and Detroit, and as far west as Chicago, Des Moines, Omaha and Kansas City. By 1970 the Norfolk and Western Railway Company had assets totaling over two billion dollars. Although it had much mileage in both Virginia and West Virginia, more than two thirds of N&W track lay north and west of the Ohio River.

10 Manuscript Boxes

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