Clinchfield Railroad

The line ran from the coalfields of Virginia and Elkhorn City, Kentucky, to the textile mills of South Carolina.

A transportation route from the Ohio River to the South Atlantic was discussed in a convention held at Estillville, Virginia in 1831.

By 1893, the Triple C financial problems were aggravated by the failure of the Baring Brothers, of London, England, and the national panic of 1893.

[4] On July 17, 1893, the assets of the Triple C Railroad held by Baring Brothers were sold at a foreclosure for $550,000 to Charles E. Heller.

The construction continued halfheartedly and in 1897 owners sold the entire Camden to Marion segment to the South Carolina and Georgia Railroad.

He proposed that the railroad that would be hauling heavy cargo, coal, through mountainous terrain should be built to higher standards that would provide for accelerated schedules and lower maintenance and operational costs.

[5] With heavy-grade viaducts and bridges, and 55 tunnels (4% of the line), "in constant-value dollars, the five-state CC&O was the most expensive railroad ever built in the U.S."[6] On January 1, 1907, the general offices were moved from Bristol to the Wilder Building in the Carnegie section of Johnson City.

[8] The line from Dante, Virginia to Johnson City was completed in early February 1909 and the line was completed into Spartanburg, South Carolina's Union Depot (affording connections with the Southern Railway's Washington – New Orleans mainline) with the first train, with Mr. Carter on board, arriving on October 29, 1909.

[8] Mr. Carter's plans to create the offices, yard and facilities did not come to fruition, reportedly due to the exorbitant price demanded by the land owners.

Today, it is operated by CSX Transportation (Seaboard's successor) with the Kingsport Area Chamber of Commerce and is now known as the "Santa Train".