[6] In 1852, the local Memphis paper advertised that they needed to hire 50 "able-bodied Negros" every month in order to compete the rail line.

In May 1857, more than 30,000 southerners gathered to celebrate the completion of the first railroad connecting the Atlantic Coast to Memphis, and to witness its first full journey which would lead to prosperity.

When the passengers arrived late at night, they were greeted by music and ceremonies, marking an important milestone for the railroad industry.

President of the Railroad, Samuel Tate, was praised for his grand accomplishment as many investors felt assured that their money was safe.

[12] On the morning of April 11, 1862, Union troops led by General Ormsby MacKnight Mitchel captured Huntsville, cutting off this railroad's use for the Confederacy.

[12] Construction of the rail line still persisted during the Civil War because the owners of the railroad wanted to serve the Confederate Army.

When the Mayor of Greenville, Mississippi died from the fever, people made the railroad the culprit for bringing this evil disease into their town.

The epidemic that resulted from the railway transmission became so bad that the trains on the Memphis and Charleston Railroad became the transportation for supplies to cure the many that were affected.

Areas surrounding Memphis became very worried that the disease would infect their small towns and grew wary of the railway, leaving it with a bad reputation.

The Jim Crow laws became more apparent in the mid 1880s, when railroad companies admitted that they were trying to move their non-white passengers into a certain car.

[22] Although the west failed to develop industrially, the Memphis and Charleston railroad, which now operated under a different name, still continued to make an impact in the southern economy.

In the 1910s and 1920s, the Memphis and Charleston railroad continued to be used as a major resource for the industrial companies that managed to survive the southern depression after the war.