Examines the history, services, accommodations, and problems of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway.

In the late 1860s, the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O) pushed its first tracks westward from Virginia's Tidewater region across the mountains into what was then the new state of West Virginia. Ultimately its tracks stretched across a half-dozen states and even into Canada. Appalachian coal was the C&O's primary cargo, but its fast freights carried shipments of all kinds, and its crack passenger trains were marvels of their day. In 1963, the C&O merged with the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in the first of what would become a wave of railroad mergers. Today the old C&O is part of giant CSX Transportation. Images of Rail: The Chesapeake and Ohio Railway gathers 200 photographs that chronicle the C&O story. Here is a fond look back at its mammoth steam locomotives and the diesels that replaced them, its bustling passenger stations, and much more, including the legendary John Henry, who beat that steam drill, and Chessie, the sleeping kitten that was the C&O's much-loved trademark.

A new look at mines, towns, trains, people that were involved in transportation of coal from mine to market on C&O in the period 1945-1960. Chapters include Background; Coal Fields Motive Power; Coal Fields Rolling Stock; C&O Coal Operations; Coal Towns; Mines & Tipples. Most photos are from C&O official files and illustrate every aspect of coal mining and transportation. Maps show branches and their relationship to whole scheme. Ideal for C&O fans, modelers, and those interested in the coal fields of Appalachia. If you have the C&OHS’s 1995 book C&O in the Coal Fields, this book is ALL NEW, and does not repeat the photos or data.

This second volume in a series of books about railroading in Virginia details the history of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway from its inception as the Louisa Railroad in central Virginia in 1836 up to modern times. Each chapter explains how a subdivision of the railway developed, including the types of locomotive used, the nature of the traffic carried, and geographical considerations. The many photographs are mostly from the 1930-1960 era. Maps and track plans add to the rich illustrative treatment, making this a gazetteer of the line.

This C&O history by C&OHS Chief Historian Thomas W. Dixon Jr. is fully illustrated with great photos from the C&OHS Collection. It is a short but detailed history of C&O from the days of Louisa Railroad of the 1830s to the C&O/B&O era of the 1960s. It covers people, events, development, structures, cars, locomotives, physical plant, and corporate history of the C&O. An excellent book for the casual reader and a great reference for the researcher!

The best-loved company symbol of all time. Introduced in 1933, Chessie appeared on calendars, railroad memorabilia, and in advertisements and was modernized to form the logo for the new Chessie System paint scheme in 1972.

This book by T. W. Dixon, Jr., details the whole history of passenger train service on the C&O. Beginning with the Virginia Central in the 1840s and ending with Amtrak's takeover in 1971, much of the information has never before been published. Especially during the 1920-1971 period, the era of the heavyweight steel passenger equipment and the lightweight streamlined cars, the heaviest and most powerful steam locomotives, and the iconic E8 diesels - a wealth of detail. Mail, express, dining car, sleeping car, and ancillary service are covered, as well as motive power, cars, schedules, consists, methods of operation, stations, staff/personnel, advertising, and all the elements that went to make the C&O's passenger trains not only highly efficient, greatly successful, widely known, and well respected. Though passengers accounted for only 5% of C&O's revenue in the mid-20th century era, the company lavished a great deal of attention on it. The feeling was that, to truly be a first class railway, C&O had to have the very best passenger service. Innovations starting in the 1880s and leading up into the 1950s, put C&O at the forefront of passenger service development from an operational and technological viewpoint. In the final decades C&O absorbed the passenger losses in the belief that the passenger train was the best advertising that it could have.