The Central of Georgia Railway, The Right Way

The Central of Georgia Railway is sometimes a forgotten classic fallen flag system of the South. At its largest the Central stretched from Atlanta to Albany, east to Savannah, and west extending into Alabama, with the farthest reach to Birmingham. In 1956 the Central of Georgia would lose its independence forever when it was taken over by the Frisco (the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway). The Frisco remained in control of the railroad until it was forced to divest it by the ICC in 1963 at which point it was purchased by the Southern Railway and had its name changed to the Central of Georgia Railroad when it was merged with the Georgia & Florida, the Wrightsville & Tennille, and the Savannah & Atlanta. Surprisingly, the Central of Georgia continues to survive under the Norfolk Southern banner, albeit only on paper.

By 1843 the Central had completed its initial main line between Macon and Savannah, a distance of over 160 miles. From this point forward most of the Central’s growth and expansion came by the way of mergers and acquisitions. After the railroad had completed its line to Macon it reached Atlanta via the Macon & Western Railroad, Augusta via the Augusta & Waynesboro (1854), and Columbus via the Southwestern Railroad (1869), along with many other smaller systems. By this point the Central stretched throughout much of Georgia and was a well-managed railroad by the late 19th century save for the company that controlled it, the Richmond Terminal Company, which allowed it to fall into receivership upon a bond default.

As a result, in 1895 the railroad emerged as the Central of Georgia Railway and continued its growth through acquisition. By the 1920s the railroad mostly reached its final length stretching from its home city of Savannah to as far west as Birmingham and Montgomery, Alabama; as far north as Atlanta and Chattanooga; and as far south as Albany, Georgia. For a railroad, which only operated in essentially two states and reached Chattanooga it operated an impressive 2,000+ mile system.

Being that the Central of Georgia Railway connected many of the South’s largest markets it maintained a steady flow of traffic, particularly interchange traffic with other railroads. While the railroad had a rough stretch between the Great Depression and World War II it was back on its feet after the war. However, success usually draws interest and in 1954 the Central was taken over by the Frisco, who used it has a means to reach Savannah and the East Coast. However, the Frisco was only able to retain control of the Central until 1963 when the ICC forced it to sell of its interests in the railroad at which point the mighty Southern Railway nabbed it.

Then, in 1971 the CoG was renamed as the Central of Georgia Railroad after the Southern merged three smaller railroads into it, the Georgia & Florida, the Wrightsville & Tennille, and the Savannah & Atlanta. Following the takeover of the Central by the Southern the railroad’s identity mostly disappeared. However, even today, the Central remains a subsidiary of Southern successor Norfolk Southern and is still on the books as an operating railroad (NS still even sub letters some locomotives with CoG markings).

Prior to the Central’s loss of independence with the 1954 takeover by the Frisco the railroad had an interesting and classy livery used on its diesel locomotives, which was quite similar to the Baltimore & Ohio’s regal blue, gray, and gold (with yellow trim) passenger livery except that the Central’s paint scheme used a brighter yellow, along with red, for its trim. For more information regarding the Central of Georgia Railway please click here.

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For an excellent listing of EMD-built diesel locomotives, including those owned by the Central of Georgia please click here. Lastly, please click here to locate preserved CoG diesel locomotives.

The American Locomotive Company

The Baldwin Locomotive Works

The Electro-Motive Corporation/Electro-Motive Division

Fairbanks Morse

For a more complete roster of CoG steam locomotives please click here. Also, for information regarding surviving CoG steam locomotives please click here.

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