The Tweetsie Railroad, Keeping Alive The History Of The ET&WNC

The Tweetsie Railroad, based in Blowing Rock, North Carolina has been in continuous operation since 1957. Today, the railroad operates on a three-mile section of narrow-gauge, which was constructed for the Tweetsie's star locomotive, 4-6-0 #12, to operate on. The locomotive is the last operating steamer of the East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad and the tourist line actually takes its name from the nickname which was given to the ET&WNC by locals who, becoming used to the steam locomotives' high-pitched "tweet, tweet" whistle, dubbed the railroad the "Tweetsie".

While the ET&WNC operated a railroad of some 66 miles connecting Johnson City, Tennessee with Boone, North Carolina the tourist line actually operates on no original ET&WNC trackage, which was actually constructed from scratch. The ET&WNC gave up on railroading in 1950 after increased competition by trucks and automobiles and severe flooding in the 1940s eventually forced the railroad into bankruptcy. However, the Tweetsie Railroad tourist line continues to carry on the tradition of the long-gone ET&WNC and today is a very popular tourist attraction in western North Carolina. Along with the train the railroad features an entire western town theme with plays and mock train robberies very common! For a further history of the tourist line please read on below courtesy of the Tweetsie Railroad:

On October 16 , 1950 the ET&WNC Railroad Company came to an official end. Tweetsie Locomotive #12 -- the last of the original 13 coal-fired ET&WNC steam engines -- was purchased by railroad enthusiasts and moved to Virginia. Her stay there was cut short when hurricane Hazel swept through the state and wiped out the train tracks. The owners found a buyer for #12 in Gene Autry. The movie cowboy intended to ship the locomotive out west to use in films.

Grover Robbins, Jr., a native of the North Carolina Mountains, decided that it was time to bring Tweetsie back where she belonged. Robbins purchased Tweetsie from Gene Autry and in 1956 the little engine headed back to Robbins' home town of Blowing Rock.

North Carolina Governor Luther Hodges designated May 20, 1956 as "Tweetsie Homecoming Day", but it was only a partial homecoming. The locomotive spent several months in Hickory, NC undergoing complete restoration. A year later, on May 23, 1957, Bragg McLeod of Moss Trucking Company in Charlotte moved Tweetsie and some of the original rail cars from Hickory to a scenic spot near Blowing Rock.

In the summer of 1957, Tweetsie Railroad became North Carolina's newest travel attraction, as she made her first run at her new location just a couple of miles away from the old railroad station in Boone. People came from all over the South to welcome her famous whistle back to the mountains.

Tweetsie now makes a scenic three-mile loop through the mountains near Blowing Rock, not far from the original end of the line station in Boone. Tweetsie also operates a complete steam locomotive repair shop, rebuilding and restoring locomotives for other theme parks and museums.

While #12 remains the star on the railroad it has since gained a sister in White Pass & Yukon Railway #190, a 2-8-2. For more information about the Tweetsie Railroad please click here to visit their website.

For more information on tourist railroads like the Tweetsie Railroad you might want to consider the book Empire State Railway Museum's Tourist Trains 2006 from the Empire State Railway Museum. Given excellent reviews this guidebook covers nearly all of the tourist railroads and museums operating in the country in fine detail. So, if you’re interested in locating a tourist train or railroad near you, or simply want to know more about a particular one, you will certainly not be disappointed in Empire State Railway Museum’s guidebook to tourist railroads and museums. If you're interested in perhaps purchasing this book please visit The Railroad Diamond by clicking the tab in the menu to your left marked "TRD Store".