VA Avenue Tunnel - Part 1

Part 1:  Historical Tidbits
Speak those three words and you are bound to get a conflagration.  Anyone who has read JDland.com can attest to the sensitiveness of the CSX tunnel project (to include my comments which probably haven't been helpful).  But what people need to understand, besides the reason for the tunnel expansion, is how the tunnel came to be and why it's there.  This is not as simple as writing your Ward 6 Councilman Tommy Wells or complaining on JD's page -- because the people you need to complain to are long dead and worked in the white domed building 3/4 mile up the hill.  Some of items I would like people to know is how the tunnel came about, where the existing train lines were located, the history of CSX, and some information on the construction of the tunnel (especially the reference on JD's page about asbestos).

Two key events:

1884:  Around this time, the U.S. Senate first took up legislation to build/expand train tracks through D.C.  Now one has to remember that trains back in those days were the center of transporting goods and people across the country so its easy to see how the eventual legislation was initiated and passed.


"February 12th, 1901, Congress passed two separate Acts relating  to the reconstruction of railroad lines and terminals, and the elimination of grade crossings in the City of Washington. One of these Acts authorized the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company to construct a  passenger and freight terminal at Delaware Avenue and C Street, N.E., with an elevated approach of masonry arches and retaining walls. The other Act authorized the Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington  Railroad Company to enlarge its present Sixth Street Station, to elevate and depress its line on Maryland and Virginia Avenues, and to improve its alignment on Virginia Avenue and through Garfield Park."1

How did CSX wind up using the VA Ave Tunnel:

The CSX family tree began on July 4, 1828, when construction began on the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. America's first common carrier railroad, the B&O played a vital role in the growth and development of the mid-Atlantic region, and paved the way for other regional railroads to follow.  The earliest stages of the nation's rail infrastructure received a major boost throughout this era as new railroads were chartered up and down the East Coast:

- January 27, 1830: The Lexington &Ohio Railroad (which went on to become part of the L&N)

- February 10, 1830: The Petersburg Railroad

- March 8, 1832: The Portsmouth &Roanoke Railroad (Seaboard Air Line Railroad's oldest predecessor)

- January 15, 1834: The Montgomery Rail Road

- February 25, 1834: The Richmond, Fredericksburg &Potomac Railroad Company (RF&P)

- February 18, 1836: The Louisa Railroad Company (forerunner to the Chesapeake &Ohio Railway)

- December 21, 1836: Georgia's The Western &Atlantic Railroad Company

- December 27, 1847: The Atlantic &LaGrange Rail Road (Atlanta and West Point Rail Road Company's oldest predecessor)

- March 5, 1850: The Louisville &Nashville Railroad (L&N)

- May 27, 1852: The Baltimore, Carroll and Frederick Railroad, the Western Maryland's (WM) rail ancestor

- February 15, 1853: The Covington &Ohio Railroad Company

- April 1851, the world got its first glimpse at the future of rail when the Page Locomotive, the world's first electric locomotive, took a test run along the C&O's Washington Branch. 

- 1868, with the states reunited and the country trying to get back on track, Virginia and West Virginia legislatures provided for the completion of lines from Chesapeake Bay to the Ohio River. The Virginia Central Railroad was renamed the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad as the company assumed the rights, interests and privileges of the Virginia Central and the Covington and Ohio Railroads. 

- 1871, the Atlantic Coast Line name appeared for the first time.

- 1873, the Seaboard Air Line name debuted. The Atlantic Coast Line name existed through 1967, until it was absorbed by Seaboard. The Seaboard name was retired in 1986, when it became part of CSX.

- Between 1873 and 1878: The C&O (Chesapeake and Ohio) Railroad was reorganized , and renamed Chesapeake and Ohio Railway

- 1887, President Grover Cleveland signed the Interstate Commerce Act into law, regulating the nation's railroads.

- January 1, 1900, the Chicago &West Michigan Railway, the Flint &Pere Marquette Railroad and the Detroit, Grand Rapids &Western Railway were consolidated into the Pere Marquette Railroad.

- 1908, Carolina, Clinchfield &Ohio Railroad (CC&O) was formed. In 1924, the ACL and L&N agreed to terms on a 99-year lease with the CC&O.

- 1916, the nation's rail growth had peaked with over 254,000 track miles.

- 1927, American rail turned 100 years old as the B&O celebrated its centennial. 

- June 6, 1947: The Pere Marquette Railway, principally a Michigan line, merged into the C&O.

- August 30, 1957: Nashville, Chattanooga &St. Louis Railway merged into the L&N

- February 1963: C&O acquired stock control of the country's first major railroad, the B&O. The acquisition was the first in a series that would catapult the C&O into an even greater rail force.

- 1964: C&O/B&O filed with the Interstate Commerce Commission for permission to acquire control of the Western Maryland Railway.

- 1965: C&O filed with the ICC to acquire control of the Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad (CSS&SB) and announced plans to merge with Norfolk &Western.

- July 1, 1967: The Atlantic Coast Line and Seaboard Air Line joined forces as Seaboard Coast Line. 
- 1969, the company expanded with the addition of the Piedmont & Northern Railway Company.

- 1972: Seaboard Coastal Line, the L&N, CC&O, Georgia Railroad and the West Point Route became known collectively as The Family Lines.

- February 26, 1973: The C&O, B&O and WM re-christened its individual rail lines with a single name: Chessie System Railroads.

- April 1, 1976: The Consolidated Rail Company "Conrail" was formed. Conrail's network reached into Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Connecticut, West Virginia, Maryland, Indiana, Ohio and Illinois.

- October 14, 1980, President Jimmy Carter signed the Staggers Rail Act, which enabled railroads to compete w/o government regulation. 

- November 1, 1980, the Chessie System and Seaboard Coast Line Industries Inc. united and CSX Corporation was born. 

- 1983, the foundation for today's CSX continued to solidify. The Seaboard System Railroad Inc. formed after the members of The Family Lines, SCL, L&N,C&O and the Georgia Group (excluding the Western Railway of Alabama), formally merged on January 1.

- July 1, 1986, the Seaboard System Railroad Inc. became CSX Transportation Inc. 

- 1997, the B&O merged completely into the C&O. On September 2 of that year the C&O officially adopted the CSX Transportation name.

- Between 1997 and 1999, CSX and Norfolk Southern had both set their sights on Conrail's operations, which ran through the mid-Atlantic and the Northeast. Ultimately, CSX and NS agreed to partner on the acquisition, splitting Conrail's operations and resources. CSX bought 42% of the company and gained 3,200 miles of track, which became the last major addition to CSX's current network.

- March 2007, CSX became the first company in the transportation industry to join the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Climate Leaders Program. 

- May 2008:  CSX announces that the National Gateway would result in some type of construction in the Washington DC area

References:
1. TRANSACTIONS of the AMERICAN SOCIETY of CIVIL ENGINEERS (INSTITUTED 1852)

VOL. LXXI, MARCH, 1911

Edited by the Secretary, under the direction of the Committee on Publications.

NEW YORK -  PUBLISHED BY THE SOCIETY

2. CSX.com


Part 2 will focus on the legislation and construction of the tunnel and some of the earliest complaints directed at the VA Tunnel project


Part 3 will focus on some remnants of the old Navy Yard tracks and a section of that track still visible in the neighborhood.