Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials.

Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction . Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication . Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Norfolk & Western Railway and Associated Companies Collection, Ms2009-037, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Source of Acquisition

The first accrual of the Norfolk & Western Railway and Associated Companies Collection was purchased in 2008. The second accrual was purchased from the same source in 2009.

Processing Information

The processing, arrangement and description of the first accrual of the Norfolk & Western Railway and Associated Companies Collection commenced and was completed in March 2009. Processing of the second accrual of the Norfolk & Western Railway and Associated Companies Collection commenced in April 2010 and was completed in September 2010.

In the first accrual, materials relating to the N&W and affiliates were processed as the Norfolk & Western Railway and Associated Companies Collection. The working and personal papers of Chapman J. French, distinguishable from the remainder of the collection, were separated into a second collection bearing French's name (Ms2009-034) . Other materials, not related in any way to the N&W were divided into various individual collections (see "separated materials" section).

The second accrual, in keeping with the work done on the first, was also divided between the Norfolk & Western Railway and Associated Companies Collection and the Chapman J. French Papers. With the second accrual, however, materials which were not related in any way to the N&W and its affiliates, as well as N&W-related memorabilia and other items which had been created for external use or created by others, were moved to a new collection bearing the name of the collector, the Wayne Perkins Collection, Ms2010-078 .

Administrative History

The Norfolk & Western Railway was established through a reorganization of the bankrupt Norfolk and Western Railroad in 1896, the latter company itself having arisen from the Atlantic, Mississippi & Ohio Railroad, a successor to the Norfolk and Petersburg Railroad. Through expansion and various mergers, the N&W grew to become a major U.S. carrier, serving 14 states. The company manufactured steam locomotives at its own Roanoke Machine Works (established in Roanoke, Virginia in 1882), and among the railroad's affiliated holdings were several hotels (represented in this collection by the Bluefield Inn and the Hotel Roanoke). Among the company's larger merger acquisitions was the New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad--the "Nickel Plate Road"--in 1964. (Other acquisitions represented in this collection are the Atlantic & Danville Railway (1962); the New Jersey, Indiana & Illinois Railroad (through acquisition of the Wabash Railroad, 1962); and the Winston-Salem Southbound Railway (acquired and operated jointly with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, 1909).) In 1982, the N&W combined with the Southern Railway to form Norfolk Southern Corporation.

Scope and Content

This collection contains materials from the Norfolk & Western Railway, several of its predecessor and subsidiary lines, and associated companies. The collection contains such items as financial and legal documents, reports, maps, plans, timetables, work documents, and printed materials.

The operations of the Norfolk & Western Railway are represented in the collection by a diverse array of materials, including such items as seniority rosters, descriptions / classifications of the company's rolling stock, and printed materials (including legal agreements and a list of Roanoke sidings and team tracks). The N&W materials also include several timetables, train orders, and memoranda from the Passenger Traffic Department. Most significantly, perhaps, the materials include a bound set of standard plans issued by the office of the company's chief engineer. The standards book includes specifications for company-manufactured or -constructed buildings, tools, signs, roadways, bridges, tunnels, appurtenances, etc. Among the remaining materials are a number of financial documents, including such materials as account statements and disbursement vouchers. Also relating to various aspects of daily company operations are several items, including a record book of clerical personnel at the Bluefield Yards; a conductor's train book, bulletins from Crew, Virginia; Passenger Traffic Department circular letters; and time return and delay reports.

The collection also includes several construction job files for the New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad Company (the "Nickel Plate Road") projects in Ohio during the late 1950s. Included in the files for jobs at Huron, Canton, Toledo, Massilon, Georgetown, Fremont, Ironville, Cleveland, and Burbank, are maps, legal documents, balance sheets, correspondence, and reports.

Among the materials in the collection representing other companies are antebellum payment records from the Norfolk and Petersburg Railroad (including payrolls and disbursement vouchers). From the Norfolk and Western Railroad are various financial and legal documents, including account statements, purchase vouchers, and reports, all largely relating to the company's reorganization. Among the many other companies represented in the collection are: the Deepwater Railway; Hotel Roanoke; New Jersey, Indiana & Illinois Railroad; Roanoke Machine Works; Shenandoah Valley Railroad; Tidewater Railway; and Winston-Salem Southbound Railway.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged alphabetically by company name, then alphabetically by topic or document type.

Related Material

Virginia Tech Special Collections and University Archives holds several other manuscript collections as well as books relating to the Norfolk & Western and its affiliates.

Separated Material

The Norfolk & Western Railway and Associated Companies Collection was purchased in two accruals. With the first accrual, materials that were determined to relate specifically to the Norfolk & Western, its predecessors and affiliates were retained in this collection (Ms2009-037). The personal and working papers of Chapman J. French, a civil engineer employed by the company, were easily distinguishable and were separated to the newly created Chapman J. French Papers (Ms2009-034) .

Materials that did not relate in any way to the N&W were separated into the following individual collections:

Chapman J. French Papers, Ms2009-034

Mine Hill & Schuylkill Haven Railroad Stock Certificates, Ms2009-035

New River Mineral Company Stock Certificate, Ms2009-036

Philadelphia & Reading Railroad Receipts, Ms2009-038

Raleigh Coal & Coke Company Rail Spur Drawing, Ms2009-039

Reed Island Iron Company Receipts, Ms2009-040

Rock Island Lines Insurance Booklet, Ms2009-041

Sullivan Railroad Company Stock Certificate, Ms2009-042

Tennessee, Alabama & Georgia Railroad Annual Report, Ms2009-043

Tennessee, Alabama & Georgia Railway Annual Report, Ms2009-044

Thomas Wood and Company Freight Records, Ms2009-045

Virginia Iron, Coal and Coke Company Receipts, Ms2009-046

Much of the second accrual was likewise divided between the Norfolk & Western Railway and Associated Companies Collection and the Chapman J. French Papers. In the second accrual, however, materials that did not relate to the N&W were separated into a newly created collection bearing the name of the collector, Wayne Perkins Collection, Ms2010-078

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Local/Regional History and Appalachian South
• New York, Chicago, and St. Louis Railway Company
• Norfolk and Western Railroad Company (1881-1896)
• Railroad

Rights Statement for Archival Description

The guide to the Norfolk & Western Railway and Associated Companies Collection by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 ( https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/ ).