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Whilst watching The Masters on tv last weekend I occasionally heard a train whistle in the background (I seem to recollect somewhere around Amen Corner but I could be mistaken) and am wondering idly what train(s) might have been making the sound and whither bound. Any thoughts please?
Posts: 211 | From: Norfolk England | Registered: Sep 2007
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From reviewing Google Map set at 1.5":1mi, it appears that Augusta National has rail lines on the N, E, & S sides - all within one mile.
Needless to say, any of the train horns heard were freight (I didn't watch any of The Masters this year - I was on my auto trip to Salt Lake and return); while Augusta did have passenger service until about 1977, such was the "Georgia Mixed" or one passenger car on the head of a 100+ car freight operating Atlanta-Augusta. Apparently, the Georgia RR received favorable 'tax breaks' for operating the service, however when that road was merged into the CSX System, the 'tax breaks' were deemed 'not worth it', and the Adios drumhead went up on the Coach.
I once rode the GA end to end on a 1970 fan trip as well as the "Mixto' Atlanta to Stone Mtn during the Amtrak-era. I still have my fare receipt that the Conductor dutifully and completely prepared for each of us in our party of six railfans.
Posts: 9976 | From: Clarendon Hills, IL USA (BNSF Chicago Sub MP 18.71) | Registered: Apr 2002
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During the 1980's a publicly funded entity called the 'New Georgia Railroad' ran excursions (a loop around Atlanta and an RT to Stone Mountain were on the menu) pulled by the Savannah & Atlanta 750, a medium-sized 4-6-2. I was fortunate enough to do the Stone Mountain trip in about 1987 when I was in town watching NCAA Basketball tournament games.
The funds dried up shortly thereafter and 750 now sits inside an aluminum museum building.
-------------------- David Pressley
Advocating for passenger trains since 1973!
Climbing toward 5,000 posts like the Southwest Chief ascending Raton Pass. Cautiously, not nearly as fast as in the old days, and hoping to avoid premature reroutes. Posts: 4203 | From: Western North Carolina | Registered: Feb 2004
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There also was a dinner train run from Atlanta to the Stone Mtn area at the ATL NRHS convention in the 1990s. I had the chance to ride though most was in darkness. Wish I could've riden out to Augusta when the mixed was still running.
Posts: 561 | Registered: Jul 2003
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