From Rule's Standard History of Knoxville, Tennessee, with Full Outline of the Natural Advantages, Early Settlement, Territorial Government, Indian Troubles and General and Particular History of the City Down to the Present Time.  Chicago:  The Lewis Publishing Company, 1900.

     But a reaction came against the state's being so extensively engaged in internal improvement schemes, and in 1840 all laws authorizing the governor to subscribe stock in this way to such improvements were repealed; but there was no interference with any work already in progress and being carried on in good faith.  No more aid was granted by the state to railroads until 1852, when an act was passed creating a general system of internal improvements.  This act provided that when railroad companies had graded a certain amount of track, then bonds not to exceed $8,000 per mile should be issued for the purpose of equipping the road and its franchises, and the road itself to be mortgaged to the state, the mortgage being in the form of a lien on the property.  But the state, by reason of the coming on of the war of the Rebellion in 1861, became a great loser through its generosity.  The railroads were notwithstanding of great benefit to the people in their commercial and social capacities, and this in all probability much more than compensated for the loss to the state treasury.

     After 1867 no bonds were granted by the state to railroad companies, and the constitution of 1870 forbids the loaning or giving of the credit of the state to any corporation or company, and it also prohibits the state from becoming a stockholder in any company.  But, notwithstanding this prohibition to the state, counties and incorporated towns may still, as previously, vote to aid railroads and other like companies, under certain limitations.

     The year 1835, mentioned in the beginning of this sketch of the railroad history of Knoxville as that in which the spirit of public enterprise manifested itself to such a degree that internal improvements were largely undertaken, is that in which Col. Robert T. Hayne, of South Carolina, paid a visit to Nashville, for the purpose of urging the construction of a railroad from Memphis to Knoxville and thence to Charleston, S. C., on the Atlantic coast.  Such a railroad would, if constructed, connect the Mississippi river with the Atlantic ocean.  A similar effort was made in 1836 by William Armour, then a representative in the state legislature from Shelby county, to connect the Mississippi with the seaboard by a line "running from the eligible point on that river as near the center of the state as practicable to the Tennessee river, thence near the center of the state to a point on the Virginia line."

     For the purpose of discussing the subject of internal improvements, which was still of interest to the public mind, a convention assembled at Nashville, in 1836, at which sixteen counties were represented, and at this convention a resolution was adopted advocating the construction of the above-mentioned road.  The legislature, which was then in session, appropriated $15,000 for the survey of a road by the name of the "Central Railroad," and Albert Miller Lea was appointed chief engineer of this road, with authority to survey the line through the state and to estimate the cost of both a single track and a double track road.

     During this same year a charter was procured for the Hiwassee railroad, the charter requiring that stock should be subscribed within two years to the amount of $600,000; and on July 4, 1836, a railroad convention assembled at Knoxville composed of gentlemen from many of the states in the Union, of which convention Col. Robert T. Hayne was chosen chairman.  This convention adopted measures for the construction of a railroad from Cincinnati or Louisville through Cumberland Gap up the French Broad and on through to Charleston, S. C. Several delegates, however, from lower East Tennessee and Georgia were dissatisfied with this route, and having their attention called to the Hiwassee charter, determined if possible to avail themselves of its privileges and construct a road under them.  By the adoption of this route they considered that a railroad could be built from Knoxville through Georgia to Charleston and put in operation before the road by way of Cumberland Gap could be commenced.  The McMinn county delegates hastened home and opened subscription books, while the Georgia delegates procured a charter from their state legislature, intending to construct the road in such a way as to meet at the state line.  The taking of stock in McMinn county being somewhat slow, six residents of that county agreed to subscribe each $100,000, thus furnishing the entire $600,000 required by the Hiwassee charter, in order to prevent its forfeiture.  These six residents were General Nathaniel Smith, Onslow G. Murrell, Ashbury M. Coffey, James H. Tyffe, Alexander D. Keys and T. N. Vandyke.  But it was found upon examination of the books that $120,000 had already been subscribed, and thus it was necessary for each of these six gentlemen to subscribe only $80,000.

     Upon the organization of the company, Solomon P. Jacobs was chosen president, and Ashbury M. Coffey, secretary and treasurer.  As chief engineer, J. C. Trautwine of Philadelphia was selected.  This road was surveyed and ground was broken two miles west of Athens, in 1837, and this was the first work on a railroad in the state of Tennessee.  The road was soon afterward graded from the state line to Loudon and a bridge erected across Hiwassee river.

     After considerable difficulty with the state occasioned by its having subscribed $650,000 to the stock of the road, because of the insufficiency of the original $600,000 already mentioned as having been subscribed, the difficulty taking the form of a lawsuit which was won by the railroad company in the supreme court; and by reason of various difficulties caused by the stringency of the times, several unsuccessful efforts being made to raise money enough to build the road, the company made agreement with Gen. Duff Green, under which agreement Gen. Green undertook to build the road from Dalton, Ga., to Knoxville, Tenn.  But Gen. Green failed and at length was compelled to surrender his contract.

     The company then made an agreement with William Grant & Co., to complete the road from Dalton to the Hiwassee river and with J. G. Dent & Co.  to complete it from the Hiwassee river to Loudon in 1852, and in 1854 it was completed from Loudon to Knoxville.  In the chapter on the municipality of Knoxville may be found an account of the proceedings of the mayor and board of aldermen with reference to the location of the depot of this road in the town.  But through failures, disappointments and other difficulties the name "Hiwassee" had been changed in 1848 to East Tennessee and Georgia.

     In 1852 the East Tennessee and Virginia railroad company was chartered, the road extending from Knoxville to Bristol, on the state line between Tennessee and Virginia.  Thus a connecting link was formed between the great railroad systems of the Northeast with the roads of the Southwest, in Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi.  This route was completed in 1858 and the two roads mentioned above were afterwards, in 1869 consolidated under the name of the East Tennessee, Virginia and Georgia railroad.

     The system of railroads was gradually extended by the construction of new lines and the absorption of other lines, until it became one of the most important systems of the South.  The Knoxville & Ohio road was begun before the war, being built as far as Clinton.  In 1867 its construction was resumed, and it was completed to Careyville [sic].  Still later it was extended through the coal fields to the Kentucky state line at Jellico.

     Some time between 1870 and 1880 a line was built from Morristown to Wolf Creek in the Unaka mountains, and while Mr. Thomas was president this line was extended to Paint Rock, connecting with the Western North Carolina railroad, forming with it a through line or connection with the East.

     Still later a connection was made between the southwestern terminal of the system at Ooltewah Junction with the Selma, Rome & Dalton to Cohutta, Ga., and a line built thence to Atlanta and Macon, thus making connection with the Macon & Brunswick road and giving a direct line to the sea at Brunswick, which place is still one of the most important ocean terminals of the Southern railway.

     A branch road was also built from Johnson City to Embreeville, the road from Emory Gap on the Cincinnati Southern to Oliver Springs was purchased, and the connecting link between the latter point and Clinton on the Knoxville & Ohio was built.  Another branch was built from Knoxville to Maryville, Tenn., which is the Maryville branch of the Southern railway.  This branch was surveyed in 1876 and completed in 1881, and for the grading of the road from Maryville to the Smoky mountains five hundred Swiss laborers were engaged, but this part of the road has not yet been built.  The road from Knoxville to Maryville is known as the Knoxville & Augusta railway.

     There was also acquired by the company the road from Rome, Ga., to Meridian, Miss.; the Mobile & Birmingham, from Mobile to Marion Junction, Ala.; and the Memphis & Charleston, and the Blocton branch from Birmingham to Blocton, Ala.

     On May 31 and June 1, 1886, the gauge of this system of roads was changed from a five foot to a four foot nine inch gauge, the standard gauge, or nearly so, all the roads in the country at that time, except the Pennsylvania railway, having a gauge of four feet and eight and a half inches.

     In 1894 the East Tennessee, Virginia & Georgia railway system comprised 1,780.3 miles, and it was in this year that the organization of the present Southern railway system, which included the Richmond & Danville, the East Tennessee, Virginia & Georgia, the Georgia Pacific, and most of the leased and operated lines of those systems.  The Memphis & Charleston and the Mobile & Birmingham were not included, but the former was purchased and absorbed by the Southern Railway Company in February, 1898.

     It was in this same year, 1894, that the Louisville Southern railway, extending from Louisville to Lexington, Ky., a distance of eighty-seven miles, was purchased by the Southern, and as it had the Knoxville & Ohio to Harriman Junction, it thus obtained through the Cincinnati Southern railway an outlet to the Ohio river.

     The officers of the East Tennessee, Virginia & Georgia Railroad Company elected November 26, 1869, at the time of the formal consolidation of the East Tennessee & Virginia with the East Tennessee & Georgia, were Thomas H. Calloway, president; Joseph Jacques, vice-president; James G. Mitchell, secretary and treasurer; R. C. Jackson, superintendent; C. Hodge, master of transportation, and J. R. Ogden, general freight and ticket agent.  Among the directors were Thomas H. Calloway, Joseph Jacques, J. T. Grisham, C. M. McGhee, B. M. Branner, William Galbraith, Joseph H. Earnest, Perez Dickinson, J. M. Meek, William R. Sevier and Joseph R. Anderson.

     At the time of the consolidation the total owned mileage of these roads was 270 miles, including the line from Bristol, Tenn., to Chattanooga, Tenn., and from Cleveland, Tenn., to Dalton, Ga.

     On May 25, 1886, the East Tennessee, Virginia & Georgia Railway Company's property was sold under foreclosure by special master, William Rule, for $10,250,000, and was bought in by interests therein controlled, and the East Tennessee, Virginia & Georgia Railway Company was organized to succeed it.  The officers elected under this reorganization were Samuel Thomas, president; Henry Fink, vice-president; L. M. Schwan, secretary, and J. G. Mitchell, treasurer.