GC3CGFJ Virginia's First Railroad- Midlothian Mine Series (Traditional Cache) in Virginia, United States created by altbiers

GC3CGFJ ▼

A cache by altbiers Message this owner

Hidden : 2/12/2012

Difficulty:

Terrain:

Size: Size: small (small)

Join now to view geocache location details. It's free!

Watch

How Geocaching Works

Related Web Page

Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions in our disclaimer.

Geocache Description:

Another piece of history tucked away off busy Midlothian Turnpike.

Walk behind the building and then down railwaybed to make it to the cache. Be sure to check out the tunnel near the cache! I didn't mean to make this one so hard, but after setting the cache, I realized the terrain is a little brutal depending on the direction you try and enter.

I highly recommend parking by the salon and walking around back, you will then come to the old railway bed which will take you close to the cache. The land is owned by Chesterfield County, so the no trespassing signs are for the condos on the other side of the railway bed, you will not be trespassing.

In 1804, the Manchester and Falling Creek Turnpike was built to ease traffic on what is now Old Buckingham Road. In 1807, became the first graveled roadway of any length in Virginia. However, by 1824, Midlothian area coal mine owners were frustrated by the difficulty of transporting on the toll road now known as Midlothian Turnpike more than 1,000,000 bushels of coal by wagons and horse teams to waiting ships below the falls at Manchester on the banks of the James River. Seeking a better method of transportation so that their markets could be expanded, in 1825, a group of mine owners, including Nicholas Mills, Beverley Randolph and Abraham S. Wooldridge, resolved to build a tramway. The Wooldridge family hailed from East Lothian and West Lothian in Scotland, and named their mining company Mid-Lothian, the source of the modern name.

Planning and construction 1827-1831

In the winter of 1827, Claudius Crozet, Virginia's State Engineer, surveyed the proposed route and deemed it feasible for construction. This feasibility study was necessary to obtain funding assistance from the Virginia Board of Public Works, a state agency which, beginning in 1816, invested in a portion of the stock of privately-managed companies building canals, turnpikes, and, later, railroads.

In February 1828, the Chesterfield Railroad Company obtained its charter from the Virginia General Assembly. Within a year, $100,000 stock was subscribed, half purchased by the colliers of Chesterfield County and half by Richmond-area investors. The company hired Moncure Robinson, (1802–1891) a European-trained engineer and U.S. railroad pioneer to supervise construction.

In 1830, capital stock was increased to $150,000 to cover unexpectedly high construction expenses. By June 1831, the construction was completed at $127,000 total cost.

Most profitable railroad in the world 1831-1850 By September, 1831, the railroad was operational, using horses, mules and gravity as motive power. One hundred and sixty cars were put into operation, and it was an instant financial success.

In 1836, the Chesterfield Railroad Company reported carrying 25,903 cars, 84,976 tons (77,089 tonnes) of coal. It received gross revenues of $83,409. This equaled 19% of stockholders' original investment repaid plus 6% dividend. It was reputed to be the most profitable railroad in the world at the time.

In 1840, one of the mining companies reported that 300,000 bushels of coal were extracted from the 777-foot (237 m)-deep Pump Shaft alone, one of the more active mines, using the labor of approximately 150 men and 25 mules. [3] It is believed that most of this coal was shipped out by the Chesterfield Railroad.

By 1844, the Chesterfield Railroad had repaid the stockholders' entire original investment and consequently came under regulation of Virginia Board of Public Works, which adjusted charges to fix a dividend return of 6%. The rate for carrying coal reduced from 6¢ per bushel to 3¢.

The idea of hauling freight on rails was not new. The English had been using the technology for over a hundred years to move heavy commodities, such as iron ore. These systems consisted of a heavily built ore cars pulled by horses. The Chesterfield Railroad was such a system. It began operations in 1832 and hauled coal from mines in Midlothian to wharves on the James River. During its entire thirteen year existence, it relied on horse power.

The rails were made of iron straps nailed down to wooden rails. These straps would continually bend under the weight of the overloaded coal cars and work free of the nails bending upwards. This was nicknamed "snake bends" or "snake bites". My son and I found a section of the iron, see photo below.

Did you ever wonder how they came up with the guage system for railroads? Read below:
All of Petersburg’s antebellum railroads used the same standard gauge track which is 4 feet 8 1/2 inches between the inside edges of the rails. It is also called the Stephenson gauge, after English railroad engineer George Stephenson, who developed it, or Normal gauge. Some authorities maintain that it was established by the Romans over 1,200 years earlier. They base this on the fact that when the Romans occupied Britain they built granite roads. Over the years, wagons wore ruts in them. This established a gauge as if wagon wheels were spaced differently then one wheel would invariably ride inside the rut and the other outside. Many centuries later, wagon and carriage makers continued to the gauge for the same reason. It was so well accepted and proven that Stephenson adopted it for the first railroads. Almost all of the first American locomotives came from England and thus American railroads had to use the same gauge. Thus the gauge of American railroads was established by the Romans. I must have driven by the historical marker hundreds of times. I didn't mean to make this one so hard initially, but after setting the cache, I realized the terrain is a little brutal depending on the direction you try and enter. I highly recommend parking by the salon and walking around back, you will then come to the old railway bed which will take you close to the cache. The land is owned by Chesterfield County, so the no trespassing signs are for the condos on the other side of the railway bed, you will not be trespassing.