There have been two uses of Columbus and Greenville Railway, both for the same rail line.
Original Columbus and Greenville
The first Columbus and Greenville Railway (reporting markC&G) was formed by the sale of the Southern Railway operated Southern Railway in Mississippi, to local interests. In January 1952, the CAGY retired its last steam locomotive, Baldwin4-6-0 Ten-Wheeler #304 built in 1904.[1] It continued independent operations until 1972 when it was bought by the Illinois Central Gulf Railroad.
Columbus and Greenville Railway bridge over Yazoo River
In 2001, CAGY suspended service over 89.5 miles (144 km) of track between West Point and Greenwood due to a washout. This action split the line in two. The western section operates between Greenville and Greenwood with an interchange with Canadian National in Greenwood. The eastern section operates the remaining trackage from West Point onwards.
The company once specialized in transporting wood and paper products to and from local factories. The company's traffic base has expanded to include bricks, plastic products, feed grains for catfish and swine, finished and raw steel, and biodiesel as well as cotton and rice products. The company runs six trains a day, two between Greenwood and Greenville, two out of Columbus and two at the Severcorr steel mill between Columbus and Artesia.
CAGY Industries was purchased by Genesee & Wyoming Inc. in June, 2008. GWRR is still operating the sections of rail between Greenville and Greenwood, and between West Point and Columbus.[2]
Preservation
Several pieces of CAGY equipment have been preserved and put on display:
Baldwin locomotive #601 is on display in front of the Columbus & Greenville shops in Columbus, MS.
Caboose #508 is in front of a doctor's office in Greenwood, MS.
C&G Rail Trail Coalition
The C&G Rail Trail Coalition was formed in early 2008 with the goal of converting the abandoned section between Greenwood and West Point into a rail trail.[3] Their effort was almost immediately put on hold when the line was purchased by Genesee & Wyoming Inc., who had no interest in abandoning the line at that point. Efforts restarted when GWRR approached the Coalition in February, 2022.
[4]
As of April, 2023, the Coalition is being assisted by the Mississippi Hills National Heritage Area and various municipalities along the route. They are working to acquire funding and develop preliminary plans for purchasing and converting the abandoned line to a usable trail. Some rural landowners crossed by the rail line are fighting the development.
Railroads in italics meet the revenue specifications for Class I status, but are not technically Class I railroads due to being passenger-only railroads with no freight component.
