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The Nashville and Northwestern, originally intended to connect Nashville with the Mississippi River at Hickman, Kentucky, was incomplete when the Civil War began. The eastern portion had only been completed from Nashville to Kingston Springs (and the western portion from Hickman to McKenzie, Tennessee). The USMRR completed the eastern portion from Kingston Springs to Johnsonville on the Tennessee River, where a substantial Federal supply depot soon developed. (The remaining gap between Johnsonville and MacKenzie was not completed until after the war.)
The USMRR completed the N&NW using five
foot southern broad gauge (rather than the traditional "standard" 4'8"
gauge used by most northern railroads) to enable rolling stock to continue
into Nashville and along connecting lines all of which were of the broad
gauge. This connection to the Tennessee River was intended to provide
an alternative supply line which could support the Federal advance toward
Georgia.
Federal depot at Johnsonville [Courtesy Library
of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, LC-B811-2643]
Black troops at Johnsonville [Courtesy Library
of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, LC-B8171-2646]
Substantial numbers of African-Americans (both free blacks and former slaves) participated in the construction of the railroad and associated facilities, and also served as guards to protect it. Andrew Johnson, military governor of Tennessee (and later U. S. President), modestly named the new town at the terminus on the Tennessee River after himself. The USMRR constructed an elaborate complex designed to efficiently transfer supplies from steamboats to railroad cars (an early attempt at intermodal transportation).
Unfortunately for the Federal forces, the Confederate raider N. B. Forrest attacked the Johnsonville installation in November 1864, causing tremendous damage to the facilities and destroying large quantities of supplies. However, this loss did not significantly affect the outcome of the war, because Sherman managed to stockpile supplies via the L&N and the Cumberland River.
Please click on the link below to see a detailed
listing of the railroad facilities of the N&NW as operated by the USMRR:
| N&NW Facilities Listing |
Federal
Railroads | Tennessee Civil War Railroads
| Civil War Technology & Industry
in Tennessee
Last update: May 2, 2000