Virginia Southern

Company History: The VS was established in 1988 as an early product of Norfolk Southern’s Thoroughbred Shortline Program. It runs 75 miles from Burkeville, Virginia south to Oxford, North Carolina. Most of the route was originally part of Southern Railway except for a small segment from N&W (previously Atlantic & Danville.) Customers include WD Barton Pulp, Burlington Industries, St. Laurent Forest Products, Mecklenburg Co-Gen, Russell Stover, and Spaulding Lumber. The line from Clarkesville to Oxford has been inactive for several years. The company was a subsidiary of North Carolina & Virginia Railroad and together they were part of the RailTex shortline family. Ownership of RailTex passed to RailAmerica and then the Genesee & Wyoming shortline group. In 2009, G&W sold the Virginia Southern and it became a subsidiary of Buckingham Branch Railroad.

The Virginia Southern Division became the BB’s third division when Buckingham Branch leased from Norfolk Southern the 59-mile section of track for operation between Burkeville, VA and Clarksville, VA in 2009. The Virginia Southern interchanges with Norfolk Southern at Burkeville. The BB Z523 train crew is based in Keysville and provides train services on the Virginia Southern. The Virginia Southern track crosses scenic Buggs Island Lake at Clarksville. The BB has transload sites available at Clarksville and two sites at Keysville. Points of origin and destination for freight include Burkeville, Green Bay, Meherrin, Chase City, Keysville and Clarksville.

Successor/Parent History: This line was launched in 1989 by the Bryant family as a 16 mile spinoff of CSX. It runs from Bremo Bluff south to Dillwyn, Virginia. In 2003, Buckingham Branch leased another 200 miles of line from CSX running from Richmond to Charlottesville, Virginia. This was part of the original C&O mainline which had been replaced and downgraded in 1880 by a lower-grade line. CSX retains trackage rights on the line and it hosts Amtrak’s Cardinal.

Brief History: The U.S. is a country of 50 states covering a vast swath of North America, with Alaska in the northwest and Hawaii extending the nation’s presence into the Pacific Ocean. Major Atlantic Coast cities are New York, a global finance and culture center, and capital Washington, DC. Midwestern metropolis Chicago is known for influential architecture and on the west coast, Los Angeles' Hollywood is famed for filmmaking.