Heath Gravity Railroad
Posted by: 
altbiers
N 37° 32.130 W 077° 38.243
18S E 266970 N 4157548
Marker for the Heath Gravity Railroad, one of the
Waymark Code: WMBWHW
Location: Virginia, United States
Date Posted: 06/27/2011
Views: 9
Some 500 feet beyond this point along both sides of Salisbury Road, roadbed remains of the Heath Gravity Railroad are visible. The railroad ran through this area from 1838 until approximately 1850. It was used to transport coal mined from the Midlothian area for use in the Richmond iron foundries and in Richmond homes for heat. This carefully engineered six-mile Railroad moved coal by horse and by gravity from a ridge line in the present-day Sycamore Square area through Salisbury to a point on the James River west of Bellona Arsenal. The coal was loaded onto bateaux which transported it across the river and then east on the Kanawha Canal.
The rails and ties of the railroad within Salisbury were removed and used in the construction of the nearby former Richmond and Danville Railroad (now Norfolk Southern) and for repairing this same railroad, and others, during the Civil War.
The coal mines of the Midlothian area represent the earliest systematic excavation of fossil fuel in the United States.
Marker Title: Heath Gravity Railroad
Marker Location: Salisbury Rd and Robious Rd Midlothian, VA
County or Independent City: Chesterfield, VA
Marker Program Sponsor: Salsibury Home Owners Association
Marker Number: Not listed
Web Site: Not listed
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