Route led through tunnel in Missionary Ridge
Going through East Chattanooga
Crossing the W&A and heading for the Citico Yards
Route past Lincoln Park, Erlanger and UTC
Going across 9th, 10th and 11th streets and headed for the depot
Wagons by the freight depot on South Market
photo by Will Stokes
John's Railroad Salvage operated at old freight depot
photo by Wes Schultz
Large turntable was at the Citico Yard
East Tennessee line entered Chattanooga through a tunnel in Missionary Ridge
photo by Wes Schultz
Coming down from the tunnel
photo by Wes Schultz
Going by Stephens Street at the side of the ridge
photo by Wes Schultz
Leaving Stephens Street
photo by Wes Schultz
Trestle over Awtry Street
photo by Wes Schultz
Line was once on trestles near current Railroad Museum
photo by Wes Schultz
Crossing signal by empty trestle
photo by Wes Schultz
Railroad crossing in East Chattanooga
photo by Wes Schultz
The intersection of Wilcox Boulevard and Holtzclaw Avenue
photo by Wes Schultz
Piers are still in place by the Wilcox Viaduct where the East Tennessee line trestled over the W&A and the Cincinnati Southern
photo by Wes Schultz
Tracks are still visible near Siskin Rehabilitation facility and the Water Company
photo by Wes Schultz
Looking toward the Health Department
photo by Wes Schultz
Trestle at Third Street
photo by Wes Schultz
Underpass along the route that leads through the center of the UTC campus
photo by Wes Schultz
Railroad ravine at UTC
photo by Wes Schultz
Amphitheater was built on one section of the old East Tennessee line at UTC
photo by Wes Schultz
Concrete overpass on Oak Street
photo by Wes Schultz
Volleyball court at UTC is along the old East Tennessee line
photo by Wes Schultz
View toward Lookout Mountain
photo by Wes Schultz
Trestle over MLK Boulevard
photo by Wes Schultz
Track near MLK Boulevard trestle
photo by Wes Schultz
Track heads for 10th Street
photo by Wes Schultz
Trestle at 10th Street
photo by Wes Schultz
Sighting of an engine on 11th Street trestle
photo by Wes Schultz
Track past 11th Street headed for King Street
photo by Wes Schultz
Chattanooga, after it gained rail connections to Atlanta and Nashville, got a route leading to Knoxville in 1858.
Officials of the East Tennessee and Georgia Railroad, doubting the future of Chattanooga, at first connected to Dalton, Ga., and bypassed the city. But soon a connector line was built to Chattanooga, providing a route to Ooltewah, Cleveland and points north.
Instead of going around the north end of Missionary Ridge as the Western and Atlantic had done, the East Tennessee and Georgia engineers decided to tunnel through the ridge. Though creating the tunnel was quite a feat, the line was able to avoid any crossing of the winding South Chickamauga Creek on the Chattanooga side of the ridge.
This gave the East Tennessee and Georgia a route through East Chattanooga. After crossing the W&A, it came close to the river before it headed on a southwest slant toward the downtown station. It again crossed the W&A near the junction of King and South Market streets.
It wound up that the East Tennessee and Georgia (which afterward became the East Tennessee, Georgia and Virginia Railroad), passed through some of the city's most populous areas. It crossed what became Chamberlain Avenue, Wheeler Avenue and Dodson Avenue, then went across what became Roanoke Avenue before its first junction with the W&A.
The section from the other side of the Missionary Ridge tunnel to the first W&A junction is still in use today and is part of the operation of the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum. The TVRM runs daily trains from a headquarters on Cromwell Road through the tunnel and to a turntable where there formerly was a station just above Chamberlain Avenue.
The Railroad Museum uses the former East Tennessee and Georgia track toward Chattanooga for more extensive rail excursions as far as today's main line at the old junction of the East Tennessee and Georgia and the W&A. It then switches to a section of the old Belt Line that goes just east of Warner Park and the National Cemetery to a crossing of Main Street at Holtzclaw Avenue.
The rails were taken up on the old East Tennessee and Georgia line from its W&A junction to the Union Depot after the depot closed and the trains were consolidated along the old W&A route. A new route to connect with the East Tennessee line on the other side of Missionary Ridge was put in just north of South Chickamauga Creek.
The original line ran by Lincoln Park and by the old Chattanooga Manufacturing Company that still stands near the Water Company property at Citico. It goes near Siskin and Erlanger, then on by the Health Department. Some rails can still be seen crossing the old road leading by the Water Company to the Chattanooga Manufacturing Company.
This line went under Third Street near the current Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences. Some Health Department employees park on the other side of Third Street and walk under the old railroad underpass.
The East Tennessee and Georgia line went through what is now UTC. An amphitheatre was put on part of the old line by an old concrete bridge on Oak Street.
There are trestles on MLK Boulevard, 10th Street and 11th Street. There are still tracks that go just north of 11th Street and engines sometimes back up onto the trestle to switch tracks. Some rail cars are still in operation near the ADM facility on King Street, which is not far from the main line near Central Avenue.
The East Tennessee and Georgia track veered right prior to King to reach the Union Station. a handsome freight depot was built on South Market Street. This was later operated as John's Railroad Salvage, then it was the Freight Depot Marketplace. Later, it was converted for offices for the Henderson, Hutcherson & McCullough CPA firm.