The Dawkins Line Rail Trail is an 18-mile (29.0 km) rail trail in Johnson and Magoffin Counties in Kentucky. The multi-use trail, suitable for biking, walking, and horseback riding, occupies an abandoned rail corridor that was constructed in the early 20th century for the Dawkins Lumber Company.[1] It is the longest rail trail in Kentucky.[2]
| Dawkins Line Rail Trail | |
|---|---|
  Location within the state of Kentucky  Dawkins Line Rail Trail (the United States) | |
| Location | Eastern Kentucky Coal Fields, Johnson County and Magoffin County, Kentucky USA |
| Nearest city | Paintsville, Kentucky |
| Coordinates | 37°44′12″N 82°54′00″W / 37.73678°N 82.900059°W |
| Established | June 15, 2013 |
| Governing body | Kentucky Department of Parks
|
| Length | 18 mi (29 km) |
| Trailheads | Swamp Branch Royalton |
| Use | Cycling, Equestrian, and Hiking |
| Difficulty | Easy |
| Season | All |
| Surface | Crushed stone |
| Website | Official site |
History
editThe name of the trail was derived from the Dawkins Lumber Company, which incorporated the Big Sandy and Kentucky River Railroad (BS&K) to construct the railroad in 1912. This rail corridor was developed as means of transportation for company employees and for the extraction of timber from remote areas. After the stock market crash of 1929, the BS&K was dissolved and the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O) acquired the railroad's stock on September 22, 1930.[3]
After the construction of a tunnel at Carver in 1949, the rail corridor was further expanded into Breathitt County.[3]
The rail line right-of-way was owned by CSX in 2002 when it was purchased by the R.J. Corman Railroad Group. R.J. Corman decided to abandon the 36 mile rail line in November 2004. In 2006, the Kentucky General Assembly provided the initial funds necessary to convert the abandoned right-of-way into a rail trail. In 2011, the right-of-way was purchased from R.J. Corman and the project began to move forward. The Kentucky State Parks received a multi-county coal severance grant of $500,000 to help support the development of the trail. The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet provided the Department of Parks with $2 million in transportation program funding for the first phase, as well as approximately $285,000 in Transportation Enhancement funding for trailheads.[3]
After the construction of Phase One of the rail trail was completed, the park opened to the public on June 15, 2013.[2] When Phase Two of the project is constructed, the trail will extend to Evanston in Breathitt County. When completed, the Dawkins Line Rail Trail will be a total of 36-miles (57.9 km) long.[2]
Future work (4th QTR 2014 or later) involves restoring abandoned railbed from Royalton southwest to near the tunnel at the Magoffin and Breathitt County line.[4]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Gov. Beshear and First Lady Open Dawkins Line Rail Trail Archived September 8, 2015, at the Wayback Machine Governor Steve Beshear's Communications Office. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
- ^ a b c Dawkins Line Rail Trail Kentucky Department of Parks. Retrieved on 2013-06-20.
- ^ a b c History of the Dawkins Line Rail Trail Archived January 17, 2014, at the Wayback Machine Kentucky Department of Parks. Retrieved 2013-06-20.
- ^ Transportation Enhancement projects with Mods and Amendments. Spreadsheet dated 2014-08-27. Retrieved 2014-09-03.
External links
edit- Kentucky State Parks Brochure: Dawkins Line Rail Trail (pdf) Archived December 22, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
- Dawkins Line Rail Trail Official Map---new version (pdf) Archived June 4, 2018, at the Wayback Machine
- Dawkins Line Rail Trail Official Map---old version (pdf) Archived February 9, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
- Dawkins Line Rail Trail Opening Announcement Presentation (pdf, 8MB)
- Stage 1 Construction Presentation (pdf, 12MB) from Commonwealth of Kentucky
- Dawkins Line Rail Trail page at Kentucky State Parks website Archived June 24, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
- Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (documents containing "Dawkins")
- Rail Abandonment Environmental Assessment Decision (contains poor map on last page of pdf) Archived January 16, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
- Abandoned: History of Dawkins Subdivision of C&O Railroad
- Dawkins Line Rail Trail Feasibility Study (pdf, 9MB), from Summit Engineering for Big Sandy Area Development District and Big Lovely Mountain Trail Authority Archived September 24, 2013, at the Wayback Machine