The CSX Kingwood Subdivision or the M & K branch is the only remaining section of the former Morgantown and Kingwood Railroad. The M&K RR was constructed in the early years of the 20th century to haul the enormous coal resources found between Rowlesburg and Morgantown, WV.
Completed in 1907, this line was absorbed by the B&O in 1920, in which it served as a minor through route between M&K Junction and the FM&P line at Morgantown. By the 1940's, fifteen coal mines located on this line provided enough traffic that several turns a day out of M&K and Morgantown were reguired. As the coal reserves gradually began to drain over the years, traffic levels fell with the number of active coal loaders and by the early 1970's, the M&K branch was physically severed between Kingwood, WV, and Reedsville, WV. The western portion of the M & K became the Morgantown SD while the eastern portion became the Kingwood SD. By 1987, the M&K branch had been abandoned from a point just west of Albright towards Kingwood with the remaining section between Albright and M&K Junction remaining intact. Two medium sized mines provided the traffic during that era which the subdivision came to depend upon: the Patriot Prep loader south of Cadell, WV, and the Deep Hollow loader, located at the end of track near Albright. Until the spring of 2000, the Kingwood Sub was usually worked on a five day a week turn with empties being taken to one of the mines and loads brought back to M&K Junction from the other. However, the fate of the Kingwood line began to unfold in the early months of 2000 when Patriot Prep loaded its last train, followed several months later by Deep Hollow which moved its operation to a newly constructed loadout on the West End at 83 Fill. With these mines gone, the Kingwood Subdivision has almost totally become devoid of traffic save for a lumbermill at Caddell which is usually worked once a week and occasional shipments to the nearby Camp Dawson National Guard base. With CSX already preparing to gleam excess trackage from the Allegheny Division, what does the future hold for this subdivision? It's anyones guess really, but better get your photos now...
The M&K Turn lead by CSX SD60 #8708 has just passed the MP 0 marker on the Kingwood Subdivision. The bridge is shared between cars going to M&K Jct in the background and trains on the M&K branch.
The Kingwood subdivision passes through the Cheat River Canyon between Manheim and the Patriot Prep Mine at MP 8. The M&K Turn is northbound near MP 5 as the evening sun glints off the metal. Many of the rocks in this section of the canyon are the same size or bigger than the SD60s - many of these same rocks were moved by the devasting flood in 1985.
B858-25 is crossing the Cheat River near Preston, WV. The small girders in the middle of the bridge are a replacement for the larger steel girder(s) washed away in the 1985 flood which devestated this line. The building on the left is the Patriot Prep coal coal loader.
Photo by Rich Borkowski Jr. The Patriot Prep mine at MP 8 was a major source of traffic for the Kingwood Subdivision until it's last shipment in Feb of 2000. The NW2 mine switcher in foreground was bought from a nearby shortline, the West Virginia Northern, in the 1990s to help speed the mine's loading process.
Photo by Rich Borkowski Jr. CSX SD70MAC #731 and a ACW44 are passing though Cadell, West Virginia, on a Eastbound B858 turn with loads of coal from Deep Hollow. The lumbermill behind the train is serviced by CSX, as evident by the two boxcars on the plant's siding.
Photo by Rich Borkowski Jr. CSX SD70MAC #716 has the point on an eastbound Deep Hollow Turn as it cruises at track speed through Cadell at the bottom of the Albright grade. The abandoned structures to the left are part of the Karen Mine, which was a major mine on the subdivision until it closed in the 1980s.
The Kingwood Turn has reached the Deep Hollow Mine as the units pull the mine's empties through the S Curve beside the loader. This mine can load cars on the two mine leads at the same time with the help of gravity.
After getting another cut, the units cross Route 26 again to pull upgrade past the switch before backing down onto the siding. Usually this crossing is blocked by at least 12 different moves in half an hour, resulting in a long line of irrate motorists. Fortunately they didn't take their frustrations out on the photographer :)
After making the cuts needed to place the empties, the units head back to the Patriot Prep mine to pick up 75 loads on the siding there before arriving back at Rowlesburg.
Completed in 1907, this line was absorbed by the B&O in 1920, in which it served as a minor through route between M&K Junction and the FM&P line at Morgantown. By the 1940's, fifteen coal mines located on this line provided enough traffic that several turns a day out of M&K and Morgantown were reguired. As the coal reserves gradually began to drain over the years, traffic levels fell with the number of active coal loaders and by the early 1970's, the M&K branch was physically severed between Kingwood, WV, and Reedsville, WV. The western portion of the M & K became the Morgantown SD while the eastern portion became the Kingwood SD. By 1987, the M&K branch had been abandoned from a point just west of Albright towards Kingwood with the remaining section between Albright and M&K Junction remaining intact. Two medium sized mines provided the traffic during that era which the subdivision came to depend upon: the Patriot Prep loader south of Cadell, WV, and the Deep Hollow loader, located at the end of track near Albright. Until the spring of 2000, the Kingwood Sub was usually worked on a five day a week turn with empties being taken to one of the mines and loads brought back to M&K Junction from the other. However, the fate of the Kingwood line began to unfold in the early months of 2000 when Patriot Prep loaded its last train, followed several months later by Deep Hollow which moved its operation to a newly constructed loadout on the West End at 83 Fill. With these mines gone, the Kingwood Subdivision has almost totally become devoid of traffic save for a lumbermill at Caddell which is usually worked once a week and occasional shipments to the nearby Camp Dawson National Guard base. With CSX already preparing to gleam excess trackage from the Allegheny Division, what does the future hold for this subdivision? It's anyones guess really, but better get your photos now...
