The MGA Mine District - The former Monongahela Railway's Coal Fields

The MGA Mine District was created in the summer of 1999, following the takeover of the Consolidated Rail Corporation, Conrail, by CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern. Norfolk Southern gained ownership of the MGA Mine District's lines as a result of the merger, with CSX obtaining equal access rights to all present and future shippers in the district.

Although it encompasses less than 200 miles of track, this district is one of the most productive regions for CSX and NS in terms of tonnage generated by seven active mines in 1999. However, the history of these lines and it's name, the MGA, go back to the opening years of the 20th century, when Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was becoming the nation's largest industrial center. Enormous amounts of coal were needed to fire the town's growth, which had been discovered in the Upper Monongahela River valley several decades earlier. To transport this vital mineral, the Monongahela Railroad, later changed to Railway, was chartered in 1900 to serve this role - which the MGA did for over ninety years until it's takeover by Conrail in the late spring of 1993. During much of those nine decades, the Monongahela faced many rough times due to the contradictory and uncertain coal market, while incidently reaching the pinnacle of success during it's last year of operation. For the purposes of this section, we'll look at the major lines and branches of the current district in detail. The West Division between West Brownsville, PA, and Blacksville, WV, appears gray on the map at right, while the East Division between Brownsville, PA, and Fairview, WV, is shown in red on the map. Inaddition, the overall history of the MGA Mine District from 1900 to 2000 is covered in the Passing Years section, with photos of the Monongahela before it began to lose it's identity in the mid 1970s. Although the Monongahela Railway's locomotives and logo have disappeared, much of it's heritage and lines still survive in the hills and valleys around the Mason Dixion line, where coal still reigns king...

	Loveridge Secondary - Consisting of the Monongahela's original line south of Brownsville, the former East Division stretches nearly eighty miles to Fairview, West Virginia. A water level line that follows the Monongahela River for most of its route, the majority of its traffic currently consists of through CSX trains moving between Rivesville and Brownsville.
Mon Line - At one time a collection of various branches south of West Brownsville, the railroad has since been consolidated into a single line. Upgraded in the mid 90s with CTC to handle expanding traffic levels, the Mon Line between Waynesburg and West Brownsville is currently the most active section of the former Monongahela Railway.
	Waynesburg Southern - Designated a coal secondary branch, the Southern extends twenty seven miles south from Waynesburg to Blacksville, West Virginia, tapping two large coal mines south of the Mason Dixon Line. Although the amount of trains can usually be counted on one hand, the railroad is often considered the most scenic of the lines of the MGA's former West Division.
Manor Branch - One of the most photographed lines of the district, the Manor Branch is a fourteen mile long heavy tonnage coal line between Waynesburg and Bailey Mine near Time. On average the branch may see as many as eighteen mine turns a day, along with helpers on loaded trains moving north from Bailey.
	The Passing Years - A look back at the history of the older Monongahela, from its beginning during the early 20th century through its many expansions and abandonments to its present day form. Included are many superb classic photos from Kevin Scanlon and Terry Arbogast, documenting the age when Baldwin Sharks and S12 switchers were the main stay of the MRY.
District Train Symbols - A listing of the current Mine Turn symbols used by Norfolk Southern in the Monongahela coal fields.

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