Mount Mitchell RR Narrow Gauge Excursion on the Switchback NC NEW 8x10 PHOTO For Sale

Mount Mitchell RR Narrow Gauge Excursion on the Switchback NC
This photo shows one of the nine switchbacks used on this mountain line.Note the sharp downgrade on the left.All these cars are marked Mount Mitchell RR and the picture dates from 1921when the line was operated for excursion only.Mac Connery CollectionThe late Malcom "Mac" Connery (1932-2021) was a professional photographer of Durham NC from 1956 to 2001.
Connery Photography specialized in traditional, black and white film photography of children and families using the vignette style. Mac worked with dedicated agents and loyal customers throughout North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. He rail-fan throughout this area and West Virginia photographing locomotives. He also produced professional 4x5 copy negatives of photographs he had collected over the years.
Mac and I had corresponded and traded photographs, negatives, research and locomotive rosters for over 30 years. He allowed me to scan a small portion of his huge 4x5 copy negatives collection over the course of ten years. I also own a small portion of his original 120 size (6x7cm) negatives of short line and industrial locomotives that he shot with his Mamiya 6x7 7 RB Camera.
This railway was built by the Dickey & Campbell Lumber Company, to reach the virgin
timber in the Black Mountains of Western North Carolina. Construction started in 1911
at Black Mountain City, NC and climbed 21 miles of three foot gauge track up the ridge
using sharp curves and nine switchbacks with a maximum grade of 5.25 percent. D&C
built a large band mill at Black Mountain City which was served by Southern Railway.
The Perley & Crockett Lumber Company (of Williamsport, PA) purchased the mill,
railroad and lands of the D&C on November 17, 1913 and rebuilt the mill to handle up
to 110,000 feet of lumber a day. There was over 300 million board feet of timber available
on their tracts, with Spruce and Balsam being the most important. Around 1914
the railroad had climbed to Camp Alice, which was located near the summit of Mount
Mitchell. The logging line used two Shays and five Climaxes while the standard gauge
mill trackage was switched by an ancient Cooke 0-4-0.
Early on, the P&C company found that they could run excursions over their railroad for the paying
vacationers who ventured to the mountains during the summer to get away from the hot conditions
of the flat lands. These trains operated every summer until 1918, when the war effort, meeting maximum production of Spruce lumber, forced their cancellation. Spruce was used in the manufacturing of fighter planes. The excursions returned in 1919.The State of North Carolina stepped up pressure on the company in an effort to save some of the scenic forest for a state park. P&C stopped lumber cutting in 1920 and sold their railroad and equipment to the Mount Mitchell Scenic Railroad. This railroad had a short life, shutting down after the 1921 season in favor of a toll road. The rails and equipment were sold to nearby logging operations.The toll road was built mostly over the former narrow gauge railroad which was only wide enough for
one car. This road had to be operated one way up the mountain in the morning and one way down the
mountain in the afternoon.
Roster
1 Shay Lima 2512 /1912 36” Gauge New. Sold to Rapides Lumber 1
2 Shay Lima 2568/1912 36” Gauge New. Sold to Natwick Nixon Co.
3 B-35 Climax ? ? 36” Gauge
4 B-42 Climax ? /1913 36” Gauge new to Blackwood Lbr Co., East LaPorte, NC
5 B-42 Climax 1235 1913 36” Gauge new to Suncrest Lbr #4 Sunburst NC,
to Blackwood Lbr Co., East LaPorte, NC
6 0-4-0 Cooke 1056/1879 Stnd Gauge used to switch mill
7 Climax 1319 /1914 36” Gauge New. Sold to Blackwood Lbr Co.
8 Climax 1321 /1914 36” Gauge New. Sold to Suncrest Lbr Co.
NEW 8x10FULL FRAME PHOTO FROM ORIGINAL 616 NEGATIVE
I COMBINE SHIPPING ON MULTIPLE ORDERS. JUST WAIT FOR MY INVOICE.
I do 5x8 because it fits best for the 616 and 122 size negative formats without cropping.The TAPLINES RAILROAD PHOTOGRAPHY watermark will not be on the finished photographs.
I always ship with tracking and with cardboard photo mailers.If you would like a DIFFERENT size print, just let me know.
Or if you need just one or two of the photos listed I can list them as a separate listing.
I can make5X7 or print).
I will then list it as a special buy it now just for you.I can also do special requests, mix and match the photos as needed.
All photos are printed by myself on ULTRA PRO GLOSS Paper on a Canon Proo-100 printer.
All prints are made fresh when ordered.
I've been photographing, collecting and printing railroad steam locomotive negatives since 1984!UltraPro is a resin coated,from any inkjet printer, including ones that use pigment inks.Prints will have bright, bold colors and ultra sharp details and bright white papers like
UltraPro are particularly good at reproducing deep blacks and higher contrast.
Your black & white photos will be neutral and crisp.
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