Eastern Railroad Discussion > R J Corman South Carolina

 Does anyone have any info on activities of this railroad around Myrtle Beach, Conway, Chadbourn etc?
A friend of mine is travelling to that area and was curious what goes on.
Also is there any other interesting railraod activity around Conway SC?

Thanks

Mike Bannon
St Catharines, ON

I don't know if trackwork is affecting operations at present, but the best I can tell you to pass along to your friend is that the train is on a continuous cycle between Mullins and Conway on any given weekday.  They make roughly two round trips of the line each week.  They will work their 8 hours (which includes any time spent driving to the train from Chadbourn), and tie the train down, resuming their journey the following day.  There are no weekend operations of which I am aware.  Chadbourn is the best place to go to photograph locomotives.  But again, on any given weekday, the train can be anywhere between Mullins and Conway traveling in either direction.  

No other rail activity around that part of the state.  It is really isolated.  There is some local action on CSX around Georgetown, SC at the paper mill.  I can't recall if the steel mill is yet again operating, or mothballed.  If your friend wants busier rail action, advise him to head to Florence, SC for the CSX action there.  RJ Corman is going to be an excercise of following the line and finding the train.  That's what I'd do, but you see my user name... ;-p
 

I have yet to see a Corman move around Conway. I don't know anything about their operating pattern for sure, but I suspect they only operate the line on weekdays. There isn't much business on the Conway end since the power plant was closed and demolished. I would be surprised if Corman sends a train that way every operating day. The line over the Intercoastal Waterway and on into Myrtle Beach is in place, but hasn't seen a train in years. The ex-ACL Myrtle Beach depot is intact and in good condition. The last time I was a train anywhere on the line was years ago when it was operated by the Carolina Southern. That train was in Chadbourn, NC. As info, the Carolina Southern embargoed the line into Conway for a number of years due to bridge problems. This probably drove away any existing shippers. Corman is engaged in an effort to revive the line, and service to Conway has been restored. Whether they will be successful in bringing traffic back remains to be seen. A couple of decades ago, Conway-Myrtle Beach was operated by a tourist railroad called the Waccamaw Coast Line. That's gone, though the tracks remain.
In summary, there's not a lot of railroading in the immediate area.
To the west, the ex SAL East Carolina (EC) Division mainline is operated by CSX. It crosses under US-501 at Rains, SC. There is a large rail-served Vulcan materials quarry in Rains that has its own switchers. These are often visible from public property. Unfortunately, CSX traffic is fairly light on this line-probably only a couple of trains daily, basically long-barrel locals. Corman interchanges with CSX at Mullins, a few miles to the north of Rains via SC-41.
To get any volume, you need to go further west on US-501 towards Florence, which is a tad more than an hour from Myrtle Beach in good traffic. The CSX A-line (ex-ACL) is a key route carrying a mix of intermodal, manifest, bulk, and Amtrak trains. My experience is that the line is busier with freight during the night than during the day, but PSR might have changed patterns. Unless delayed, Amtrak's Silver Star and Auto Train traverse the area at night. However, the Palmetto is a day time train in both directions.
If one is going to drive, the Wilmington, NC area is also a bit over an hour north of Myrtle Beach. Wilmington is a nice city to visit and has both a port and a fair amount of rail served industry. CSX is the only Class 1 show in town, but the company does operate a yard in the area to serve local customers. The NC Ports Authority has a rail operation at the port. At one time they used several FM switchers, but those are, alas, gone I believe. The U.S. government railroad that heads down the south side of the Cape Fear River towards Southport serves the Sunny Point facility and, as I recall, a number of industrial customers.
Another option is to head south to Georgetown, SC, about a 45 minute drive down US-17. CSX has a branch into Georgetown (from the EC-line at Andrews, SC) that serves the port, a power plant, and a paper mill. You might catch a local or a unit train there.
Another 45 minutes will bring you to the outskirts of Charleston, SC, where there is quite a bit of railroad action. CSX serves Charleston via the A-line, while NS reaches the city via a line from Columbia. Both railroads have yards in the Charleston area, and there are quite a few big rail served industries. The Port has its own rail operation, too. Charleston would be the best bet for action RR wise. It also has a lot of attractions for the non-railfan.

Thanks folks!

Mike Bannon
St Catharines, ON

While on "vacation" in North Myrtle Beach this June, I went out on Tuesday the 4th.  In Tabor City, NC, I found RJ Corman with 2 different trains, though only one had a crew.  From there, I continued on to McColl, SC looking for the Pee Dee River RR.  I was hoping to catch them at Tatum, SC passing the depot there, but even at 9am, I was too late, as they were already on their way past it heading back to Bennettsville, which is where I managed to catch them.  From there, I headed to Darlington, SC looking for the South Carolina Central RR.  I managed to catch them just as they arrived at the NUCOR plant in Floyd.  Next I went to Dillon, SC and got 4 trains there in about an hour before heading back to NMB.  So there really is a lot to see around there if willing to drive some.

Additionally, the Laurinburg & Southern; Aberdeen, Carolina, & Western; Aberdeen & Rockfish; and a couple other small shortlines that I forget the name of right now are within a couple hours drive.

Dan