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First Train in Prestonsburg Arrived on November 15, 1904 Fred T. May
A number of railroad companies were formed with plans to serve the Big Sandy region, but as often and they tried they failed. The Chatteroi Railway Company went into receivership in July 1885 and its assets were subsequently purchased in 1889 by the Ohio and Big Sandy Railroad Company. The chief investor in this company was Colis P. Huntington, who had made a fortune from his successful venture as one of the four major stockholders of the Central Pacific Railroad. He built the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad and the city of Huntington, WV is named for him. In 1892 the O&BS RR stock was transferred to the C&O RR. Other ventures between 1890 and 1894 had extended the railroad to Whitehouse in Johnson County. In 1902 construction of the railroad was renewed up the Big Sandy from Whitehouse and in 1907 it was completed to Elkhorn City in Pike County. The first passenger train came to Prestonsburg on November 15, 1904 and to Pikeville on June 5, 1905.
The
note on the following photo states this is the first train up Big
Sandy River, See a larger view of the crowd
Dr.
Hiram Clinton Bevins Great-grandson of Samuel May [1783-1851] Photos courtesy of William B. Bevins, son of Dr. Bevins, and his wife Ann in April 2009
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